West Rim Girls

The West Rim Trail is one of my favorite places on earth.  I was pretty disappointed when our late April reservation got snowed out, so I booked another spot for the beginning of June.  It worked out well because Brooklyn missed the  youth backpacking trip in May but was able to come this time.  Our friend Jamie also joined in the fun.  Ms. Delfin is our favorite art teacher at West!  Not only is her classroom fantastic, but she is always up for adventure.

Brooklyn's last hiking hurrah before graduation.

Mother-daughter selfies

We ran into some park rangers at the trailhead who wanted to see our permits.  Sure glad we had them!  They also warned us that thunder showers had been passing through every afternoon.  Indeed, their predictions were correct.  We hiked through rain and hail until we were soaked through.

Fortunately the weather cleared in time for us to dry out a bit and see some of the best vistas.

BYU Cougar in a Utes hat.  What has this world come to?

This friendly deer welcomed us to our campsite.

Chilled from all the rain, we were grateful for our extra layers.

Amazing sunset...

...coupled with a beautiful moon rise.

Our camp in the morning light.

On the trail again.  Gosh, I kind of wish I could spend every morning like this.  Keep your fancy mansions--I want trees and wildflowers.

One-on-one time with my kids is always precious, but even more so as they grow.

The desert blooming like a rose.

Girl gumption!  While both Jamie and I have amazing husbands that we adore, it's empowering to recognize that we women can have adventures without them.   While I certainly prefer to backpack with Jason, work and church obligations keep him super busy.  Life's too short to put on hold until he's available.  There's so much world to see!

Wrapping up with some cute animal photos.  The chipmunks at Scout's Lookout were super cheeky but adorable.  Just don't leave your pack unattended!  They will chew through it in no time.

Thanks Brooklyn and Jamie for the best backpacking weekend!  Hope to do it again some time.