The Junior Ranger in all of us

 Being a Junior Ranger is about growth, honesty and respecting nature. And although we haven't been pledged in, based on our experience thus far, we believe that there is a Junior Ranger in all of us. 

We have learned many a life lesson while on the road, like how to pivot plans when circumstances change, what to do when you are lost, and how to get by without a working camp stove. 

The first thing we do when we arrive at any park is to head straight to the visitor center. He have found that Rangers are extremely helpful, and so are their maps and resources. When we spoke to the Ranger at Zion Canyon National Park he told us some concerning news. The famous Narrows hike, a strenuous walk upstream through a slot canyon, was closed due to a flash flood and if it opened, the water would be up to our shoulders. This was the primary hike we were planning on doing in Zion, so we had to pivot our plans. We asked a bunch more questions, getting a little bit more information than we asked for, and left the Ranger feeling more educated and empathetic towards what middle management can do to a person. 

Our next step was to look at our map and discuss what other hikes we wanted to go on. We made a schedule for the next couple of days and headed towards our campsite (an hour away) to rest and prepare for the next day. Although we lacked service at our campsite, it was very nice with built shade, a fire pit with a couple remnants of logs, and a tree to place our tent under. That night and the next morning we fought to build a fire big enough to cook our meals over, as our camp stove was still good it if commission. It was a bitter fight, but you should see the other guy (he's burnt to an even crisper crisp!). 

For our day hikes, we drove first over to Kolob Canyon, a lesser known subsection of Zion. We appreciated it's quiet beauty. The powerful mountains were unobstructed by tour busses and the crowds that follow. After a short hike, we drive to Zion, begging for an open parking spot. After about 20 minutes of looping through the rows, a kind Floridian family offered their spot as they had finished for the day. 

They looked away before we could finish thanking them through our window, unbothered and unaware of their impact on our opportunity to explore the park. Another battle won, once again with help from our community. 

That afternoon, we did the river walk up to the start of the Narrows. Despite not being able to get very far along in the water, we were able to at least dip our knees in for a refreshing breather. Although we weren't able to do the entire hike as expected, we are glad to have at least gone this far. Sometimes the best you can do is roll with the punches and get what you can out of the experience! 

After a long shuttle bus ride, it was back to our campsite to once more face the fire. Due to our previous success, we decided to 'meal prep' 8 potatoes in case we were not able to start another fire for the foreseeable future. Although things were off to a rocky start and we may have fumigated the nearby car, it was another win! 

The next day, we struggled with our second issue: maps. It has been a long held issue of ours, being completely incapable of properly reading a map. Normally we have help in this aspect from hiking buddies but on this trip, we have been on our own. 

We started the day with the Emerald Pools loop, which as the name suggests included hiking to three different grottos offering spectacular views of emerald hues, water falls, and calming environments. When we were leaving the uppermost pool, we realized we had no idea where to go next. With hopes that others did, we abandoned the map and back tracked until we found other hiking up. So honestly, still didn't learn how to read a map but found other ways to problem solve. We will keep working on the map department, it gets better each hike. 

After the Emerald Pools, we did a couple smaller trails, visited the park's museum (and gift shop!) before doing the Watchmen Trail. This was a beautiful hike up to the base of Watchmen peak, one of the more iconic points in Zion. After seeing much of the park, we headed back to our campsite to prepare for days to come. 

On the way home, we called our Dad (shout out Dad!) to ask for some help with our camp stove. He graciously offered to video call us while we were still in range of cell service to finally put our issues to bed. After showing him our process, he asked if it had enough gas. This was something we had confidently brushed aside. We still didn't think that was the issue as we almost completely refilled the canister, but alas (as many of you may suspect) that was the issue. 😮‍💨😮‍💨😮‍💨

We grew a lot in learning to double check, and being humble when others point out our follies. And honestly, we couldn't figure out how to fix our camp stove without our Dad. (Thanks Dad!) 

Throughout our entire road trip, we have counted many lessons, reconsidered perceptions, and grown as people. This has all been possible due our experiences celebrating and respecting nature. We have found unique and rich views around every corner and pocket of our trail. Although we still haven't learned how to read a map, we know we can find beauty in every nook and cranny along our way! That's what it means to be a Junior Ranger: we are growing, being honest with our experiences, and respecting nature. And honestly? We ask for so much help. We wouldn't know where to go and what to do without the help of more experienced rangers.