Rappelling Cassidy Arch

A few weeks ago, my husband and two of my boys drove down to Capitol Reef National Park so they could explore and rappel through Cassidy Arch Canyon. It's a popular and highly rated canyon just off the Scenic Drive in the park.

The 1.5 mile approach starts at a busy little parking lot. There were a lot of people on the trail, but no one in the canyon.

They worked hard to take care of the pre-rappel jitters.

The hike up is a little strenuous, but not too bad. The elevation gain is about 800 feet in about 1.5 miles.

The first view of Cassidy Arch from the trail.

This is a view of the arch looking back towards the trail.

My son on rappel! This is the first rappel, right next to the arch, looking from the top. The rappel is 132' and nearly all of it is through the air under the arch. It's a little nerve-wracking to get on the rope the first time.

This is the same rappel but looking up from the canyon below.

The second rappel is just a steps away down canyon. It's another 130-footer. Here is Talmage again, going down the 2nd rappel.

Everett waiting his turn to go down.

Finally, his turn comes!

My husband on the same rappel, but looking up from the canyon below.

The next few rappels were pretty short.

And then there was this fantastic rappel through a little natural bridge and into a little cove below.

A few little down-climbs...

...and scrambling through an amazing boulder field...

...before hiking a half-mile back to the car.

On the way out of the canyon, they stopped to look at the entrance to a few caves. These are abandoned uranium mines.

Before heading home, they drove to a canyon called "Old School" a little farther down Hwy 24. They waded across the Fremont River (not quite knee deep) and hiked up a fairly steep boulder-strewn hill. Then they dropped into this little slot.

There was only one mandatory rappel in the canyon. It was a little tricky because there was a pothole full of water about half-way down. With a little work, they all made it down without falling into the water.

Possibly the highlight of the trip was stopping for dinner at the Hot Spot in Salina. My husband, the erstwhile healthy eater, can't stop talking about the deep-fried tater tots.

Comments

Visiting Susquehanna: The Priesthood Restoration Site

On our way home from Palmyra, we decided to go a couple of hours out of our way to visit the recently opened Priesthood Restoration Site along the Susquehanna River. This is where we believe that Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery received the keys of the Aaronic Priesthood from John the Baptist which gave them the authority to baptize. This site also has the restored Isaac and Elizabeth Hale home where Joseph and Emma lived for a year as well as the home where Joseph and Emma lived on their own. We spent a couple of hours there and I wouldn't have minded a few more minutes but we had a long way to go that night. It's a beautiful setting, very much in rural Pennsylvania. However, on the day we were there, cars at a racetrack nearby were detracting from the peace and quiet. I'm guessing that's not as big of a problem on weekdays. The Hale Family was quite well-off for their day so their home was probably nicely decorated with wallpaper and carpet. ...

Book Review: Out of My Mind by Sharon Draper

This is a juvenile fiction book about a young girl named Melody with severe cerebral palsy. Her body doesn't allow her to feed herself, speak, or do much at all. She's very intelligent with a photographic memory but she can't really communicate. Finally, in 5th grade, she gets a "Medi-Talker" which is a computer that speaks what she types in. Finally she has a voice. This book explores what it is like to be severely physically disabled but not mentally disabled. It seems like one of the most frustrating of all scenarios. She is completely aware of all the cruelty (subtle and otherwise) that her classmates inflict on her because they don't really want to include her in their activities. One of the saddest moments in the book comes when she realizes that every one of her special ed classmates is kind, where the "normal" ones are not. Who really has the worse disability? The book was a quick read and fairly enjoyable. Wha...

Nauvoo Pageant!

I have been a negligent blogger this last month. My reason is that we have been super busy. At the end of July, we went to the Nauvoo Pageant. We were able to participate once again in the Gold Cast like we did in 2007 and 2014. We picked up our daughter at the end of her cross country camp in Price, Utah on our way out of town. Then we drove to our friends' house in Golden, Colorado near Denver to stay the night. It was fun to reconnect if only briefly. The next night we were in Lawrence, Kansas, visiting my brother and sister-in-law and their family. That was also fun but short. We left the next morning, attending nearby church before taking off. We arrived in Nauvoo around 4pm with just enough time to have dinner at our cabin before going to our orientation at the pageant building. The next day we went to the pageant building to get our costumes and to learn how to do our hair in the 1840 styles. ...

Search This Blog