2013 ARIZONA HIGH ADVENTURE

Posted by Dillon E.

We left about noon Friday morning and cracked jokes all the way down to Salt Lake City.  We even passed the same porta-potty semi-truck four times! We ate lunch at Costco in Missoula, MT.

After a late dinner at In-n-Out Burger, we crashed at one of Mr. Grimm’s old scout’s apartment.  After a restless night on the floor of the apartment, we piled in the van and napped all the way to Zion National Park.  Shortly after arriving we took a short hike to the Emerald Pools and did a little climbing.  Everywhere we could, we took our courageous friend Flat Riley with us.

On the bus ride back to our van, a few specific Scouts made friends with a Canadian girl.  After leaving our Canadian friend we continued on our journey south to the north rim of the Grand Canyon.  We arrived there at sunset and strolled down to the nearest viewpoint where we watched the sunset.  While watching the sun disappear over the canyon, we encountered a proud American who exclaimed “Do what you want, do what you need, it’s a free country”, to which our fearless leader replied, “Thanks”.

When dark came upon us, we took refuge within our van where we “camped” for the night.   We arose before the sun and took a quick hike down to Bright Angel Point where we watched the sun light up the canyon walls.

On the road again, we voted to take a drive through Las Vegas where we saw many interesting things and took many pictures.  From there, we travelled a short time to the impeccable concrete structure called the Hoover Dam.  We took time to explore the dam, which many of us had only seen pictures of.  We took many pictures to show our families back home.

On the road again, we drove the historic Route 66 to the world renowned Cavern Inn.  After a refreshing shower, a filling dinner, and a quick pack check, we went to bed in preparation for an early start.

In the morning, we started early around four and drove to the Hualapai hilltop.  While waiting for the adults to collaborate, we were entertained by a tubby Indian who made fun of Daniel and his “Mom-packed front pack”, as stated by the Indian.  We pushed through our strenuous 11 plus mile hike, making it to our beautiful destination just in time for lunch.  We played in the river and explored some nearby caves.  We met some nice college girls and our SPL took time to show them the caves.

The next morning, we got up and hiked down to Havasu Falls where we played in the crystal clear water until lunch time.  We went back to camp and devoured a nutritious lunch.  Feeling refueled, we took the adventurous hike down to the Mooney Falls.  We adventurously swam into the powerful waterfall.

Back in camp, a few courageous Scouts decided to journey back to the village with our fearless leader, Wolfgang Grimm, to retrieve his hat which he had foolishly left at the check-in area.  After having some refreshing snacks, we walked back to camp and checked in for the night.

The next morning, we woke with the sun and prepared for a long hike to Beaver Falls.  Quickly after we left on the hike, we passed Mooney Falls and continued down the river.  Nearing the end of a rigorous hike we thought we had arrived at Beaver Falls, but we quickly realized it was not Beaver Falls.  Either way, it was time to turn around.  We hiked back to Mooney Falls where we took a quick dip and cooled off.

While swimming, a squirrel, for the second time, got into our charming Senior Patrol Leader’s backpack hunting for his trail mix.  The  second half of the day was spent jumping into the crystal clear water of Havasu Falls.

Arriving back in camp, we swiftly prepared for the hike we would embark upon early the next morning.  A powerful thunderstorm brewing up the canyon made it a restless night.   We woke up at three the next morning and broke camp quickly to escape the impending heat of the desert sun.  With the challenge of the impending heat and the long uphill hike, we used the motivation of a real shower to help us make our hiking time goal.

Arriving at the van, we headed back to the motel where we previously stayed in order to tour the underground caverns there.  After discussing it over lunch as a group, we decided to stay another night in the motel.  After the Cavern tour we headed to our rooms.  Upon cleaning the van and getting our things packed away, we realized there was a pool.  We proceeded to have fun in the swimming pool and lounge, resting from the long hike. While lounging, we had an intriguing conversation with a long time employee of the Cavern’s owners.

Upon learning the location of a Laundromat, a few scouts volunteered to go do all of our laundries so we would smell fresh for the long car ride home.  When we completed the laundry, we headed back to the motel for, once again, a short nights’ sleep.  

We woke up and piled in the van to make the drive to Monument Valley, which was very impressive.  We set up camp and immediately turned to the mountains to explore.  While returning to camp, a few scouts and Mr. Grimm sparked up a conversation with a family from France.  We helped them plan the rest of their trip within the U. S.  We also compared our cultures and a lot of other things.  It was a great experience for both of us.  Our friendly Senior Patrol Leader quickly became friends with the youngest daughter of the family and seized the opportunity to exchange contact information with her.

After talking for hours- well into the next morning- we decided to get to bed.  By the time we were zipping up the tents, the lingering storm decided to dump on us.  Despite the intense storm, we slept well and rose early to get on the road.

We talked further with the Magnus family, took showers, and then hit the road once again.  We made a few stops to rest and stopped at a Native American vendor so a few Scouts could purchase some handmade Navajo jewelry for the missed loved ones.  It was a day full of driving and many jokes.