Capital Reef Campout

Every year after the Marshall/Thorsted campout Annie and I say next year we are going for 2 nights.  And Derek never wants to do it.  This year, he said he would go for two nights if we went to Capital Reef National Park.  So you guessed it the Thorsted/Marshal annual campout was in Capital Reef National Park this year.  The Watkins decided to join in on the fun and we all had a blast together.

Annie and I left at 7am with Ander and my twins to try to reserve a two camp spots in the Fruita Campground together.  Derek, Tyler, Jens, and Liv decided to head down after school.  I guess Jens is not a fan of missing school.  I gave Liv the option, but they were having this All About Me poster presentation day in her class that day and she did not want to miss it (good thing too because after we go the car all packed up there wasn't any room for her in the car anyways).
The Watkins left about the same time as them.

The drive down was good.  Ander played games on his phone and the boys were pretty good watching movies.  Annie and I enjoyed good conversation.  As we got closer to the national park I started to get a little anxious that the campground would be full.  But, we lucked out and found two campsites right next to a shallow river that the kids all had fun playing in.  There wasn't a ton of shade, but I still think it was the best site to be had and we had plenty of room for our 3 families to spread out.

Annie and I had a good day with our boys.  They entertained themselves with sticks for hours.  They put on a good little dance show on this little stage by the campground.

 It was pretty hot that day setting up camp and hanging in no shade.  We walked over to Gifford house and bought the boys ice cream that they enjoyed on the grass while watching deer graze all around us.

They have pies of every kind and Annie and I decided that was going to be our dinner.  We let the boy explore and climb some rocks near the campground.  They did not want to stop.

Then for lunch we went into town so we could get cell service to communicate with the boys about a few things we forgot.  Shakers burger joint and a Dr. Pepper hit the spot on that hot day.  Then, Annie, and I convinced the boys to hike to Hickman Bridge under the guise that there were be loads  more rocks to climb on.  It was hot at the start and Carter found every ounce of shade that could be found. Camden wore his vest and collected rocks the entire way.  He was packing quite a few pounds by the end of the hike.  If he started lagging behind he we call up to me Mom, "RED LIGHT! RED LIGHT!"  and then I would stop and wait for him and when he would catch me.  He'd grab my hand and say "GREEN LIGHT!"  It was pretty much adorable.

As we got up into the rocks the boys made us stop every few minutes to climb the rocks.

They honestly loved every minute of it, though it took us forever to get to the bridge that way.

There were all these cool cavers with and lots of sand to play in.  
 The bridge was awesome and the view of the valley on the way back was gorgeous.
  The boys wanted to stay and admire that for a while.

 Then, we headed back to camp, but sadly got done so late that the Gifford House had closed, which meant no pie.  Shortly, after we got back from camp everyone else arrived and we finished getting the rest of the tents up.  That day happened to be National Park Founder's Day so they had a special program on the history of the National Parks at the amphitheater that night.  Very historical and boring in my opinion, but Derek loved it.

The next morning, we got up (Carter was the last one to wake up and I had to take a picture of his cute sleeping self in the tent.)  

Then, we had muffins and fruit for breakfast and then I volunteered to take all the little kids on a hike through the grand wash while all the other adults and older kids hiked to Cassidy Arch.  I parked my car at one end and we planned to hike to the other end and pick up one of the cars the rest of the group had parked for their hike (which started at the other end of the Grand Wash) and drive back to camp.  

I quickly realized that the Cassidy Arch hikers would beat us back when we once again stopped every couple minutes for the kids to explore and climb rocks.  I was so grateful for Ander who decided to come with me at the last minute to help keep all the littles in line.  He was a huge help.

  We had one scary event where Liv lost her balance and almost felt down a very steep rocky hill, but luckily her foot caught in a branch holding her dangling head first where I quickly scaled the mountain to rescue her.  We ran into bats and big horned sheep and loads of lizards which the kids all loved.  At one point on the hike it dawned on me that it was pretty crazy that I was on a hike alone with 6 little kids.  I asked the next hiker we passed to take a picture of all of us.  This is one of my favorite shots from the weekend.  It sums up the crazy.  

At the end of the Wash we met up with the rest of the group.  Derek took off in his truck with some people and the rest of us planned to cram into the Watkins van, but it true Marshall/Thorsted Campout fashion the van would not start.  Something always seems to go wrong on every single one of our campouts and this year it was the Watkins car battery going bad.  There was a couple starting their hike that tried to jump the car, but with no luck.  And we had no cell service to get a hold of Derek to let us know that we were stuck.  Luckily, that couple offered to give me a ride back to camp and then Derek went to rescue the others.  Then, all the boys went to town to get a new battery which they were able to find along with a nice guy who lent them the tools they needed to replace it (and they stopped at Shakers for a Burger).  It was a hot job and took a little time, but they got the battery replaced and the van started!

The kids spent all that time playing in the river getting soaked.  Everyone made turkey sandwiches for lunch. Then, we bought them all ice cream again at the Gifford house.  Annie and I had big plans for pie again, but all that was left was apple pie which didn't sounds appealing at all.  So we all headed into town for pizza.  That evening the girls and Jens and Kenzie hiked Kolob Canyon and checked out the view point over the valley from that angle.  It was a speedy hike.  We were racing the sun, but got to the top just as the sun was setting and back to camp just as it was getting dark.

The next morning was Sunday.  Bagels and cream cheese for breakfast.  We packed up camp and drove to the trailhead for Capital Gorge.  That drive alone is magnificent.  The hike was neat too in a narrow slot canyon.  We hiked up to what is called the tanks little pools of water formed in the rocks.  The kids all got so excited about the teeny frogs they caught hopping around the tanks.  Then, since it was Sunday we decided it would be best to hold a little devotional to make it feel like the Sabbath.  We said a prayer, sang a song, and then Annie read from the Bible about the creation.  The kids sat so quietly that I'm tempted to attend church in a slot canyon from here on out.  It was a neat little moment where we all reflected on how grateful we were to be able to enjoy the beautiful world our Heavenly Father and Savior created for us.

Back at the trailhead they had a covered picnic area that we monopolized and made sandwiches for everyone again.  Then, we stopped by the Gifford house one last time, and finally got our pie!  I got strawberry rhubarb an it was okay.  Next, it was a stop at the Visitors Center for the kids to earn their junior ranger badge. 

 They were so cute talking to the ranger and saying their pledge.  Lastly, we did the petroglyph walk and then it was home again home again.  Annie and I rode home together with all my kids and Derek and Tyler drove his truck with Ander and Jens.