Is 2012 Your Year to Experience The West?

Each year as we celebrate the dawning of a new year, we set our goals and intentions for this baby year.  Most of the intentions are based on what you want in your career, your abundance, your health, or that elusive, perfect partner.

This year set an intention to give yourself a gift.  A gift of exploring somewhere you have never visited.  Set the intention to learn about and immerse yourself in a different culture.  Set an intention to get out of your comfort zone and take an adventure into a place you have never ventured.

Do you see yourself sitting in a resort by the pool, reading a book, or lying by the sea while the kids play in the sand?  Is this a real adventure?  Is this really the vacation of your dreams? Or is it your regular summer trip – the way you have always done it?

Let’s set the intention this year of really shaking up your summer plans.  How about soaring through the trees in the mountains of Colorado or Montana on a zip line?

Or a sail plane flight lifting you on the thermals surrounding the mountains as the sun peaks over their tops?  Or a whitewater raft trip soaring across the tops of the whitecaps on a roaring western river? Or a real western roundup on a working ranch in Idaho or Wyoming? Or climbing a Fourteener in Colorado? Or hiking to a high mountain lake for a day of fishing or reading a good book? Or riding a mountain bike on a single track through the forest in the mountains? Or soaking in a secluded hot springs after a day of hiking?

If any of these begin to get your juices flowing, I have more suggestions and would be happy to help you really get your imagination going for your special trip in 2012.

Simply comment below with your dreams for your 2012 special trip and I will help make those dreams come true.  What better way to see the trip of your lifetime become real than with an expert on planning adventure trips all over the west guiding your magic carpet?  Your wish is my command in trip planning.  No idea is too off the wall.  No thought is impossible.  With a bit of digging into your desires and wishes, I will have your special trip outlined for you to put on your intention list for 2012.

Your next step is to see yourself doing everything in the itinerary.  Put yourself in the raft bucking through the rapids.  Insert you on the horse doing the cattle roundup on that ranch, let the wind blow through your hair as you soar through the forest in the mountains on a zip line.  Actually feel each of the activities as you are doing them.  Laugh, scream, gasp, pump your fist and let out a holler at the top of your lungs.  You are there, you are living the experience, you are alive.

Now you are ready to take the leap of faith and actually schedule this trip of your dreams.  At the end of 2012 you will have the best memories, pictures and happy thoughts generated as you lived these experiences.  Live your life today.  Get out and see the world.  Experience living as it is meant to be lived.  You can do this.

I will not only paint the picture of your dream trip, I will help you to make it an actuality.  This is what I do, I have trips designed for individuals and families already planned and scheduled for departure in 2012.  I am helping them to live their dreams.  My expertise in making this happen for you gets my juices going.  All you have to do is schedule your flights to the departure city in the West and I take care of the rest.  Are you ready to step out of your comfort zone, live the dream you have always wanted in a vacation?  Well here’s your opportunity.  Simply email, call or make a comment below and I will help you.  Thank you and looking forward to sharing my love of the West with you, this is how I make my living and I love it!

I am happy to help you realize your dreams, how may I serve?

Posted in Alaska, Alberta, Americana, Arizona, California, Colorado, Grand Canyon, Hiking, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Off The Beaten Path, Oregon, River Rafting, Scenic Byway, Tourism, Travel | Leave a comment

UFO In Smith Fork?

An interesting event occurred on one of our journeys a few years ago.  We were on a hiking, camping, boating trip in Northern Arizona and Southern Utah in late September.  Our journey had taken us into Grand Gulch Wilderness area to backpack for a number of days to enjoy this beautiful area.

Camping under the Cottonwood trees alongside the creek in Kane Gulch, we enjoyed cold fall evenings and sleeping in our down sleeping bags was very enjoyable.

A few days into our trip and after having visited many of the Anasazi cliff dwellings and rock art, we reluctantly departed this special place for our next adventure – Lake Powell.

We had contracted with Bull Frog Marina to rent a speedboat to load our gear into and find one of the canyons on the lake that had a slot canyon at its head for us to hike into.

After doing some research, it seemed as though Smith Fork was suitable to our hiking requirements.  Diving from Grand Gulch to Lake Powell and Bull Frog necessitated us taking the ferry across the lake to the Marina.  We timed our arrival with the ferry’s scheduled departure.

Lake Powell was cold and clear, the weather was sunny with little wind so our lake journey was going to be perfect.

After going through the rental process and the loading of all our camping gear into the boat we headed out.  The day was still young and we decided to do some exploring.  As you may know, Lake Powell is like the Grand Canyon filled with water.  So many side canyons go off of the main channel that you can spend days if not months cruising up and down these many side canyons.

Our objective, Smith Fork, finally came into view and we turned into this channel.  Smith Fork winds around many huge rock formations and as we traveled up the canyon we say a few fisherman and one houseboat in the area.

Click here to watch video

 

 

After some time the canyon began to get narrower and narrower until we could touch the sides of the canyon walls on both sides of the boat.  The water also got more shallow as the canyon narrowed.

We raised the motor and hand pushed out boat to the shore, climbed ashore and began out hike up this slot canyon.  Wow, what an experience. It was a bit like being in Antelope Canyon for all of those who have hike Antelope.

Parts of the canyon widened out for a bit, however, the hike continued to climb in elevation.  At one point we had to scramble up a shoot but most of the hike was easy.

After a couple of miles, we reached a point where there was a pour off, and our hike came to an end.

Returning to the boat we noticed our sun was much lower in the sky, so we decided to take the boat back down Smith Fork to one of the sandy beaches we saw on our way up the canyon and set up camp.

After a camp style dinner and a small fire to roast marshmallows and make smores we relived our experiences around the campfire. I got up to go around the rock formation that separated us from our camp and the boat.  To my surprise and amazement – - the sky was shimmering red!  I stood with my mouth open for a few minutes, collecting my thoughts before I called out to my companions to see this phenomena.

It was the most amazing sight any of us had ever seen.  We stared at it for the longest time.  We blurted out what we thought it could be.  One said a forest fire, one a UFO, one a sun spot reflection, and I, having grown up in Minnesota, said the Northern Lights – Aurora Borealis.

Click here to watch video

 

 

After a period of time enjoying this site, the lights faded and dark settled in on us.  Our excitement continued, however as we sat around out campfire and talked about what had just occurred.

The next day, we packed up our gear and began exploring other canyons and did a couple of hikes up other slot canyons.  Later we turned in our boat and traveled back to Flagstaf for dinner.  In Flagstaff we found that our evening sky sighting had made the news.  According to what was being spread around, it was the Aurora Borealis, a rare sighting this far south.

We all liked the UFO story we had conjured up the best however and are sticking to it.

Posted in Americana, Arizona, Environment, Grand Canyon, Hiking, Travel, Utah | Leave a comment