Green Canyon

Camping! Green Canyon isn't very far from out house...okay it is like 4 miles so that makes it easy to just go camping. Right? We got up there around 11:30am and put up our tent so we would have a place. Then we went home and packed the car and ate lunch. Pam and kids met us there around 1:30pm. I had noticed that there were signs all over that said no campfires although in the past we have always had a campfire and there is a fire ring at each camping spot. So I located the number for the rangers...they said there is a ban on all National Parks in the State of Utah for campfires, including Green Canyon even if there is a fire ring at our campsite. GREAT, now we will have to eat hotdogs a different way and smores will be toasted on a camp-stove. Yum. And what about all the fire wood I just cut for a few hours that morning? UHHGG....BUT one good thing, while cutting firewood I found my lost cell phone! It was in the wheelbarrow? Zombies put it there I just know it.

 So we get there and see a sign that says, 7th ward Father Son Overnighter! Great, now we will have boys everywhere! Later when walking to the bathroom with my girls we pass a little boy and his dad and he says, "Hey I thought only boys were allowed!" That was funny. Well, we really didn't see them the rest of the time because we were having so much fun at our own campsite.They did all have campfires though.

The kids were hungry and it was HOT by early afternoon! It didn't rain despite the ominous clouds above and it was bit windy. We drank all our water and then found out that the water at the park didn't work! UHHGG, good thing we only live down the hill so we drove home and filled all the water bottles again and grabbed a jug of water.
It didn't get dark till after nine so we played with the glow sticks and that was that.
When it was time for sleeping we tried to wipe most of the dirt off the little people and then they were instantly asleep in our tents, amazing. I read a book for a few more hours.

Hiking up the steep hill to the cave!

 Coming back down.

 Look at that view!

 In the cave it is black because someone burned a mattress and made a fire pit.

 ROCK!

 This is before they got dirty...later they were little brown people running around the forest.

The landslide where most of the dirt comes from. When I changed the little buggers diaper a whole shovel full of dirt was hiding in his pants. He had so much dirt on his face you could only see his eyes. He just couldn't keep his hands out of the dirt. He was in heaven!

 The wonderful adventurous campers in the next tent.

 I am cold.

 I am tired.

 I found a spiders next.

 I can climb big rocks with my cousin.

 Glow sticks at night!

Now the night time story. What were we thinking, Camping up Green Canyon all alone with 8 children? What would we do in an emergency? What was up with the people that talk so loud past midnight when everyone is trying to sleep? !!!!

 A bunch of college kids decided to sleep in the cave. They didn't know that if you talk in the cave then it echoes all over the canyon and especially at night you can hear whatever is said in there like you were standing right next to them. The college kids decide to play a get to know you game. Now I know all of them personally from listening to their game! "If you could change one thing about how your parents raised you what would it be?", "What is your least favorite food?" Lots of laughing and then it almost quieted down around 1:30am but started up again AND THEN at 3am crazy lunatic guy starts yelling and threatening to let the air out of everyone's tires unless he gets his cave back. Lots of swear words were repeated and he must have been drunk or high on something. It was weird and what could we do? Nothing, luckily before it got any worse the ranger shows up and the guy disappears. Then I couldn't sleep because who knows when the cave man would come back and start yelling that he wants my tent or my children or whatever! I kept wondering when he was going to come back because he was very sure he was the rightful owner of the cave and they needed to leave...he was very scary! It was quiet until 4:45am and the sun came up, the millions of birds started playing a get to know you game and I didn't get any sleep on this camping trip! And the snuggle bug next to me kept kicking his sleeping bag off. He would wake up all cold and then I had to sleep with a Popsicle. I can't wait for my own bed tonight!

 I"m glad we didn't see any rattle snakes...there were a lot of beautiful butterflies fluttering about. The cousins were catching them and putting them in their tent. It was a little butterfly sanctuary in there. Or a hospital. The little cousin liked to call them, "Butter!" We saw horses and lots of bicycles and occasionally a dog which quickly ran the other way when 4-5 girls chased it trying to pet and love and be its best friend. We packed up the next morning and hiked the cave one last time then ate watermelon! It was a great trip! I even have the laundry almost all washed!