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Why do I love backpacking? It certainly isn’t the hauling a heavy bag through brush, the dehydration, the pain, the restless nights, and generally sub par food but the views always make it worth it.
MooseJaw supplied me with a Petzl NAO+ and a pair of Fjall Raven hiking pants to explore a little known and beautiful area near Zion National Park.
Southern Utah is full of brutal hikes that end with insane views that look like they don’t exist almost as if they are illusions or hallucinations caused by the burning sun. We took a trail less traveled. As in there was a trail for a mile or so then the trail faded away and we traveled through rough terrain covered in cactus and scrub oaks of the high desert.
We criss crossed out of washes and cliffs to our destination which was a white sandstone formation that backdrops to Zion. Incredible.
Part of the reason I like trips like this is the opportunity for unique photos. Sure it’s easy to get photos off trail heads and paved paths in parks but real art comes through suffering but in that suffering is fulfillment and good times. Times you can’t get from your car.
On top we saw no one. We had a camp that was ours and silent. At night we heard an owl calling under the nearly full moon. Gorgeous.
We awoke to a sunrise that blasted heat on to us from a cool night. We hiked out and back to the trail head the same way we came. Exhausted we sat down next to the jeep sucking down water and eating chips.
The wilderness is brutal. Maybe that’s what I like about it. The fact that it breaks me down and gives me something that I can’t find in front of a computer or with my wallet.
"Thank you to Moosejaw for kindly sponsoring this post. All opinions are 100% honest & completely my own."











