Thursday, October 23, 2008

Moab......land of climbing,hiking, biking, smiles and fun






We left Bend, Oregon last August to explore our country, learn more about ourselves and each other and maybe find a "new home". Moab, UT was the first town we stayed in that we could maybe picture ourselves living in. Of course we've really just started this search and have lots more to explore. Adventure wise it had lots to entertain us. Rock climbing, National Parks, hiking, biking, rivers, etc. But it's also a very small town (no Target here) and it gets HOT in the summer. We're talking 98 degrees hot 3 months in a row. Being there in Oct. in 80 degree weather while Bend was getting it's first blanket of snow was heaven to us. We couldn't help but call our friends to brag that we were going swimming in an outdoor pool! Yee-Haw

The kids loved rock climbing at The Feathers in WA and are somewhat addicted now. Moab is famous for rock climbing. So the first stop....finding a kids harness and rock climbing shoes for Ani. She's in love with the sport, now searching climbing videos on the web and asking when the next outing is. When she grows up she's going to be an Olympic champ. By then it will be probably be an event.


We liked the feel of Moab so much and there was so much for us to explore that we decided to hold base camp here. We stayed at an RV park with caretakers that were so nice to our kids and us. They came by every day to take the kids feed the fish in the pond and complimented us more than once on how wonderful our kids are. (pat on the back).
We spent our first full day out at some rocks along the Colorado River. They even had rock art nearby. Ani scales up the rock like a natural. Kaleb is a pretty amazing climber himself. He scaled a 5.9 like a champ. Jay was able to climb some more complicated rocks with a couple from Colorado. Even Avery tried it out. Now I climbed a bit when I lived in Seattle but I'll just say it right here...... I'm a mother of 3 and a weak wimp now. I'm scared to death of falling and your likely to find me clinging to the rock with tears in my eyes begging Jay to lower me. It's only when I raise my voice and my frustration echos throughout the canyon that he listens. :)

We took the next 2 days to really do....nothing. We'd been going, going, going since leaving Anacortes, WA that it felt good to just relax. We swam, we read, we napped, we drank margaritas. We met lots of nice people around camp. The kids were able to socialize and play late into the night. Cheap glow sticks are hours of fun! Saturday was the farmers market in Moab and we're trying hard to buy fresh, local produce. Being late in the season there wasn't much to chose from, but we still had fun. Moab has a great bike trail system and we biked from one side of town to the other without having to cross a street. We stumbled across a rad musical playground. I am going to petition for every town across America to build one of these!



After a stop at the local thrift store we rode our bikes to the BMX track. To our surprise they had a local competition going on. We tried hard to get Kaleb to compete but it was a solid NO! We stuck around and cheered for the little kids and clapped when they got their awards. Then it was the Chinchen's turn to race. Who knew we'd be some competitive against each other. Ani had no mercy when it came to racing her mom and flew right on by giggling the whole way. I was no competition for Kaleb as he aired over the big dirt mounds.

What's left? We saved the best for last. Arches National Park!!!! Located just 5 miles outside of Moab. Could you even imagine?

I don't even know if i should try to describe the beauty within. Words will do no justice. I think I'll just say that make it a priority to find time in your life to visit. I'll just leave you with pictures and your own thoughts.



We're in Flagstaff now. At 7000 ft. the altitude shocked us the first 24 hours. We looked like some pathetic tourists crawling through town holding our chests. We've recovered now and will be here til Nov. 1st. Jay found a temporary job at a local cabinet shop. It's nice to make some money, be able to check out the town and see if it's a place we want to come back to. Flagstaff is a lot like Bend. It's amazing. I could take a picture outside right now and you wouldn't be sure what town we were actually in. They do get more snow here which Kaleb is fine with, he wants to make sure he doesn't forget how to snowboard. This is one requirement from him...find a home that also has snow.
Lot's of adventures to be had here. They have cliff dwellings nearby, volcanoes to explore, lots of hiking and Shawn Mullins is playing here Sat. and we think we found a babysitter.

1 comment:

Jess the photographer behind the lens at JWilsonPix said...

Im trying to talk my hubby and kids into doing this.... I work virtually and so could take my "office" with me..... sigh.... I will have to live thru your adventures until I can convince them all of how cool this would be!! (I am sooo jealous that you have found a way to be rid of the anxieties of bills and such.. lucky you!! ) Thank you for being such an inspiring family!! Be safe!