Day 4 - Observation Point (or, Hell on a Hiking Pole)

 Today was the day. James had mentioned his desire to do a particular hike in Zion listed under the ‘strenuous’ section. I won’t lie, I’ve been a little apprehensive about this excursion.

After another unlucky attempt at getting a permit for The Wave, we went back into Zion. The Observation Point hike is serious business – 8 miles up several mountain peaks, 2148 ft elevation increase in desert heat. Interestingly, we were the only people who got off the shuttle bus at the trailhead. I tried not to see this as an omen (it totally was an omen).

We started the hike in fairly good spirits – it was a steep incline with repeated dusty switchbacks, but the view of Angel’s Landing and the surrounding peaks was spectacular. We saw a few people striding past us who appeared to be unprepared – trainers, no water, no sun protection – but we tried not to feel silly for being overly-cautious. We did see a few hikers with ‘seflie poles’, so they could film themselves hiking. Definitely more useful than water or sunscreen – I guess it is useful for recording your last will and testament as you die of dehydration in a ravine, alone, with no one to care if you’ve updated your blog or not (the irony of that sentence is not lost on me).

Soon the hike curved round the side of the peak into a rock formation called Echo Canyon. It was incredibly noisy – a group of high school kids were finishing their lunch on the sweeps of rock, but as soon as they left it was silent. A pack of rabid chipmunks swooped in after them in search of chips and cookie crumbs and Taylor Swift posters but we managed to escape unscathed.

Soon the hike became… darker. By which I mean steeper, hotter and more painful, with sheer-drop canyon edges and a very narrow trail. This might be the most intense hike I have ever attempted, or at least a close second to going halfway down the Grand Canyon then straight back up. Interesting fact: symptoms of heat exhaustion include fatigue, dizziness, confusion, disorientation and mad thoughts about what to buy dead people for Christmas. Luckily, we had trail mix and Gatorade which may literally have saved my life (and a ton of money – they’re dead, what could they need other than a new coffin?).

After what felt like a hundred years of penance for all the wicked thoughts I’ve had, we made it to Observation Point. Was it worth it? Yeah, it was frickin’ worth it. I can now see why Utah calls itself ‘The Greatest Earth on Show’.

The hike back down wasn’t anywhere near as torturous, mainly because we got to be the smug gits passing weary uphill climbers with encouraging smiles and assurances that it was worth it. I should have warned them really because the hike was still a beast (and accidents do happen).

Miles hiked: 8

Elevation gained: 2148

Coffins purchased: none!

Rabies infected chipmunks avoided: 72