A Great Hike in Moab

We're back from a few days in Moab, Utah where we did several great hikes.  The most exciting was the Murphy trail, which is the first few miles of the eleven-mile Murphy Loop in the Island in the Sky section of Canyonlands National Park.

You start by walking one mile across flat open prairie until you get to the mesa rim.  Then you hike another mile down a canyon, following an improbable route across and down a huge rock bowl, dropping 850 feet down to the Island floor.  (The Island sits between the mesa top and the canyon floor.)  The above panorama shows the view at the mesa rim.

And here's Ben starting off.  Can you believe that somehow we are going to get down that big scoop of rock?

Well, we are and one of us will find it quite terrifying!  It looks just a bit scary, don't you think?  Oh, and you must imagine that the wind is blowing like crazy, just adding to the scariness. 

With views like this sometimes it's better not to look.  This was a hike with "exposure," meaning that if you are scared of heights it was going to be a real adventure.   

 Down we go, carefully picking our way through loose rock and over many obstacles.  In one place we ran across a rockfall that blocked the trail and had to scramble around it which was, of course, a breeze for rock climber Ben, but tricky for me.  In another place we crossed a sturdy bridge over a ten foot gap in the rocks.  The side with the sheer drop off had no hand rail.  Sometimes I do wonder about the National Park Service!

 Since I am nervous about "exposure" and hate howling winds and loose rock, it was a tough hike for me.  I had to talk and sing to myself to take my mind off my fears.  Remember the song from The King and I, "Whenever I feel afraid I hold my head up high, and whistle a happy tune so no one will suspect I'm afraid" ?  That's my song for times like this.

So why did I do this hike in the first place? Well, believe it or not I had done this hike back about twenty years ago and knew it was doable, exciting, and beautiful.  And I had wonderful Ben to help me.  See that big smile?  He was in his element!

Once we were down we had to take congratulatory photos. 

And, since we had decided not to do the loop, we started back.  (We had spent four days on the Island floor in 1996 and didn't feel the need to spend any more time there.) 

Here's the view looking back up.  Looks a bit daunting, doesn't it?  Well, let me tell you we cruised up that 850 feet without any problems.  It's about the only hike I know where I found going up easier than going down.  I think I was running on pure adrenalin!  And maybe all the hiking and Pilates I've been doing the past year or so also helped. 

I love this photo of Ben.  He was a happy camper in Moab.  Not to say that we camped.  We lived the life of luxury at the Sunflower Hill Inn. 

One last thing about this hike.   It was originally a cattle trail built in 1917 by the Murphy brothers to use in moving cattle from their winter grazing on the White Rim up to the mesa in the spring.  I sure would like to find a photograph of cows going up this steep, rocky route!