We spent Day Two of our trip in Bryce Canyon National Park. Wowie, wow, wow wow! Bryce is B-E-A-UTIFUL! And it is spectacularly different from Zion! Although I certainly enjoyed touring both parks, Bryce, for me, was definitely more breathtaking. I WILL be back to see more of Bryce--and hopefully to hike some of its glorious trails! As we visited the high-elevation park during the still snowy months, we were really only able to explore the area from the plowed roadways. No hiking to the canyon floor for us! Well, truth be told, we couldn't have hiked much regardless of the depth of the snow. While in Bryce I developed a bit of a . . . complication. I was fine for about the first half hour of our tour and in fact, hiked a bit with Dad to an overlook. After that SMALL amount of exertion, I had a headache. Within 15 minutes I was really not feeling well! Mom and Dad walked out to one of the more spectacular overlooks. I sat in the truck with my head in my hands! When they returned, they insisted that I HAD to see that view. I reluctantly walked out to the point and took what I must admit where half-hearted photos. It was less than a mile from there to the next overlook but the drive there was excruciating! I'm not sure I have ever been so nauseous! Fortunately that overlook just happened to be one of the few with a restroom. I flew from the truck and what happened in that poor bathroom stall can only be described as violent! I dragged myself back to the truck where I stayed for the remainder of our tour. Mom, though, got some spectacular photos of some sights I never got to see! It didn't take long for the three of us to figure out I was clearly suffering from ALTITUDE SICKNESS! We drove to lower elevations as quickly as possible making only a few "emergency stops" along the way. I sure did leave alot of my lunch beside the roads of Utah that day! Even before we were back at camp I was feeling significantly better. By the next day, I was perfectly fine. What a brutal lesson I learned! Apparently I am SUPER sensitive to altitude! In retrospect, I have experienced symptoms of altitude sickness in the past, yet always attributed those symptoms to something else. I have done some research about my little adventure complication and am learning what I can do to prevent and alleviate the HORRIBLE symptoms I experience! I will go back to Bryce but next time, my memories will not be clouded by the words VIOLENTLY ILL!
RED CANYON--JUST OUTSIDE OF BRYCE CANYON NP
ONE OF MOM'S FAMOUS BACKSEAT PHOTOS OF THE TUNNEL!
:)
WE DROVE STRAIGHT TO THE UPPER BRYCE CANYON OVERLOOK.
THAT ELEVATION SIGN SHOULD HAVE BEEN A WARNING SIGN!
WE HAD THE UPPER OVERLOOK ALL TO OURSELVES!
WE TOOK PICTURES (OF COURSE) . . .
ROLLED GIANT SNOWBALLS DOWN THE CHUTES . . .
AND WHEN THAT DIDN'T WORK SO WELL, I JUST STARTED THROWING THE SNOWBALLS AT DAD!
LOOK HOW MUCH WE WERE ENJOYING OURSELVES!
AND THEN DAD I AND HIKED DOWN THIS PATH OUT TO ANOTHER OVERLOOK BEFORE MOVING ON. NOT FEELING SO GOOD AT THIS POINT.
AT THE NEXT STOP I TOOK A FEW PICTURES OF THE VIEWS . . .
AND ONE OF MOM, DAD AND A RAVEN.
AND THAT WAS IT! BY NOW, I'M FEELING PRETTY ICKY!
A BACKSEAT PHOTO OF ME AND THE RAVEN.
THE LAST PICTURE TAKEN OF ME IN BRYCE! :(
DAD FEEDING THE RAVEN.
ALSO BACKSEATERS!
HERE WERE MY FEEBLE ATTEMPTS AT THE NEXT STOP. . .
AND THE REST OF THE PHOTOS ARE ALL MOM'S!
YEP, THERE'S MOM!
AND DAD!
BUT NO TESS. :(
HERE IS THE REALLY PRETTY PART OF BRYCE . . .
ALL MOM'S PHOTOS OF COURSE!
AND THIS IS ONE SUPER SICK GIRL WHO CAN'T EVEN GET OUT OF THE TRUCK!
:(
AND NOW FOR MY RANDOM PHOTO OF THE DAY . . .
DOES THIS SEEM REALLY, REALLY WRONG TO ANYONE ELSE?!
I THOUGHT IT WAS SO HILARIOUS, I MADE DAD TURN AROUND SO I COULD GET A PICTURE OF IT! HOWEVER JUST HAVING THE PHOTO MAKES THIS ORDER-LOVING NEAT FREAK, A BIT CRAZY! I NEED TO FIX IT! HEY, MAYBE DISORDERVILLE BOTHERED ME SO MUCH, IT IS THE REASON I WAS SO NAUSEOUS!