Do you recall the story about a lone outdoorsman named Aron Ralston who set out to explore the southern desert of Utah in 2003? Well, I do. His story is amazing. He was a little crazy because he went canyoneering all by himself (and we all know you shouldn't do that) AND he didn't tell anybody where he was going. To make a long story short, he went to Blue John which is a beautiful canyon where you need to use your amazing rockclimbing and rappelling skills to conquer the canyon. You use every muscle you never knew you had. There are all kinds of things your body is capable of and you will never find out what it is until you experience this canyon or any other canyon my hubby hopes to take me too. Oh...back to the Aron Ralston story...while he was hippity hopping through the canyon...there was a huge boulder and when I say huge, I mean 800 pounds! There are tons of them, but this one in particular decided to move a little when Aaron put a little bit of pressure on it. This movement caught Aaron's hand and he was unable to pull it out. He was stuck. Yes. STUCK IN THE CANYON. He was stuck there for 6 days fighting hunger and dehydration. He chose to do something that I think a lot of us might do in a life or death situation, but would really never know until we were in the same situation. He used a multi-tool to amputate his right hand and rappel to his freedom. Oh...and he drank his own pee to survive. He is amazing.
The very last rappel is 60 feet and you have to do a special knot around a rock (that is the only stationary thing at the top of the cliff). You have to trust that the person who tied the rope made the right kind of knot. (May I add that Dave is the Knot Pro). Aron had to do this with one hand. Then you have to hike 12 miles out of the canyon after the last rappel. I was tired. I can't imagine how he felt!
Anyways, Dave chose to take me through this same canyon for my first time canyoneering a few years ago. You might say...he's crazy! We'll, he is! But he is very patient and he is a good teacher! I love that Dave wants me to enjoy his hobbies with him and I love being in the outdoors with him because he sees beauty in everything. I’m serious. Maybe that’s why he chose to be with me. Ha ha. He is a pro when it comes to rappelling and rock climbing. He makes me feel safe (even though the whole time, I'm thinking that I'm barely going to survive!) But at the end of the day, I always say...that was so much fun! Let's do it again! Here are some pics of the trip he took me on (with Criff and Liz) and then a few more recent pics of him and his bro, Criff. Rock On!!
