Day 27 - Arches National Park (Delicate Arch Hike) and Canyonlands National Park at Sunset

Levi, Seth, and I decided to set out on something adventurous today. We selected a "strenuous" 3 mile hike to Delicate Arch. The description sounded relatively easy: only a 480 foot elevation gain and 1.5 miles each way. However, shortly into the hike, I began to appreciate the descriptive word "strenuous". I was huffing an puffing quite a bit and had to take several breaks for water. Levi and Seth were breathing moderately heavy, but nothing like their out of shape father. The hike was well worth the physical exertion because the views at the top were amazing. I sometimes get this little photography bug in me and try to get creative with pictures. Below I captured Levi jumping from one rock to another.

After our hike we returned to the campsite and enjoyed a dinner together. After dinner, all 12 of us (5 Watkins and 7 Mayos) piled into the 12 passenger van for a sunset view overlooking Grand View Point in Canyonlands National Park. The sunset was absolutely amazing, but the shadows and colors of the enormous canyon below were just as amazing. The trip had a memorable ending with Seth making up a silly story, which had the younger cousins cracking up most of the drive home. Those are the moments I would love to capture in a bottle. I'd open it up when they are all bickering and fighting to remind myself that deep down inside their hearts they really do love each other.