Raise Your Endorphins: Take a Hike; Mark’s Marvelous Views

Mark figured that in order to be prepared for the King’s Peak hikes, he would need to go on a few hikes before the big one to make sure he was in proper shape. Well, it was more than a few hikes. For at least 2 weekends each month, Mark loaded up a backpack with big bottles of water to practice carrying weight and left for the hills. The first long hike he went on, I dropped him off in an area behind the Utah State Capitol building where he embarked on a hike over the mountain all the way home to 104 W 780 S in Centerville. I will never forget how worried I was when it took quite a bit longer than he said it would. I wasn’t able to follow him on my Find My Friends app while he was in the mountains, so I was relieved when his little icon picture on my phone finally appeared somewhere on the Mueller Park Trail. I was so anxious that I walked to the end of our street when I knew he was close. To say he was tired was an understatement! I removed his boots for him and he just laid on the floor for a while. That was a rough and ambitious experience, but a good one to guide his next adventures. For most of the hikes Mark went on, he would send me a boot picture when he reached his destination. . . a well deserved sit down at the top. I loved getting the boot pictures!

One of his go-to hikes is the Zig Zag trail which is just East of our house. He was pretty anxious to get hiking, so even the snow couldn't stop him.

One of the first prep hikes/camps for all of the scout troop was in Goblin Valley. While it took a while to get there, how can you not enjoy the variety and recreation it provides?

I did my best to keep the pictures in the order that I got off of Mark's phone, so hopefully there's some continuity. He took pictures of the trail signs, so hopefully that will be a reminder for him. If I get it wrong he'll have to correct me.

The Scout troop hiked 20 miles on the Bonneville Shore Trail to get all the Scouts prepped for long walking days. It was a strange hike because even though it was pretty horizontal, right in the middle of the hike, the weather turned very cold. When the boys got to the Bountiful B I got a text to bring up warm clothes and a few snacks.

I didn't get a boot picture from this hike, I'm just glad that his boots came home with him. Mark took DJ and Brock with him to check out Ben Lomond Peak. There was still snow on top, even in the summer months, so I'm glad they bundled up! There were parts of the trail that were too covered in snow which prevented them from reaching the very top and I'm glad Mark stopped trying to find the trail as you never know what the snow is covering!

While the Colorado Astlings were in town for the 4th of July, the boys and I went on a hike with David, Lieve and Oscar. Mark couldn't go with us, so Stephen went with him a different day to Lake Blanche.

Scout Falls is on the way to Timpanogos Peak above Utah County. Mark went with some of the scouts on this hike and they made it to the top along with many others.

When we decided to go to Red Castle Lake as a family, I decided that even though I had been exercising regularly, I should probably go on a test hike. So Mark took me to Grandeur Peak Trail and he very kindly waited for his slow wife to move along the trail as I attempted a more vertical climb than I was used to.

My favorite boot shot of all! Together!

Francis Peak, above the Farmington area, was one of Mark's last hikes and turned out to be one of the most difficult, it being quite a steep incline. But, Mark powered through and once again accomplished something more difficult than he thought it would be at the outset.