Canadian World Traveller / Summer 2016 Issue

20
Take a Hike to Celebrate
US National Parks’
100th Year Anniversary!
If you want to worry less and feel good,
take a hike.
Studies have proven that simply taking a
walk in nature produces brain waves similar
to those that occur in meditation and
significantly reduces stress, boosts immune
function and improves memory and mental
ability.
There are many places to lace up your
boots, but to celebrate America’s National
Parks’ 100th birthday, I’d like to share with
you a couple of phenomenal hikes I recently
had the pleasure of doing at two of the
United States’ most iconic natural wonders-
-The Grand Canyon and Zion National
Park.
South Kaibab Trail at the
Grand Canyon (South Rim)
Photo: Zion National Park
I have to admit that my first impression of
the famous canyon wasn’t as grand as I
thought it would be. Walking along the rim
on the evening we arrived, there were so
many people. Yes, it was gorgeous, dramatic
and certainly a sight, but it didn’t take
my breath away. I wasn’t filled with the awe
I thought I would be. Perhaps it was just too
vast, the multi-colored rocks too faded
from the distance. Or maybe my expectations
were just too high. Luckily, my first
impression wasn’t my last.
Early the next morning, taking the shuttle
bus from the visitors’ center, we set off on a
hike on the South Kaibab Trail. As we
descended into the canyon, the awe that
had been missing the evening before
began to fill me. After an hour’s hike, we
reached Cedar Ridge Point, and ventured
onto the pick rock that jetted out into the
canyon. For a while, we sat completely
alone, just us and the canyon that grew
more magnificent by the second. The colors
of the layered rock formations changed
continuously, sparkling in the sun, revealing
a glimpse of its millions of years of geological
history. Here the Grand Canyon
exceeded all of my highest expectations.
Back at the top of the South Kaibab
Trailhead, we walked part of the Rim Trail,
a 12-mile accessible path that runs from
this trailhead to Hermits Rest. This section
of the trail was also virtually empty; and
once again I was filled with wonder and
glad we took time to explore a bit instead
of just passing through.
Article & Photography by Jennifer Merrick
If you go: We stayed at the Best Western
Premier Grand Squire Inn in the Grand