Such an awesome Hike
Today I decided to go hiking with my wife, daughter and her boyfriend. It was a much needed excursion to get out of the house and to get out in nature. Timpanoogs Cave is a very popular hike during the summer and it is best to get there early before it gets too hot and crowded.
The hike up is only 1.5 miles, but it is a pretty steep hike and a great workout. We were only going to do the hike and not the guided tour of the cave because the cave tours are usually sold out if you do not get your tickets in advance.
Lucky for us, there were four spots left for the 11:15 tour, so I purchased them. The only problem is that it only gave us about an hour to hike all the way up to the top. We have not hiked in a couple years, so I wasn't sure how we would do, especially being on a time crunch to meet the 11:15 tour.
So we booked it up the side of the mountain as fast as we could, only stopping for breaks when it was necessary. My daughter's lungs aren't what they used to be because of long lasting COVID symptoms, but we were able to get up there within 45 minutes.
I thought these little pillars alongside the trail were funny cause they had sharp rocks mounted on the top of them. I guess there have been too many people fall off of them in the past and get seriously injured or die, so they put these rocks on them to keep people from posing for pictures on them.
The views as we climbed just got better and better the higher we hiked up.
By the time we got to the top, our butts and calves had had enough. It was good to sit and rest a bit before our tour started. It gave us time to grab a quick snack. During the hike, there is an elevation gain of 1092 feet during that short distance up.
Inside the cave, it was a cool 45 degrees. It felt really good after that long hike up.
There were so many cool formations inside the cave.
It is crazy how these formations form over time. They have done a really great job at preserving as many of the formations they could. There are some pretty hefty fines for messing with the formations in the caves and I am glad that they are taking the steps to preserve the beauty of this cave.
This huge formation is called the "heart of Timpanogos", but it looks a lot like a vagina as well as a heart.
Along with the massive vagina in the cave, there are a ton of formations that look like dildos hanging from the ceiling. I wanted to ask our tour guide what the flesh colored formations were, but figured it would be innapropriate.
Once the tour was over and we got outside, we started our trek back down the mountain.
The way down was still pretty tiring and was a great workout for the tops of the thighs.
Overall, it is a pretty great hike. It is a great workout and when we got home, we all needed a nap. We are going to be trying to go out hiking every weekend now that my wife's work schedule is more predictable.
It was nice to get out with the family and spend some time together in nature. So much better than being cooped up in the house in front of the TV or computer screen. Anyways, thanks for taking the time to check out my post. You are awesome!!