Sydney, the Cockatoo, and Other Adventures

Over UEA weekend, which was around the middle of October, Will and I decided to take off for the weekend and head to Moab. We arrived there Friday night and went to several campsites in search of a spot to lay our heads. The only one that seemed to have vacancies adjoined a trailer park. We went to the manager's office to pay our dues. I was a little confused when he told me I interrupted "Daddy's cuddle time." Since I didn't know how else to respond to this statement, I gave a nervous laugh. I was curious about what sort of creature he was hiding under his blanket. As we were filling out the necessary information, the secret was unveiled. He introduced us to his "daughter," Sydney, the cockatoo. During the next couple of minutes I met the rest of his family--Worthless--the cat, and a dog, whose name I didn't quite catch.

Will and I were relieved to get out of the messy trailer. We found our campsite, which would have been really cute if it wasn't two feet away from some other campers. Underneath the twilight, we set up our two-man tent (compliments of my brother) and settled down to rejuvenate ourselves for the grueling mountain biking that was to happen the next day.

We decided to bike Slickrock because our options were limited since we had to do a loop trail. We felt pretty tough with our hardtail bikes. Everyone else had padding, biker jerseys and full suspension bikes. I didn't want people with expensive gear to show me up, so I attempted the first steep decline. Needless to say, there was sand at the bottom and I flipped over my handlebars. Will, being the sweet husband that he is, didn't laugh, but was very concerned about my well-being. Thankfully, the rest of the ride went much smoother. Although Will and I had to walk our bikes up the steep hills a number of times, I am proud to say that I rarely got off to walk my bike on the downhills. We were exhausted by the end of the ride, but it was totally worth it! Here are some highlights.


Will is going about 25 miles an hour here. His face exhibits the intense concentration he employed while handling technical manuevers down the trail.

Notice how my bottom is hanging over my back tire; it is not perched above the seat. If I would have used this technique earlier, I don't think I would have face-planted.

One mountain bike excursion was enough for one day. After we finished the ride, we headed over to Canyonlands to do a little sight-seeing. Since I was terrible at drinking water while on the trail, I downed about two nalgenes afterward. This did not eliminate my headache; rather, it gave me a full bladder. The visitor's center at the park was under construction, but I noticed some new outhouses and decided to try them out. I was immensely impressed by their fragrance. Overall, it was a pleasurable experience. Other than the outhouses, the highlight of Canyonlands was probably "Upheaval Dome" also known as "The Salt Dome." The name attached to the formation corresponds with the theory. Upheaval Dome theory basically maintains that the huge dome was caused by a meteor. Whereas, the Salt Dome theory states that it was caused by a huge deposit of salt that formed when the ocean was over top of that particular region. When the salt was exposed to the surface, erosion caused a depression to occur. (Don't quote me in this simplified explanation, just enjoy the picture.)

Here I am contemplating the geological phenomenon.

Will should be in a "got milk" commercial.

This was just an amazing view of the White Rim. At one point in time, this land was just a flat surface.

Both Will and I went on separate occassions to Moab last year. Even though we went with friends, it was much more fun going together. We were able to bike, hike, camp, and use all of our cool camping equipment from the wedding. Even though our campsite was less than ideal, it gave me a whole new perspective on cockatoos.