Greetings from Canyonlands National Park

Attempting to pick a park for my “story” was incredibly difficult. I decided to choose this one from Canyonlands NP…partly because it was the most recent one I’ve been too, but also, because it was one of the most incredible places I’ve ever been.

About a year ago, I was in an accident that left me unable to walk for close to 4 months. I was told before my foot surgery that I MIGHT be able to hike again, but that was a big maybe. I pushed through it, and managed to hike my first mountain about 10 months after the accident, and have attempted to not slow down since then. Hiking in Canyonlands was a powerful experience. Being able to overlook the rivers and the rocks, made me remember again why I worked so hard, when I could have said to myself “the doctors said you can’t hike” and not tried at all. I am still moved to tears when I stand on the summit, or overlook a canyon, because I know how hard it was to get there. I can’t imagine not looking at these things, and having these experiences. They are who I am.

Sincerely,
Liz

Canyonlands National Park

Canyonlands National Park preserves an immense desert wilderness sculpted by the Green and Colorado rivers and featuring hundreds of colorful canyons, mesas, buttes, fins, arches and spires. The Island in the Sky District is the most accessible and popular section of the park — a mesa with spectacular views of the surrounding canyons. The Needles is a vaster territory below the Island in the Sky where visitors can hike among the sandstone spires and breathtaking rocks.

State(s): Utah

Established: 1964

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