Day 36 - A Flash Flood is 'Probably' going to happen

A good friend had recommended a Zion hike called The Narrows - named for the fact that the hike is in a narrow slot canyon through a river.  It sounded amazing so we made sure to save time for it. 
You're advised to check the weather before starting this hike, due to the potential for flash flooding, so we stopped at the Visitor Center to check the board:

Temp: 100    (perfect for a river hike!)
Chance of thunderstorm: 30%     (ok, making me a little nervous)
Flash Floods: Probable     (hmmmm.....)

We approached a ranger to get further clarification and she said while you never know, the level was probable, meaning a 3 out of 4 on the scale.  She suggested a couple other hikes (both of which we had done the previous day) and finally threw in, "If it was me, I wouldn't do The Narrows today".

As we walked outside, Dan and I turned to each other and he beamed, "Let's do it!" just as I was about to say, "Bummer, guess we'll have to do another hike."

We decided to do the first part of the hike, "The Riverside Walk", regardless since this part was not in the canyon or the river, and then make a game time decision.  It was a beautiful walk and when we got to the start of The Narrows, we were surprised to see plenty of people (including parents with small children) embarking on the river hike.  We chalked the Ranger's warning up to being over cautious and plunged in.

Foreboding sign to begin the hike

I have to add here that this experience combined two of my favorite things, rivers and hiking, so I was already excited for this hike.  Add that excitement to the adrenaline of hiking when a flash flood is probable and I was completely stoked to be doing this hike.

The Narrows was formed over thousands of years as the Virgin River carved its way through the land, forming a deep and narrow canyon.  Some of the sections were wide and you could walk on the bank of the river

and some were so narrow your only choice was to wade through the water. 

No high ground here

At its deepest, the water came up to my waist but there were deeper pools for the more adventurous swimmers.  It was the perfect retrieve from the 100 degree day.

Throughout the hike, Dan and I were very careful about watching the sky for any approaching weather.  This chore was made slightly more difficult by the fact that at any given time, we could only see a small slice of the sky above the steep canyon walls.  Once we reached the unofficial end of the hike (where a small creek intersects with the Virgin River) we noticed some clouds starting to turn the sky from unassuming blue to foreboding gray.  It was perfect timing for us to start the hour or so trek back but decided to stop for a quick bite.  We found a shady spot on the high ground to eat our sandwiches.  All the while, we were still watching the sky and noticing more and more encroaching clouds .  We still weren't too concerned though because there were plenty of people continuing to hike upstream.

Stopping for a photo opp

(Warning to our mothers - if you'd like to save yourselves a few gray hairs, feel free to skip the next few paragraphs).

Two bites into our sandwiches, the clouds started to get ominously dark and we decided a walking picnic would be a great idea.  Sandwiches in hand, we jumped back in the water and less than casually made our way upstream.  The adrenaline was starting to pump and we both jumped as we heard the first loud clap of thunder echo off the canyon walls.  Everyone in the canyon was silent for a moment until a man slightly upstream from us whistled and indicated to his group that it was time to head back.  Dan and I interpreted this as "it's time to get the hell out of here" and quickened our pace to join the mass exodus.

Yikes! (this photo may or may not have been taken after the hike for dramatic effect)

 Then we heard the second daunting roar of thunder.  To calm our nerves, I pointed out, "it's ok until we start feeling rain drops".  As if on cue (I seem to have a knack for that), heavy, plump rain drops began to fall, the kind that turn you from dry to soaking wet in just a few minutes.  Ok, now it was time to get serious.  We picked up our speed and continually debated whether we should seek higher ground and wait out the storm or just push on and revel in the safety we knew would be waiting for us at the end of the Narrows.  We decided to continue on as most of the other people were doing the same.  All the while, we were amazed by the sheer bravery (ok, let's be honest, stupidity) of the handful of people who were continuing on up the canyon.

Fortunately, the heavy downpour began to subside into a steady rain and while our fear was slightly mitigated our pace was not.  By the time we rounded the last bend to see hoards of people and safety, we were practically running.  We looked at each other, let out a sigh of relief and non-nonchalantly walked out of the river.

There are two lessons we learned from this experience, 1) if everyone else is doing it, we should probably do it too and 2) Park Rangers are over cautious.   But in all seriousness, it was a slightly risky decision to hike The Narrows but it definitely made for a memorable experience.

-Lauren