Zion canyoneering has been a world wide mecca for canyoneering.
It has been over a decade of canyoneering for me and many decades for others that have enjoyed these canyons over and over.
I would fly out from Chicago just to spend a week in zion and within the backcountry walls of the confining canyons.
I have seen a shift in interest from when I started coming out to zion to the modern day
times with the amount of people that visit the park.
I does get frustrating but at the same time, they are starting to tap into their own sense of exploration and finding their own immersive experience within this majestic place.
There would be times where I would get annoyed with the volume of people ( especially in the narrows) and the amount of humanity that they bring with them into this place.
I have recently shifted this narrative to a more privillaged position as I cherish and honor all of the experiences that I had and was able to share with friends.
This is not made to be taken lightly either. The
experiences that we go to endeavor on prives us to places most visitors of zion have never seen, don't know how to see, or don't even know exist.
How lucky are we to go to these places and venture into the the beautiful landscape zion was carved out to be for millions of years.
How privillaged we are to come together as a tribe and collectively contribute to on another in completing these amazing experiences.
How rewarding our work and investment has been celebrated by captivating ourselves in what Zion Canyoneering means to us.
It is not a privileges to b taken lightly or dismissed so easily.
I am guilty of spoiling myself and complacent myself in the standards and expectations
how my life conditions.
As fortified as that my be, the affect of my spoils can cloud what zion means to so many more people.
As I retract and consider all that I have done in Zion, I am honored to have been able to share these experiences with a tribe of people in like minded views.
Of course we can always fall back into the frustrations of others clogging our journey, permits limiting our options, and regulations demanding compliant action but
in the end, the rest of the world also has the opportunity to explore Zion in the way they understand how to do so.
My relationship to the experiences and willingness to offer opportunities continues so others have a story to tell.
This is not a story for just us.
Everyone has a Zion story, What is yours?