Oh, Y

“Oh, Y, oh why, oh why” we all thought as we slowly got up at 5:00 in the morning.  It was the Friday after finals and the euphoria of our recent freedom somehow pushed us out of our beds.  Summer was here and we were going to make the most of it!  

Our first plan for the summer: Hike the Y.  For me and Sara, it would be our first time up Y mountain.  Sara, our recent graduate, had never in all her years at BYU hiked to the Y (and me, too for that matter).  So we made a promise to ourselves that we would hike it before Sara left happy valley forever.  

First picture I took of Provo Valley.  Probably around 5:30 am.

Instead of being rational, lazy people who hike the Y during normal hours of the day we decided to rise before the sun to hike the mountain as the sun rose to light the valley.  It was still dark when we began our trek.  We forgot flash lights but luckily there was enough light that we could see that path.  Jill’s handy-dandy cellphone light did the rest.

Enjoying the view in BYU blue.

Sara resting and enjoying the view.

We stopped several times up the trail to get a breather for those not used to high altitude and to take pictures.  I took more than enough.  I only wish I had a better camera that would capture the beauty, color, and vastness of the view.

We passed the time singing random songs, particularly Disney songs and the oldies.  I took a picture of Hailey doing the classic Little Mermaid pose on the rock.

Hailey on the Little Mermaid Rock.

 Once, when we stopped at a bend, an old man (one of many) came blazing up the trail.  He saw the four of us resting and said, “Come on, girls!!”  Before we could respond he was already around the bend.  Goodness, that man could walk fast!  Even wearing a knee brace and carrying a walking stick, he by-passed us quickly.  Feeling a little sheepish, we continued on.

The trail that we blaze! And the place where the old man passed us up.

Jill contemplating life and it's mysteries.

Sara taking a break.

Pretty

This does not show the gorgeous colors but you should get the idea.

Us being silly

Our first sight of the Y.

Several breaks, pictures, and ten switchbacks later, we found ourselves near the bottom of the Y.  Sara and I had finally made it!  Yes, we were passed by many robust old men on the way up and back, but we made it.  We took our time taking pictures, being silly, and admiring the view.

"Yay, we made it."  (Yes, my eyes are closed but this is the only picture I have of this.)

B - Y - U

Don't fall, Jill.

Sara has conquered the Y.

Sara kicking the Y.

=D

Ha ha

More Prettiness

Hailey and Sara hanging out with the Y.  Sara, you look so ... excited...

As we were taking pictures, a good-looking young man came walking up behind us.  I was going to take a picture of Hailey but he was in the background so I didn’t.  (Now, I wish I did and you’ll see why.)  He looked toward the camera behind Hailey with a vacillating expression on his face.  From my view it looked like he purposefully posed in the back of my supposed picture.  We left a few minutes later.  I looked back at him as we walked away.  He was sitting where we were, looking at his laptop.  Only a few minutes after that, he came jogging down from behind us.  As he passed, he said, “Sorry if I got into any of your pictures.”  Hailey responded with, “No worries, we’ll treasure them all the more for it.”  He looked back at us, smiled sheepishly, and jogged down the hill a little faster that before while the rest of us gasped and laughed at Hailey’s audacity.   I wish I had taken that picture so we could record that funny moment and truly “treasure” it like Hailey said.  Oh well…

As we came back down the mountain we sang our favorite Disney songs.  At a switchback halfway down the mountain a middle aged man stood on one of the benches, holding a wooden walking stick and gazing out over the valley.   We were singing loudly and tromping down the hill toward him. When we reached him he said, “You know why girls sing so much?”  We thought and said, “Umm…Why?”  He answered with, “Because they can.”  Uh, okay, was that supposed to be a compliment?  I wasn’t sure because I thought we sounded like a crazy bunch of girls who were slaughtering their favorite Disney songs.  Ah, well.  Apparently he thought we sounded good.  That’s laughable.

After we finished the hike we went to Kneaders for their all-you-can-eat French toast.   They have, by far, the best French toast I have ever had.  The bread was flavorful, thick, and fluffy but not so dense that you could only eat one piece.  Their syrup was just how I like it—Homemade style.  In other words, it was not the nasty, fake crap you buy from the store.  It was liquidy, sugary, and delicious.  (Mmm…now I’m craving French toast.)  Breakfast was a great way to celebrate our accomplishment.  We had conquered Y mountain even before our day truly began.  I felt like we had achieved something great.

My meal that morning.  Sorry, I couldn't resist.