Monday, Monday

This is how my day starts every day here at the FRidge. It is just barely light out as I make my way across the pool deck to fill up my Camelbak with ice and water for the day's hike. The moon was just lovely this morning. It was sort of the theme for my hike today.

The moon at dawn today.

Today's hike was called Anasazi Ridge. It is located behind the FRidge, and if you've ever Googled a satellite map of Ivins, Utah, where the FRidge is located, you will see some incredible land formations. We hiked along, what I'm presuming, is the eastern rim of this ridge. Another splendid hike.

The moon followed me to the trailhead!

Here is the group starting out together.

This picture is a little fuzzy (it's hard to shoot pictures while hiking). You can see 

a little bit of the drop-offs we will be hiking alongside. 

Moon and cliff.  Stunning.

An even better shot of the moon.

Many petroglyphs can be found along this hike. Archaeologists have dated these at about 1000 years old!

Beautiful example of a petroglyph, nearly ruined by graffiti. :(

Lots of these spirals can be found along these rocks. One of our guides said that they signify "journey." 

Funny, I've always had a thing for spirals.

Spectacular valley.

We're going down there next?!

Just kidding. We're heading back.

We took more of a direct route coming back down. (See the tiny person at the top?)

Why did the tortoise cross the road? Our guide said that this is a very rare sight! Don't I feel lucky?! :)

A great hike today, and not too technical, so I had nothing to worry about! I was put into the same intermediate group for this week, and I can't wait to see where we go. (I know that Stop Sign is on Wednesday, so we'll see how my time improves!)

On to the food:

If you think this thing looks massive, you'd be right. That fresh avocado on top was the best!

I was a little skeptical of this carrot soup, but it was fabulous!

This did not disappoint. 

Yes, that is a salmon burger, and I ate it all! It was huge. (And tasty!)

They said the flower is edible. I took one bite. It didn't add any flavor, so I didn't eat it all.

Since I am now a "stay-over guest" I did not have to attend the lectures after lunch and dinner tonight. The expectation, though, is that after lunch, stay-over guests attend one extra exercise class each day. My roommate, Tina, and I had talked about riding bikes to the park and playing tennis. It was so hot today! (108) So, we opted for the pick-up dance class, instead. THAT was fun! You know how I love to dance. I would do that every day, if I could.

My goal for today was to enjoy Step & Pump. And I really did! I did not quit, I did everything with enthusiasm, and I just sort of zoned out when I had to hold certain poses with my arms above my head holding weights. Ugh!

The two pool classes today were fantastic. In general, I'm feeling like I have more energy and I don't feel as sore! I mean, it is still daylight here and I'm done updating for today. Hip hip hooray!

I also did some work with Jen, the Life Coach here at the FRidge, on some emotional issues. The focus here at the FRidge is for people to get healthy—physically and mentally. Everyone on staff seems to be the best of the best, from the cleaning crew to the fitness instructors to the wait staff to the spa service personnel to the nutritionists, etc. So, I am taking advantage of all the resources I can tap while I am here, so that when I get home, I will have a good, solid plan of action to keep pushing myself and progressing. I can't wait to see what my stats are at the end of this week. I feel so good, right now!

Onward and upward :)
Goodnight