Y Hike

4:30 am anyone? Yeah, I didn't think so! I still can't believe Doug and I were able to get out of bed that early...we are just not early morning people. Let's just say this was definitely not our idea! However, we were actually really glad that we went with Steve, Jill and Wes to hike the Y (notice how that's not all of Doug's family...yeah, the rest pooped out!) I can seriously say that I have not worked out that hard since high school volleyball! Some of that is attributed to the fact that we hiked for an hour and a half in the wrong direction before starting the actual Y. Don't ask us how me missed the correct trail, but when we hiked back on our misguided path I was dead! I did not think in a million years we would still do the hike we had planned. I thought we'd just call it a day and hike the Y maybe next Saturday. Nope! We trekked on thanks to Jill's do-it attitude (which I blame on the fact that she has 4 bull-headed boys and over the years she has just learned to compete!)
I couldn't help taking 1000 pictures, just because I needed proof I actually conquered this thing. Although there were tons of kids up there too, they have more energy and I didn't think anyone would believe me! Having just celebrated the 24th of July, I must say I have quite the admiration for those pioneers! How they trekked in the dead of winter for thousands of miles over unchartered territory I will never know. I honestly had quite the time making it just those few miles. But once we did make it to the top it was absolutely beautiful. You just can't beat the view and it's quite accomplishing not having collapsed on the way up!












They have a monument at the base of the trail that tells all about the history of the Y, and I thought it was kind of interesting:

HISTORY

The Y first appeared on Provo's Mountains in 1906, after the first materials for Brigham Young University's emblem were hauled to the base of the hill. President George H. Brimhall commissioned Ernest D. Partridge and three of his students to survey the letters B, Y and U on the hill and the letters were soon thereafter laid out. To create the emblem, students stood eight feet apart, stretching from the bottom of the hill to the site of the Y, and shuttled lime, sand and rocks between the person before and after them. It took so much time and effort to cover the Y that no attempt was made to do the other two letters.

Constant repairs to the thin, lime-covered letter prompted students to add a layer of rock to the face of the Y in 1907. In 1908, 20,000 pounds of sand and cement were added to make a three-foot rim around the letter, and in 1910 and 1911, the blocks or serifs were added to create the Y as it appears today. The Y is 380 feet high and 130 feet wide, covering 32,847 square feet and is one of the largest school emblems of it's kind in the United States.

PAINTING

Each spring, on Y Day, male students met early in the morning to whitewash the Y. Faculty cleared the trail, freshmen hauled the water from a spring, sophomores carried up the whitewash and juniors and seniors did the pouring. The job required 500 pounds of salt, 110 bags of lime and 3,000 gallons of water. The whitewashing tradition continued until 1972 when the University began using helicopters to haul the paint; thus decreasing the wear on the mountain. The Y was originally planned to go on private land, but ended up on government property and the student wear and tear from yearly whitewashings concerned government officials.

In 1978, the Y was coated with a sand and white cement mixture called gunnite, eliminating the need for annual whitewashings. The project required 100 cubic yards of sand, 5,400 pounds of cement and 10,000 gallons of water. The Y is now painted every two to five years. The project takes three people 10 hours to apply 155 gallons of paint, which is transported by helicopter.

Pretty cool, eh? And to think, I was just at the top of that sucker!

(Y Info courtesy of http://yfacts.byu.edu)