Hiking might just be my favorite pastime, and I didn't do nearly enough of it last year. I had a good time hiking in Moab last November. (Hello again, Delicate Arch! And boy, did we create some memories hiking the Fiery Furnace, hey, Jeanna? Heh heh...) But I didn't go hiking even one time last summer, and that's straight-up sad.
Anyway, a few of us loaded up Dora the Explorer on Saturday morning, then made the ugly drive through some of Idaho's remotest and bleakest stretch of landscape (sorry, friends who are from Arco, Howe, Moore, Mackay, etc.)...and headed for the hills.
We parked Dora and hiked a little more than two miles to the Iron Bog Lake trailhead, and I have to say, hiking is exactly what my soul craved and needed. I didn't realize exactly how much I missed hiking last summer until the moment my feet hit the ground out there in the wilderness. My soul felt alive and well, and it was like a healing salve on a pathetic old wound I hadn't recognized was present until that very moment.
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| We started out at Brookie's house; when Cam walked in, Tracie realized that the two of them were twinners. MFEO, am I right?? |
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| Brookie and I were also twinners. |
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| On the road, back seat. |
Once we reached the trail head, Cameron warned us that the hike was "kind of uphill." That was the gist of what he was saying.
I know, I know, most hikes are uphill; hiking takes place in mountains, after all. Cameron wanted us to know that it was more uphill than a lot of hikes, though.
I swear to you, it felt like it was straight uphill for the first mile. (To be noted: it's only 1.5 miles to the Lake.) Like, super steep uphill.
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| Our Token Male. Also: The Liar |
Regardless of the degree/incline of the hike, it was a LOT of fun. And completely gorgeous. And I was in fantastic company. And we laughed. A lot.
Before I post the rest of the pictures (there are a lot), I'll go ahead and tell you the highlights of the day...
MY FAVORITES:
-Cameron likes daisy dukes (enough that he loses speech. And brain function).
-Tracie isn't PG-13; Stacee is. #alterego
-*"If Brother Sleight is at the trail head, I'm running back to the car!"*
-Take everything Cameron says with a grain of salt:
"I think that what we just did was the worst part of the hike." #lies
-Cinnamon bears to the rescue!
-"Gina, we've decided that you've got speed, but not torque." #truth
-"SNAKE!" *Tracie freaks out and we all laugh...
-"I have pee anxiety!" Tracie (or was that Stacee?)
-Hearing the song, "gummi beeeaaars! bouncing here and there and everywhere...!"
every time I pulled out the cinnamon bears to share.
-Laughing hard and hiking uphill are counterproductive
-Little kids telling us, "If you get your shoes wet, you'll be really cold!"
-Brooke and I leaving our jackets in the Explorer, then freezing at the lake because
of our bad decision at the start of the hike.
-"Make him think it was his idea!"
-Brooke walking off to go potty, and Tracie and I following
without realizing where she was heading, or why she was walking away from us.
-The drive to (and through) Arco is yucko, but the mountains nearby are gorgeous!
-Lollipops
-Running down the mountain was glorious compared to the arduous hike up.
-"Come Sail Away" (by Styx) coming up on the MP3 player every time it counts!
There was more. I know there was more. I just can't think of it, and I'll probably never remember. But as you can tell, we had ourselves a great time.
And now...the pictures.
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| careful not to get our feet wet |
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| along the way |
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| WOW, huh?? |
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| Ah, I love the mountain air! |
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| We found some snow, and Cameron was especially excited about it. |
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| Iron Bog Lake, my friends... |
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| Breathe it in, baby! |
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| This was my lunch, and it was delicious. Especially that fresh red bell pepper. |
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| All of us at the lake: Tracie, Cameron, me, Brooke, and Lisa. |
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| I love how well Tracie captured this. |
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| Excedrin to the rescue! |
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| Pretty little flowers. Are the syringa? WE DON'T KNOW! |
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| Obligatory hiking selfie... |
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| Our crew really enjoys lollipops. Especially the Tootsie variety. |
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| I think they're quickly becoming a hiking staple... |
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| We loved this area of the hike. Rad, dead tree against a rad, overcast sky... |
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| I don't remember if this was taken on the way up or on the way down; I just know the picture doesn't capture just how steep the hike was in some areas. |
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| This was definitely on the way back down... |
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| This is very likely my favorite picture of the day...or maybe my entire life. |
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| I found a heart-shaped rock. And I kept it. |
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| Me and Brookie up at the lake (where we froze). |
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| no caption needed |
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| /You belong among the wildflowers/ |
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| Tracie took this picture as she was lying down by the lake during lunch. |
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| The hike was dusty and made our feet look disgusting. We ended up cleaning our feet in the icy stream on our way out. |
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| PRETTY! |
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| I think this is gorgeous. Five more minutes down the road, and it got desolate again... |
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| Stopped at Pickle's Place for dinner on the way home. They have a huge rocking chair out front, so obviously we had to get a picture taken. |
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| The Twins |
*Regarding the Brother Sleight situation up in the "favorites" part...Tracie and I thought that maybe Cameron was taking us to the middle of nowhere to abandon us or something. To teach us a lesson for skipping out on institute the last couple of months. When we told him that we'd figured him out, he said that he and Brother Sleight (our institute teacher) had it all planned out, that Brother Sleight was meet us along the way. Or something like that...
1 comment:
I went hiking this weekend in Utah as well, and can totally relate to 'Then Sings my Soul' feeling. I think the mountains are my ultimate home, and I can't even tell you how much I miss them while living on the East Coast.
So glad you enjoyed it and had a fun time :)
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