Chester Lake

This morning we woke to blue skies and sunshine and knew it was too nice of a day to pass up a trip to the mountains. We were lucky enough to have Daddy all to ourselves for the day and excited to adventure with him. The drive was long, but the views were remarkable! As we drove the washboard gravel road Joe shouted from the backseat, "I spy Autumn!" We relished in the views, "ooo-ed" at the golden leaves and "ahh-ed" at the majestic mountains stretched up into the sky.

The bumpy road rocked the littles off to dreamland, so when we arrived at the parking lot they all stretched and rubbed sleep from their eyes. Everybody took a trip to the outhouse and then we began our climb to Chester Lake. Within two minutes someone was complaining of sore legs while another was certain they were dying of thirst. Climbing the winding, rugged trail with the littles tripping and grumbling made the first ten minutes feel like an hour. 

The boys paused at a giant rock and attempted to climb it as a couple made their way down the trail. Mr. Stannix and I were just discussing if we were crazy to do a difficult hike and neither of us could remember how far exactly it was to the top (10.2 km round trip, with an elevation gain of 1017ft.) We asked the couple how long it took them and they replied, "About two hours. It's a hard climb until you reach the valley, but the views are so worth it!" We smiled and waved as they left and then looked at one another feeling discouraged and encouraged all at the same time. I knew our littles could do it and I love teaching them that they can do hard things. Within a few minutes we had gotten into a bit of a groove, the complaining subsided, and we all hiked hard until Daddy found the perfect place to stop for a snack break.

 Finley skipped behind, the boys would run ahead and Camilla held my hand for a good chunk of time. And when the children would climb something, or balance on a log, or find something cool they would often say, "Take a picture of this, Mom!" They know me too well...

 Ollie and I often took up the tail end. Daddy was good at setting the pace and keeping everyone moving. I wandered behind stopping to take in the scenery and snap pictures of the beauty that surrounded us.

 

 Hiking when the world is on the brink of Autumn is one of my favorite things. The golden colors contrasted against a vast blue sky never disappoint. The valley near the end of the hike was absolutely remarkable! There were mountains all around us. My heart was filled with so much gratitude for our beautiful world.

 Once we reached the lake we were all kind of like, "This is it?" Although it was tiny, and not quite what we were all expecting, it sure felt good to dip our toes in the cold mountain water and relax for a bit at the edge. Mr. Stannix was happy to stay in his shoes and snooze on the grass while I couldn't wait to get out of my shoes and cool my feet in the lake. 

 The littles threw rocks, found sticks, made rafts, picked flowers and took in the view with wonder.

 It wasn't easy keeping Ollie out of the water. I did take off his pants and dip his toes a few times and he giggled with delight each time the water swished around his feet.

 Before long it was time to make our way back down. Knowing what was ahead of us and the fact that it was all downhill made some of the littles super happy. 

 Ollie rubbed his eyes as we made our way through the meadow, and soon he drifted off to sleep.

 We took our time while the boys threw rocks in the stream..

 And I soaked in the views...

 And watched relationships grow.

 

 We really are so lucky to live here!

 I loved watching these two hold hands the whole way down. Joe chatted Daddy's ear off and it was just the sweetest. Finley's little legs were pretty tired by the end but even though he was tripping over rocks more frequently he still refused help. "No, I good!" he would say (good with a "d" instead of a "g"). Finally, near the very end, he grabbed my hand and held on. I also gave him a shoulder ride for the last little bit, which he loved!

We were all relieved to finally make it to the van and rest our tired feet. As we made our way back home on the washboard gravel road I looked back at the littles, fast asleep, rosey cheeked, and my heart was so content.