This morning we woke up without a plan for our day. This month has been a doozy and I wasn't in the nicest mood all morning. Mr. Stannix insisted we all jump in the van and drive to the mountains for a hike. Each of the kids grabbed their water bottles and jackets and loaded up in the van while I got myself dressed. After checking the weather we were off for a Saturday adventure in my happy place.
Everyone napped on the long drive to Kananaskis. The clouds got darker as we drove and when we finally turned off the highway I noticed a dark cloud and fog looming over a few of the peaks. We had already driven too far to turn around, so we decided to make the best of it!
When we made it to the parking lot it was spitting rain. We hopped out, had a snack and put on our sweaters and rain jackets. We checked out Upper Kananaskis Lake and found the Upper Lake Trail nearby.
After leaving the wide trail near the lake, we began a long, steady climb through a subalpine forest. The temperature was cool enough that we didn't feel the need to stop too often. Fin has always been an incredible little hiker and he was such a trooper this time as well! The two of us took up the rear, hand in hand, while Daddy led the way.
The boys enjoyed exploring the little streams we discovered along the way.
We took a short break at Sarrail Falls and enjoyed the sound of rushing water. The kids were so excited! Daddy was a trooper carrying our heavy toddler the entire way up. The hike up to this point was fairly easy, but it got a little more intense after the falls. The switchbacks became steeper, the rain poured more steadily, and the trail was muddy and slippery.
Finley was a riot to hike with! He talked the entire time and sang some pretty great made-up songs. After a few falls and stumbles over tree roots he grabbed my hand again and walked beside me. Sometimes Fin would jump in the puddles as we walked, splashing my ankles with mud. He didn't complain once! The closest he came to complaining was when he said, "Mom, my feet feel like nappin', but they can't...because we're walkin'!"
At one point he let go of my hand and said, "Whoa, just a second Mom. I need to check my ipad." He pulled a pretend device out of his pocket, fake scrolled with his pointer finger on the palm of his hand, and then stated matter of factly that we had five more minutes to go.
As our kids ran up the trail, balanced on the walk-ways, and shivered in the rain, Mr. Stannix and I would exchange looks of why are we doing this again? If only we could all see life through the eyes of a child. Hiking in the rain wouldn't have been my first choice, but everyone was still in good spirits, so we just kept keeping on. Since we got started late in the day we met many fellow hikers on their way down who reassured us that "it gets better", "it flattens out soon", "only another km to go", "the view is worth it!" They would count our children as we walked by and then when they thought they were out of earshot exclaim, "Wow! Five kids! And a dog!" It always made me chuckle.
The trail ended at a beautiful apline lake, surrounded by mountains and peaks. It was hard to see through the mist and the rain how beautiful the lake really was.The rain was coming down hard at this point and the entire shoreline was pure mud! We wanted to let Ollie out of the pack to stretch his legs, so we ventured around the lake in search of some more toddler friendly ground. Fin let go of my hand to run ahead and ended up slipping on some mud. His whole bum and jacket were covered in sticky mud, but he got up and laughed. We found shelter under a cluster of pine trees and unloaded our packs. The littles were hungry and excited to take a break. We munched cheese buns, Oreos, and fruit bars while we huddled under the trees. The littles were so excited to find some patches of snow at the top and had a mini snowball fight before we took cover.
When it looked like the rain had slowed, we decided we'd better get going. Ollie happily climbed into his carrier after hearing we were about to leave. He was cold and ready to snuggle in for the long ride down. Poor Reese was shivering and covered in mud from the walk up. We took pity on her and zipped her into Hyrum's empty pack. I've never laughed so hard in my life! She looked hilarious as she bobbed her head around in front of me on the trail. We also ran into this really super nice guy who gave us his bottle of bear spray because he was flying back to the states after his hike and wouldn't be able to take it on the plane.
Since the rain had eased up, we made our way back to the other side of the lake for one last look. God's creations really are spectacular! I wished it was a clearer day, but you take what you can get!
The way down was much quicker than the way up! Daddy and the big kids ended up being way up ahead and Fin and I took it slow at the back again. The combination of the steep downhill walk and the chill of the rain made my knees shake with every step. Fin was still splashing mud on my ankles every now and again, but I was too tired to worry about it. Joe kept stopping to check things out and then running ahead to catch up with Daddy when he saw Fin and I.
After over five hours (way longer than we'd anticipated), we finally made it to the bottom! Not bad for a pregnant lady, five kids, and a husband carrying a toddler in the pouring rain! Ha! The clouds started to clear, and the sun even made a short appearance. We were all covered in mud, and our clothes were soaked. I was so surprised at the happy attitudes that everyone still carried. We made each of the kids take off their muddy shoes before hopping in the warm van. As we pulled out of the parking lot a few of them exclaimed, "Thanks, Dad! That was really fun!"
We found the sun as we drove back to the highway, munching on trail mix and laughing at all of the fun memories we had made!
