Showing posts with label camping. Show all posts
Showing posts with label camping. Show all posts

Friday, July 5, 2013

The most beautiful lake in the world



Ok, maybe the title's a wee bit of an exaggeration.  But seriously, look at that!  That beautifulness is called Cliff Lake, and it's only about an hour and a half away from where we live.  Jesse and I, along with Laramie and Kelly, two couples whom we are friends with, and their combined total of four kids stole away for a long weekend of camping there this past weekend.  And we camped on the far side of the lake, which meant taking boats across the lake with all our camping gear to get to our very isolated camping spot.



Ah, so many things happened, including the above pose. We would usually go out on our boats in the morning, when the lake was green and clear and as smooth as glass, to either fish or explore.  Later in the day, when it got hot, we would swim for a little while.  The brave ones had a swimming race out to the island one day. We also read, took naps, talked, and relaxed in hammocks strung between two trees. We did a lot of sitting around the fire, especially at night.  I made hobo packets for two nights using a variation of Emma's recipe, and they were so good! I'll definitely do that again.


Kelly caught a baby snake, which then bit her on the finger and was released after we had a good look at him. He was apparently a feisty little guy. Don't worry, she's still alive.






This is what "camping Karen" looks like, in case you were wondering.  Yes, my hair is in a weird growing-out phase.



 Our friends had to leave one night earlier than Kelly and Laramie and us, so the last night, when we were there by ourselves, we took the canoes out in the evening and caught the last of the sunset on the water. It was so incredibly beautiful.  --Karen

Saturday, May 11, 2013

Camping

We have been wanting to go early-season camping, and in Montana, the beginning of May would definitely be considered early season! We brought warm clothes and extra blankets, but let me tell you, the tent was very cold at night. Basically, we froze. But we survived! And we had fun.

It was a family camping trip, so my brother and his wife and their two munchkins camped with us, as well as my parents, who were here for the week visiting.









The weekend included fishing, exploring with the girls, reading, a campfire (and marshmallows, of course!), and a friendly competition to start a fire the old school way, with a couple of sticks and some rope. After hours of trying, the guys were surely warmed up, though not with any flames. But it was entertaining! And let's just say that nothing bonds a family like sharing a toothbrush. Not just two people, or even three, but four people using the same toothbrush, because three of them conveniently forgot theirs. That is true family love! (And now I'm off to buy a new toothbrush.)