The Dates: April 3-4
Hikers: Me, Jay, Buddy, Sport, my brother, and my sister in law
The Big Fat Lie: Campsite 6 is 3.6 miles from the trailhead
3.6 miles as the crow flies maybe, closer to 4.5 as the feet walk. Despite the extra length and difficulty of the hike we had a fantastic time. We knew at the start this hike would be the longest the boys have done but we planned lots of time and plenty of snacks to get us to our campsite. If we hadn't known already this trip proved what amazing little hikers our boys are. There is no doubt about it, this was a hard trip.
The terrain at the beginning was what we planned on. Pretty easy, flat, and well marked.
Buddy forging the way.
Sport waiting for his turn to cross the creek.
Buddy was our hike leader for most of the morning.
We hiked about an hour and a half before taking our first of two big breaks. Lots of snacks, water, and general goofiness.
Sport will rarely ever wear his hat as designed.
The trail changed to a little more than we bargained for at about the halfway point. The boys have hiked harder areas but not for so long.
My brother and Jay with Buddy ahead. We had to climb down the rocks to the river.
It took us 5 1/2 hours to hike to our campsite including about 45 minutes for breaks. There were a couple places along the way we could have camped if it got to be to much for the boys but they were having a great time. They loved being along side the creek during the hike and would pick a spot to watch it while we took breaks.
I love this photo, they look like they just collapsed from exhaustion. They were trying to see under the rocks on the other side of the creek.
I thought once we made it to the campsite the boys would be worn out and looking to lay down for awhile. That wasn't what they had in mind. My brother and sister in law took a nap, the boys started playing like we'd kept them locked in the house all day.
Jumping rocks is always good entertainment.
Playing 'monkey in the middle' with dad.
After setting up camp we took the boys down to the creek to check out the tadpoles and the most glorious game of throwing rocks in the river.
Buddy was more interested in quantity of rocks thrown, while Sport was all about the size of the splash.
Look close to see the giant splash in front of Sport (blue shirt).
Buddy took his rock throwing very seriously.
Sport...Not so much.
Even a timeout is more fun while your camping.
We went to bed early and the boys fell asleep almost immediately. The woke up the next morning to find the Easter bunny had left some eggs for them to find. Sport was much more serious about finding Easter eggs, he was on a mission. Buddy ran from spot to spot like a pin ball.
We let them dig into their haul before heading out for the return trip. I thought it would take just as long to hike back with the boys being tired but they surprised me again. It took an hour less for the return trip. We didn't have to carry anyone until the last twenty minutes or so.
All in all, it was a wonderful way to spend Easter weekend. The boys are already asking for a return trip. We are planning to hike up another river next month but Jay has done the trip before so we know what we are getting into. My sister in law is also thinking about joining us again and I'm very excited about that. This was her first camping trip.
What a great time. Your pics are wonderful!!
WOW, you have an adventurous family! THAT WAS A BIG hike for little legs! I am so impressed. The boys look like they had a ball. How fun that the Easter bunny got to visit the campground. What a great memory for the boys to hold onto forever.