Twin Lakes

Hey, y'all - 

Laney and I were talking just yesterday about this past summer. Because it was such an action- and visitor-packed three months, I wanted to know what Laney's favorite thing had been about the season. Was is Hawaii? Summer camp? Being in a play? Paddle boarding? Getting to live down the hall from the two coolest parents who ever lived? The Jungle party?

She thought about it a minute and finally decided: Camping with Julia and Christian. "Huh," I thought. "If it's the winning entry, maybe I should get around to putting it on the blog." So let's take it from the top:

My friend Amy came to visit at the very end of July, and brought her delightful (truly) children, Julia and Christian. I got to have some fun Moms-only time with Amy, which I loved, because no one laughs like Amy does. 

Amy's kids had never been camping, so we wanted to take them while they were here. Your dad picked a spot waaaay over almost on the Idaho border called Twin Lakes. I had never heard of it. To get there, you drive forever and ever on an unpaved mountain road, slowly gaining elevation, until you're at about 8,000 ft in the Beavertooth Mountains. I had never heard of the Beavertooth Mountains, either. Moving westward, the map in my mind goes something like this: "Missoula...blah blah blah...the Macy's in Burbank."

It was absolutely beautiful. 110% worth the drive to come over a ridge and see two alpine lakes hidden in these incredible mountains (pictured above. Photo by the Forest Service. I did not hike that mountain).

When we pulled up to the primitive campground, an entire troop of Boy Scouts was packing up and we got to take over their spot. I can only assume they all had to earn some kind of firewood-chopping badge, because this was the supply they left by our campfire:

(That's your dad grilling chicken for the best soft tacos I've maybe ever had). 

The scouts had also did some whittling, and we kept finding little wizarding wands (or wooden daggers? mini swords?) around the campsite, which was sort of magical for Hagen.

No phone signal. No wifi. No electricity. No running water. No way to entertain ourselves but to swim and paddle board and explore and dress Hagen up like a knight:

There were boulders near our campsite that the kids climbed, and we took the hammock for extra relaxation.

SERENITY NOW!!

Christian recently earned his black belt in Tae Kwon Do, and even though Hagen at that point was a "no belt," that didn't stop him from demonstrating some REAL ninja moves. 

Surprisingly for a black belt, Christian was completely unfamiliar with these moves. They are secret! deadly! And apparently do not appear in the official handbook. 

On the way home, we pulled over to check out the creek running alongside the dirt road and pushed our way through the bushes to find this (cue the harps):

I don't think I've ever seen anything so cool. Sometimes the water was just a few inches deep as it raced over the granite rocks, and sometimes little pools had formed that were about a foot and a half deep. The whole family could explore. Laney immediately took off her shoes and hiked to the top. 

Ella the dog followed me around, because as the weakest member of our pack, I require extra supervision. She was right on my heels the whole time, until your dad yelled "Stop being such a helicopter mom, Ella."

Laney, I can see why you picked this adventure as your favorite.

Love,
Mom