there's nothing like hiking on a spring-like afternoon in the mountains when there's hardly a soul to be seen. not a sound except for the stream, birds chirping and our kids calling out to eachother "wait for me guys!"
our nunbers were perfect. six kids and three moms. it hardly took any time to get to the falls. althoug we did stop on the way up for a little water break.
so, of course, we had to take some photos. the kids found the rocks irresistable.
allsion expertly navigating the rocks.
i love the water and the rocks and the moss. we had the waterfall to ourselves. the kids had so much fun playing in the water. we saw a pair of mating salamanders. the comments from the kids were so funny. "are they stuck together?" "they are having a bonding time." "ewwww - how gross!!!" the last one came from the older girls that had more of an idea of what was going on. we saw a tiny from snuggled into a rock camoflaged very well. helen spotted him with her eagle eyes.
of course, we had to have snack time.
we headed out with lots more slipping and falling than going up. all the kids ended up with soaking shoes. some got more dirty than others. but we made it out without any major injuries. on the drive down, we saw a snake crossing the road so we had to stop and take photos.
we actually had two snake sightings. on the way up the trail, the kids spotted a snake that was black and yellow and orange (or red). by the time i got there to see it was already in the bushes so i didn't get a very good view of it. wish i'd gotten a shot of it. the wildlife was the highlight, except for the bugs. kaitlin and i had a big conversation about ticks at bedtime. she was very concerned about how one gets them and how one gets rid of them.
i was so pooped after the hike. when we got home allison and jayda went swimming. i took a rest and decided there was not going to be any cooking. took the kids to the farmer's market. i gave them money to go find their dinner while i sat at nicole's, a little french sidewalk cafe and had french onion soup, salad, cheese and charcuterie and wine with friends. what a wonderful way to spend the day.
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