Time with my daughter, priceless

It’s been a bit of a crazy schedule these past few months and I really needed some down time. My sweet hubby took me on an escape to Washington to visit with my daughter Laura and her husband Mike on their small farm in Arlington.  It was the perfect weekend. Not only did we miss the snow and nasty weather in Minnesota we had beautiful long days to enjoy the North Cascades and play time outdoors.

 Dan and I drove the North Cascades scenic hiway from Arlington to Winthrop on Thursday and then came back over on Friday.  It’s a beautiful drive full of mountain peaks, wilderness, lakes, and vistas and it was all in full fall color. We took our time enjoying many stops along the way to hike the trails to overlooks and the Ross Lake Dam.  Our evening in Winthrop was delightful, it’s a fun town with a western theme and sit’s on the river.  We stayed at the River’s Edge and after a big blueberry pancake breakfast the next morning we drove back over. Remember, it’s a whole different trip when you do it the other way. 

 The highlight for me was our hike up to Palisades Lake.  It was a small goat trail of a path up hill about 2 1/4 miles to a small alpine lake.  We were the only ones on the trail and it was almost magical to be in the deep old growth forest with total peace and quiet all around us.  It somehow puts life in perspective when you’re surrounded by century old trees and mountains.

Returning to Arlington we enjoyed hanging out on their farm and a trail ride on Saturday afternoon.  It’s been a long time since we rode horses so it was extra special to be out in the forest on horseback.  I grew up with horses and Laura is thrilled to have her own once again, meet Cody.