Camping

I just got back from a long weekend visiting with my daughter and son in law in Seattle.  I’m a bit time lagged today from jumping time zones and dealing with Daylight Savings all at the same time.  But maybe the fuzziness in my head helps to maintain the “vacation feeling” a little bit longer.

Laura and I went to hear Michael Pollan, on Thursday evening.  I’m not sure how many of you know who he is, but suffice it to say that he has had a huge influence on my daughter and the life style they are living. It was delightful to listen to him share personal stories as he talked about food and how our choices affect not only us but everything around us.  That’s another whole conversation we could get into sometime.  But as he talked about choices, he spoke to educating others to help them make diligent, informed choices about the food they eat, the farmers they support, the lifestyles they choose.  And he talked about leading with pleasure, sharing our experiences with joy, no guilt or pressure, no lectures required.  It hit home with me.

We went to Orcas Island in the San Juans for the weekend.  I followed my daughter’s lead, as she once followed mine, as we stepped outdoors into that magical place.  There’s a special bounce in your step as you hike up the mountain, enjoying all the wonderful vistas on the way up. The forest was thick, the path easy enough for the old dog Sam, and surprises greeted us around every corner. I kept seeing her as a young girl, skipping up the path ahead of me, stopping to inspect a leaf or small moving creature, telling me to come and see.  We’ve walked together all over the world and I hold close the memories of all the places we’ve gone where I simply tagged along.  Her invitations to come and play echoing my own from years ago.

So go outside today with pleasure and joy and invite a friend to come along. 

I’ve just returned from a quick camping trip to Montana.  My youngest son, Sam, lives and works in Bozeman so we loaded up all our camping gear and headed west last week.  A good audio book put us safely in Bozeman and ready for adventure.

 Sam had spent the weekend before up at South Meadow Lake above Ennis.  It’s about 1 1/2 hours from Bozeman including the long 4 wheel drive up the canyon road.  Arriving at the lake we found ourselves all alone in the campgrounds with trout jumping all over the place and eagles playing on the winds.  It was so beautiful!  We set up camp and proceeded to explore and pick up wood for our fire.  Sam has 2 dogs, Marley and Sky, who came along to protect us from bears and provide the free entertainment for the weekend.

 Sitting by the lake with a glass of wine while our dinner cooked on the open fire was perfection! We had nothing better to do than watch the lake, marvel at the full moon rising through the forest and enjoy getting caught up with Sam.  There’s something magical about sitting around the fire, being mesmerized by the flames, and letting go of everyday life stresses. 

 We spent Saturday hiking around the bay to get to the other side of the lake.  It’s basically a “C” shape wrapped around a tall rocky penisula so the back bay is hidden from view.  The wild flowers were in full bloom, almost as if all of them for the whole season were blooming together.  Early spring bluebells along with Indian Paintbrush and many more, some I had never seen before.  There were some serious snow fields still on the upper peaks and a beautiful waterfall all the way across the lake.  Sam spent time casting his line out but never caught any fish. It didn’t seem to matter, the pace of the day was all about having nothing better to do than follow the trail up and around to see what there was on the other side of the mountain.

We only had 2 days to enjoy the lake but I know Sam will be back.  And I’ll be there with him in my mind, maybe I’ll find the same peace thinking of him there that I knew when I sat by the lake.