Drift Creek Falls, Oregon Coast, and Salem Adventure

Drift Creek Falls
I have always wanted to visit Drift Creek Falls because of the waterfall and the suspension bridge but never had time to fit this into my coastal adventure. This weekend, the hike was the main attraction with the coast as an afterthought!





Amy stopped to admire the moss as always, she rode in the backpack a lot on this hike, I think it was the time of day (Nap time)





The ferns were lovely.





We made it to the suspension bridge which she greatly enjoyed of course!





We enjoyed "dipping our toes in for a dabble". (a very COLD dabble I might add!)





We enjoyed admiring the waterfall from underneath.





A chipmunk tried to steal our lunch.





Back to the amazing bridge.







Next stop....Lincoln City!
We went out onto the beach and made a fort in the sand. It was a great post hike lounge, just enjoying the wind, the sand, and the waves.





We decided it was too cold to wade in the ocean but did throw some rocks in.






After lounging on the beach and being creative with sand, we had a lovely dinner at Mo's.





We spent the night with Nana in Salem.








One more weekend adventure- World Beat Festival, Salem
We had never been to the world beat festival, but went to watch our favorite tap dancer, Sarah, perform. The festival was lovely- very family friendly and a lot of cultural pride.





Amy rode the Carousel for the first time after having been to Oaks Park and experiencing how much she enjoys rides!





She was afraid of the fountain, but I needed to cool off so she reluctantly let me take her through it :-). She continued to return to the drums and the Mancala game.

It was a very full weekend of fun! I saw the gift in the trail, the sand, the clam chowder and the dancing.

2010-2011 Snow Adventures

Snow Adventures
Being in the snow is always such a beautiful time for me to really experience fresh air and the contrasts of white on green. I love the quiet and softness the snow creates. I am so glad we found a way for Amy to enjoy and experience snow this winter. We found her little skis at Next Adventure for a good price. They clip on to any sort of boots. When she got tired (theoretically) she could ride in the sled and we were able to cover a few miles this way several times. My preference is usually snowshoeing but I also tried cross country skis this year as well.


Pocket Creek- Mt. Hood
This was a family adventure! It is rare that my New Yorker Citified husband Gil joins us on our hikes and even rarer that he joins us on snow adventures because it is so much more difficult! He wanted to see Amy in action on her little skis.




Amy loves to take "deep snow breaks" where she takes her skis off and jumps in the deep snow.




It was a beautiful day, snowing just a little, but not too cold.




After hanging with mama in the snow eating lunch, Amy stops for yet another "deep snow break".




We pull a sled for Amy to take breaks in but she rarely wants to use it. It was great to find a friendly dog




Of course, it is essentially to stop for a doughnut at Joe's doughnut shop, ice cream, or a cookie on the way home. I always need some coffee for driving, so I usually try to reward us with a treat.






Snoqualmie Pass, WA:
We headed out with some friends for a long snowshoe/ ski at Snoqualmie Pass in Washington.




This time the skis stayed on a little longer.




Amy likes to be the leader.




The kids found a snow tunnel to climb through




Our little friend used the smaller sled but when he was done, Amy decided she wanted to pull it






Mount Hood- Glacier View Snowpark, Trillium Lake, and Cooper's Spur Snowparks:
We had several snow adventures around Mt. Hood with our friend, Sarah. Glacier View was quite forested and fun- easily accessible.




Trillium Lake is always beautiful but the trip up the hill feels a bit long pulling a sled :-)




Cooper Spur was a bit of an off day for Amy, but the drive through the orchards dusted with snow made the day worthwhile!






My Favorite Snow Adventure of the Season- Maxwell Butte- Santiam Pass:
This was a longer drive than Mt. Hood but so worth it. The forest felt much wilder to me. The trails were groomed but narrow, not forest service roads. The day was sunny and amazing. We did not see too many glimpses of the mountain but had an amazing snow day together.




Of course deep snow breaks had to happen, and we made a tiny snowman which is always a hit. After one of our adventures, when asking Amy what she saw she got totally excited and said she saw "snow and snowballs and snowflakes and snowmen". She said this without taking a breath :-)

Mom and daughter campout: Waterfalls, showers in the drips, and old growth amazement!

Earlier in June, my husband Gil had a Friday class. Since I had to take the day off work, I decided that Amy and I would head out to Lewis River Falls to go camping. We arrived Thursday night in the pouring rain. We had gotten a to go dinner at Safeway, so we did not have to cook. We arrived in time for dinner and put up our tent. By the time we got to the campground, it was only spitting, so we were able to eat without getting too wet and get the tent set up.






I could not find running water at the campground. There was a pump but it looked like it had been broken. Fortunately I had my backpacking filter, so that was an excuse for Amy to throw rocks into the water while I filtered the drinking water.






The outhouse was a little scary for Amy because it was dark and she is just getting used to using a potty. We had a glow in the dark bracelet that made the prospect much more motivating. She also was able to pee in the woods! I am excited for the day that my pack will be much lighter without any diapers!






We tried to make some popcorn for dessert but this was quite difficult because of how wet it was. Since we were both getting impatient, I set the popcorn pot directly on the fire, and the oil and popcorn caught fire in the pot. I put the fire out, but there was no saving our popcorn. We had S'mores instead.






We both slept great with the quiet and even slept a little later than usual. After a breakfast scramble off we went for a 7 mile hike! Our drive through the pouring rain on Thursday night was rewarded by Friday sunshine, the first real summery day.






One of Amy's favorite parts of hiking is crossing bridges, and there were quite a few on this hike. She walked between 4-5 miles, and I carried her the rest of the way in the backpack. We saw five waterfalls on this hike. They were all powerful and wonderful. This was our lunch stop.






Amy's favorite part of this hike was the moss and the "drips" coming down the side of the ridge. She stopped at all the trips to "shower in the drips". Amy and I both love moss.






It was also fun to get to see a snail. This is the first time I had seen one on the trail.






We returned to the tent in time for a nap and for me to get some needed reading and reflection time.






This hike was definitely a favorite of mine of all the hikes we have done together. We both love the beauty of the old growth forest, and there were still Trillium, a flower that Amy can identify and knows starts with "T". The river was beautiful!






We both slept well again and woke up early to head to Seattle for the WNBA Seattle Storm home opener game. The Storm won and we got to play in the fountain at Seattle Center which made for an excellent end to a fun adventurous weekend!