Mud, waves, sand, and sunshine

Mom- It was unseasonably warm and sunny in early Feb 2015.  We headed to the coast to take in the view and enjoy the sunshine.  This short hike in Ecola State Park starts on the bluff and climbs down through thick mud to the beach.
Amy-There was a couple of good views of the ocean.

Amy-  My sister Analise walked part of the way.

Amy-  This is another great ocean view.

Mom-  We gazed at the ocean from the bluff and enjoyed the sound and sight of the waves crashing against the rocks.  Analise was very determined to walk.

Mom-  It was so good to be on this trail and get the luxury of hiking and beach all in one adventure!

Mom- Sarah found a heart stump.  The girls found some great hollow stumps to play in.  Then the going got VERY muddy.

Amy-  This view is blocked by tree branches.

Amy-  On the hike I found a tree bed.  I took a nap.

Amy-  Analise and I stood in a hollow spot in the tree bed

Amy-  Analise and I found a tree playhouse with a couple of hollow spaces to climb in and out of .  it was funnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn.   SUPER FUNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN

Amy-  The ocean view!

Mom- Analise and I found a pretty little snail on a piece of wood along our muddy route.

Amy-  I got soked

Amy-  Analise had a lot of fun!
Mom- When Analise and I got to the beach after walking through knee deep mud, Amy had gone out to the ocean with my friend Sarah and tripped running away from a wave.  Fortunately it was a warm day!  I was able to keep Analise out of the water through some minor miracle.  Usually Amy is the careful one and Analise would be the one getting soaked.

Mom-  We got to spend time on the beach enjoying the view of the rocks.  There were a few surfers braving the cold February surf.

Mom-  Analise loved playing in the sand and pushed her limit toward the ocean as far as I would let her go.

Amy- We made a giraffe castlel
Mom- Amy was the sand castle creator and Analise was the demolition crew.

Mom- Amy found a tree to hang out in.

Mom-  We enjoyed the ocean views on the hike back.

Mom-  What a lovely muddy woods and ocean kind of day!

Mom- At first glance I thought I saw a cow, but closer observation revealed a moose.

Mom- Analise rode in the backpack for the trip up the trail through the mud.

Mom- This hike was a serious February treat.

Iron Mt. High Meadow Magic

 Mom- After a very long drive to Tombstone Pass Analise, Amy, Sarah, Gil, and I set out on a delightful adventure to a high mountain meadow.

Amy- Look how tall that is!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Amy- On this trail Analise ( I don't know if she did it but it seems like she did it) but I think she actually walked the whole trail all by her self.

Mom-  This is a meadow near the beginning of the trail at Tombstone Pass.

Mom-  The big trees were so tall.  We met a couple who were practicing tree climbing with ropes.

Amy-  Beautiful forest! Shade from trees! this forest is healthy! I would love to go here again! and again.

Amy-  Analise was fishing in the dirt.

Mom-  Sarah was the first to arrive at the high meadow.

Mom-  We spent some time in the high meadow taking in the view and having some lunch.

Amy-  Analise throw rocks down the mountain .

Mom-  I love the top of the world feeling you get from being on a ridge.  Analise, Sarah, and I got some extra time to enjoy it before Gil and Amy came up the trail.

Mom-  Analise was throwing rocks and dirt and offering it as gifts to the rest of us.

Mom-  She was so busy, it was hard to get her to look at a camera but I finally got it.

Mom-  We enjoyed the view to the next ridge lines.

Mom-  The sunny day with the fresh breeze was amazing.

Amy-  Dad came on this hike!

Mom-  I reunited with Amy as she came up the trail.

Mom-  Amy had stolen a hiking stick and was using it to help steady herself on the trail.

Amy-  My picture!

Mom-  We said goodbye to the forest and high meadow and headed back toward the car.

Big Ski Hill Challenge Hiking. I Need To Hit The Trail. The Skis Are Too Fast.

Mom-  We were invited by a friend to snow camp but being the parent of two young kids, I have not been up to trying that yet, so we set out to try to find our friends who were camped at Trillium Lake.

 Amy- Trillium tree branches were covered in snow.

 Mom- Analise had just been in the hospital and really disliked snow last year, so it was just Amy, Sarah, and I.  Amy decided to use the skis she has used since she was 2 1/2 since her sister was not around to use them.  She did a great job skiing down the big hill!

 Mom-  We found some smoldering charcoal, but not our friends and wondered if they had camped further down the road.  We had never tried the full Trillium Lake loop and especially enjoyed the snowy meadow.

Mom- We sat and listened to a pioneer story while seeing a pioneer grave.  The first recorded person to summit Mt. Hood is buried here.

Mom- Amy was a little cranky about the difficulty of snow hiking, having given up her skis after the big hill.

Mom- We pressed on through the winter wonderland, getting quite a workout in our snowshoes and boots.

Mom- The big trees and snow made us feel very small.

Mom- We found beautiful Trillium Lake and enjoyed spending some time here.

Amy- We built a snowman.( Down below )( And up above )  

Amy- I coldly took off my gloves and put them on the snowman.  Do you see them?

Amy-  Do you see the nose on the snowman?

Mom- We enjoyed using the campground facilities and building a snowman together.

Mom- We had some well deserved lunch by the lake.

Mom- Mt. Hood started to peak out.  I wondered if it is ever reflected on ice like it is on the water?

Mom- We said goodbye to the lake and tromped up the big hill in good spirits.  We were proud of our five mile snowshoeing accomplishment.