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Thank God we have some high-quality sleeping bags that can handle up to 0 degrees Fahrenheit. Because it got down to the 40's both nights- and our thin AZ blood doesn't tolerate the cold like it did back in North Dakota!

It was a very surreal feeling waking in the middle of the night to the sound of coyotes......

We were up early to a beautiful morning. We walked down to the lake to do a little exploring.

Ryan set up fishing lines....while I looked at wild flowers.


This site of Ryan fishing, the nature, and boats is so peaceful to me!

After a short morning on the lake, we headed back to camp to make breakfast.

After breakfast, we took a drive around the area to do some exploring - and we saw a family of Elk. Elk were all over the place in this area! Just gorgeous.

We decided to rent a boat for the day. So we packed up some food and drinks - and I brought books and magazines - and we enjoyed an afternoon on the lake....


Well...Kind of enjoyed..............;)
We first thought it'd be fun and "primitive" to rent a row boat. What a romantic image I had in my head of us rowing about the lake, fishing, and enjoying a gorgeous day in the sun.

Until we got out into the middle of the lake - and realized the oars were faulty, and screwed on backwards.

Then the wind picked up.

Then we got stuck on a pile of rocks .

The more stuck we got, the more the wind blew. The more the wind blew, the more stuck we got.

This was quite an intense moment.

It's too bad I don't have pictures of this. However, I don't think Ryan would have been happy to have his photo taken during this moment.....

Needless to say, we managed back to the boat-house - and demanded a motor boat!!!

As you can see, we were much happier.

Until......some "anchor issues"

They didn't have normal anchors. They had old, metal coffee cans filled with cement - But they were awkwardly heavy and really difficult to work with.

After we had been finishing in an area - and it was time to pull in the anchors and move.....

The anchor seemed to be stuck. So Ryan pulled and pulled and pulled....

And nothing came up.

So he really used his muscles and pulled.

And then he put ALL his body weight into it.

And whatever was "caught" on the anchor snapped.

And across the boat he flew.

I really don't know how he managed to not capsize.

Our romantic day out on the boat was one of those moments where "expectations don't meet reality"

We didn't can't anything, either.

We managed to have a good time. And it is a memory we will never forget.

After our day of fishing, we went for a gorgeous 5 mile hike.

We followed signs to "Big Lake Lookout" - thinking it'd just be a nice little look out over the lake.

It turned out being on top of everything. The hike was somewhat challenging - but definitely worth it!!
I felt like we were on top of the world.
Then we climbled up 3 flights of stairs to a hut. The hut is used by the Arizona Park Rangers to spot lightning and forest fires - to call them in.

This was one of those moments in life where my breath was taken away!
Pictures just don't do justice.

I really don't do well with heights. I was honestly shaking the whole time we were in this hut. In fact, at first I had to tell myself to breathe! This pictures just shows a little glimpse of how fricking terrified I was!



Our day of fishing and long hike definitely worked us up an appetite. So we decided to make our last meal a traditional "camping cuisine". So we did hot dogs on the fire - and I made baked beans with onions and fresh jalepenos - and sauerkraut (on my top 5 list of favorite foods!!) :)


We finished the evening with a great fire.

It am not going to even talk about Sunday. It was a gorgeous morning - and we were packed up and out of there by 9. *sigh*

Definitely a wonderful camping trip - and we hope to return to this campground again!!

Comments

Great recap! i can just imagine that row boat experience! Too funny. I can just imagine how annoyed Ryan would have been if you had tried to capture the moment on film. ;)

Looks like an amazing getaway. It was fun to see pictures - although I know how you feel when the pictures don't do it justice!
Unknown said…
Beautiful pictures! The hike looked spectacular! I laughed when I saw the picture of you hanging on to the ranger tower stairs. I remember climbing one of those at Itasca with your Mom when we were kids. She had to literally crawl on her hands and knees because the open staircase was too much for her. I remember laughing so hard at her because she made it so funny. But what I remember the most is that she made sure she did it because she didn't want to miss the experience, even if it was EXTREMELY difficult for her! That's my sister!!!! Glad you had a great weekend. Thanks for sharing the great pictures.
Cherry Blossoms said…
Looks so nice and peaceful. I don't mean to laugh in a mean way but I can only have pictured you guys out there on the lake and reading this made me giggle! Glad that Ryan did not get hurt and what a great story you now have!
Marlys said…
As I was reading your blog, I had an immediate flash back to the very event Barb just mentioned and I still have an uncanny fear of heights! I remember that each step down was painfully accomplished and was elated to hit ground! I truthfully don't even remember the view from the top - must have been too worried about the trip down to enjoy it! Great pictures, Abby! Fun weekend!

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