Winthrop, WA

Two weekends back, Nick and I took a solo trip to Winthrop, WA. Located in central Washingon, it is a quaint little town with numerous things to do...from shopping to laying by the river to various outdoor recreating. Sounds a lot like Bend, but not nearly as big. It has it's own Country Western feel, as most of the buildings on the main drag (only drag for that matter) are faced with the Wild West facade. The home made ice cream shop was by far the most hoppin' place, but it certainly didn't lack the antique-ish gift shops that are always so fun to browse, as well as outdoor clothing stores and restaurants.Since it had been years and years since either Nick or I had ventured to Winthrop, it was clear that it was time to re-explore the land together. After randomly selecting a campground near town via internet and getting a wee bit lost trying to find it...we rolled into our campground at 10pm, Friday night. Ahhh...another set up in the dark...is there any other way? The camp host had no record of our reservation, but after telling him that my credit card statement said otherwise, he willingly gave us a site and we were on our way.

The next morning we realized Big Twin Lakes campground is beautiful and well shaded (a MUST considering 95 degree weather - too hot for a good ol' Western Washington girl like me), but the lake was rather disappointing. It did not pass the inspection as being a swimable lake, unless one enjoys swimmers itch, but rather a good fishing spot, which neither Nick nor I do.
After a leisurely breakfast and a game of cribbage, we headed up Sun Mountain for some awesome mountain biking. It took me about 2 peddle strokes to realize that the term "Mountain Biking" can have many different meanings. Most of Eastern Washington mountain biking is rolly, hot, exposed, sandy, rocky, fast, narrow, non-technical and in my opinion very boring and life-sucking. Not to mention boiling hot! I was reminded yet again how lucky we are to have Galbraith mountain 10 minutes from our front door. That is my kind of mountain biking: Steep and steady going up, fast going down, technical, networks of trails, compacted dirt, shade and fun, fun, fun. So after an hour and a half of peddling and seeing if the trails would get any better, we threw the bikes back on the car, headed back to camp and took a 2 hour nap under the Willow tree.

Shockingly, when we woke up we were still exhausted and realized it was more about being over heated than it was about being tired. A 10 minute drive took us to a beautiful, refreshing lake where the water cooled our bones and rejuvenated our spirits. Charlotte even took a little swim (slightly forced by Nick) and though she probably hated it in the moment, we could tell she too felt much better after taking a dip. We did a little dog sitting once we returned to our campsite. Ore site neighbors, and as it turns out fellow Bellinghamers, were celebrating a 60th birthday in town and asked us to watch their 3 lb dog, Lucy. She took a liking to Nick quickly, although, I'm not sure if she ever stopped shaking.

Sunday morning, the skies were a bit overcast and I thanked the Lord every moment. After peanut butter pancakes and sausages, we packed up camp and headed to another mountain bike trail that was promised to be more of our kind of biking.

Cutthroat Lake, located in the Oakenagen National Park, is a must see for everyone! The lake itself is a mere 2.4 mile trek up a very gradual incline. The scenery during the hike is treat enough, but the lake is awe-inspiring. Warning: Layer on bug spray like you would smoother frosting on a cake. The mosquitoes are thick as blankets and have a tenacity that would humble a tiger feeding on it's pray. They only surround the lake, so when on the trails you are home free!

Since we were biking, we took 2 seconds to snap a photo by the lake (Nick was lucky to have me stop moving that long - they were ferocious little blood suckers) and we continued up the trails. From there on the incline got much steeper. With constant switchbacks and the occasional stream to plow through, we climbed and climbed and climbed with beauty surrounding us. Eventually we hit a stopping point (mostly due to our time limit...we still had a 3 hour drive home), padded up and headed down. Granted it wasn't the technical downhill that we are used to, but boy was it fast. Nick lead the train, then Charlotte who can run with the best of them, then me bringing up the rear. We were back at our car before we knew it, amazed at what a difference the day before's ride had been compared to what we just did.

Refreshed and exhausted we headed home, soaking up the awesome views the whole way. If you haven't made it over to Winthrop yet. You really must. The drive itself is worth it!

See Charlotte likes the technical bridges too!

Bend, Oregon

Quite a few months ago, Nick and I sat down and created a list of destinations we would love to visit this summer. Since the bulk of my work consumes the weekends throughout the summer, we are forced to be intentional about our limited free time. We all know that the Summer is the time to take advantage of the beautiful Northwest...so it was a no brainer to break the patterns of the last few summers of just "wingin' it" when it comes to weekend trip and really brain storm our most desired mini-vacation destinations. The list included: Bend, OR...Hood River, OR...Victoria, BC...Whistler, BC...Squamish, BC...Winthrop, WA...San Juan Islands, WA...and at least one backpack trip on Mt. Baker. Obviously, we were already able to cross off Whistler and Squamish off our list, and during the 4th of July weekend...we accomplished yet another desired location: Bend. OR.

Though the city name itself - Bend - sounds somewhat unintriguing, it is actually an absolute "must see" city in my humble opinion. Located in central Oregon...it reminds me just of a bigger Bellingham. A place of unlimited activities...both for the adventurous heart and laid-back shopper, while surrounded by beautiful terrain and a laid back ora.

We were blessed to have a three day weekend over the 4th, so it made sense to visit Bend due to it's longer distance from home (8 hour drive). Leaving late on Thursday night, we rolled into Ridgefield (home of Matt, Ami and Delya Lewis) around 1am. After catching some ZZZZZs, we all awoke, packed the car with 4 adults and 1 infant's belongings and bodies and hit the road.
Though the car ride was a bit tight, I soaked up every minute. Lucky me, I got the choice back seat right next to two of my favorite women in the world: My niece and sister. I got to stare at Delya for 4 hours...watching her watch her mother with adoration, joy and total contentedness. The have obviously grown a deep bond during the last 4.5 months and it was written all over Delya's face. Something that I will never forget and continue to be so proud of my sister for being such an awesome mom.
After we rolled into Bend in the early afternoon, we checked in at our hotel and took the short half mile walk into downtown. The dry 90 degree weather took a bit getting used to, but so very worth it. With a few streets of full of boutiques, sweet shops and outdoor gear, we were easily entertained for hours upon hours of window shopping and eating. Lucky for us, we also took part in the "Art Walk" which happens on the first Friday of each night in downtown Bend. Local participating shops and galleries stay open later and offer free wine, beer and treats. A genius marketing idea, as each location was jammed full of potential shoppers, who may not opt to be there without the free booze. After a late dinner at one of the McMenamin's school turned restaurant/hotel locations (www.mcmenamins.com - so cool...check it out!) we headed back to the hotel for some rest.

Delya rockin' her new booties:
The 4th celebration was a sight to see in Bend. By 10am sharp, thousands of on-lookers lined the downtown streets to watch the parade; simply consisting of humans and their pets, adding up to even more thousands. It was packed...lively...and the all American spirit was buzzing through the streets.

Nick posing with his pet of choice (besides Charlotte of course): "A Pony!!!":
The five of us continued on our walk to the Old Mill district:... A place of more shops, but this time more commonly seen names: REI, Banana Republic, American Eagle, Victoria Secret, Red Robin, etc, etc, etc. It was while walking through the Old Mill area that I told Nick - "Honey...we are actually doing it! We said we wanted to come here...and here we are!" I was proud of us...it's easy to plan trips, but doing them takes effort...the packing, the driving, the dog arrangments, and on and on and on.

It was fun to brouse and get some walking exercise, but it was obvious that the quaintness and uniqueness of the shops in the down town part of town won our hearts. It was also obvious that the mid 90 degree weather was draining us, and the Deshutes river was calling our name.
Running right through town, the Deshutes has a mild flow and a very "float me" call. After a unanimous vote of floating the river, we headed back to the hotel, to get the car so we could find the nearest box store that would sell us a floaty. After our $2.50 floaties were purchased, we launched, somewhat unwillingly, into the river for our 1 mile drifting experience. I say somewhat unwillingly, because while on our floaty shopping spree, the clouds decided to come in and temporarily eliminate the burning sun that created the craving to want to jump in a freezing cold river. But we made the best of it, even Delya (what a fish!!!) and laughed, while chattering our teeth at the irony of it all.
Snacks, showers and feedings (for Delya) were in the books for us at the hotel, and then we were headed back into town to hunt down a great dinner to celebrate our country's independence. (Can you tell we walked 10 miles a day, just going from one place to the next???? It was awesome!) Deshutes Brewery was the obvious choice due to the vast menu options, the great beer (for the boys) and the perfect location to step out of the restaurant to view the "Best in Oregon" fireworks show in a small pocket park around the corner. It was really a great way to wrap up such a fun day.
Sunday was our departure day, so after hitting up a Pearl Izumi Outlet (biking gear) and a pit stop at some rockin' reservoir for a picnic lunch and a quick swim...we were on the road yet again. Though the ride back was uneventful (thankfully...no traffic) it may have been one of my favorite times from the entire weekend. I have said time and time again that Ami and I are very close. But this trip truly allowed the "sister time" that we really haven't had in years. Being completely sedentary in the car for 6-7 hours...allowed us the time to chat, chat, chat with minimal interruptions or distractions. It really is all about the journey, isn't it?

Since we rolled into Steilacoom so late (mom and dad watched Charlotte for the weekend), we deemed it wise to sleep there, then head back to B-Ham in the morning. It was an awesome way to spend the long weekend...after all "We're actually doing it!"