Grand Tetons

This past weekend Geoff and Ceci headed off for an adventure in the Grand Teton mountains in Wyoming. At first they were going to hop a train to an undetermined destination, then they were going to hitch hike somewhere wild, and in the end they settled on simplifying things and driving to a beautiful place they had never been.

A few hours into the trip they realized they didn't have cash (or a debit card to get cash) to get into a campground site. Somehow Geoff tried to get cash by putting his American Express card into a machine and the machine didn't give it back. I happened to have his only other credit card in my wallet, so they were five hours away for the weekend with no way to buy anything, including gas home! Let the adventure begin!

Later, by some wonderful stroke of luck, Ceci found my lost credit card in her jacket that had been missing since our Oregon trip! But in the meantime, they had found a perfect, free campsite on BLM land.

Geoff slept in this small tent and Ceci attempted a night in a hammock with a tarp rigged over it, but in the end slept in the front seat like this:

They took walks along amazing paths full of wildflowers (the wildflowers have been amazing this year!!!)

They went on a 30-mile bike ride through fields and forests with some of the most spectacular scenery either of them had ever seen. On the way back they out-peddled a hail storm but couldn't quite beat a very cold rain storm (see a soaking Ceci below).

They swam in Jenny's lake and Ceci built a cairn on the shore to mark her having been there.

They went on an all-day, 13-mile hike, starting at sunset, taking a boat shuttle across Jenny's lake, and then into unbelievably beautiful country where 5659 pictures tried to capture it.

The wildlife was amazing. Wild animals are so used to hikers passing by on the trails that they go about their business a few yards away. First some moose, then a digging fox, and then this bear, that later crossed the trail literally 10 feet in front of them without a care of their presence! It was magical.

And they ended off their four days of perfection with a late night fire, dreaming of returning with the rest of us...

I'm in!

McCall, Idaho

We squeezed in a quick trip to McCall a few weeks ago as Geoff was finishing up one job and before he started his new one. It never feels long enough.

We stayed in Ingrid and Trent's place with Brittany and Hunter, which was really fun. We missed Tennie, who has her head down with a heavy school and work load, and we missed having the Wells there too!

We rented a jet boat and an instructor to teach us how to surf ski. Geoff, Adele and Ceci picked it right up and loved it!

 

Hunter, who had never driven a boat, made it possible for Geoff to be able to ski, as Geoff was the experienced boat driver. On one swing around to pick Geoff up for another go at skiing, the boat was difficult to maneuver and we coasted directly over Geoff, hearing several thumps on the bottom of the boat. It was terrifying. I fully expected him to come up floating upside down and severely hurt, but he came up from the rear corner alive and ok, much to all of our relief, especially to poor Hunter who felt mortified. He continued to ski, and brave Hunter continued to drive. It wasn't until later that Geoff realized how much his wrist hurt. A later x-ray confirmed it was fractured. A small injury compared to what could have been a tragedy. He said that right as he saw the boat coming straight at him he had a clear picture come to his head about how to get out from under safely. Such a miracle.

This boating day was Britt's birthday, and with Ingrid who came in town for the day, we finished it off with some lakeside Mexican food and a walk along the beach at sunset. (Most of the pictures from McCall are Britt's pictures.)

Geoff got out on some Ponderosa bike rides, one with Hunter. More wildflowers!

One day we rented mountain bikes and biked down Brundage a couple times. It was my first time mountain biking and I am hooked! It was so much fun and so beautiful!

It was a bit cooler this summer while we were there, but with some tubes the water was tolerable.

 We did a lot of reading and lounging on the dock, took multiple trips to Ice Cream Ally, watched the sunsets and said goodbye until next time.

Oregon Coast

The idea for a bike tour was sort of last minute, although Geoff has been wanting to go on one since we got our road bikes last fall. About 10 days before our planned Taeya kidnapping we decided to tag on a bike trip down the Oregon coast. Beauty, relatively beginner stretches, Tennie about to return to Provo and Geoff potentially starting a new job that would keep us local for awhile all contributed to the decision. Why not? Tennie got to work planning the easiest route and places to stay. Adele was in charge of places we could eat in each town. Ceci was in charge of sites to see along the way. Adele and Ceci bought road bikes at a pawn shop and we got them tuned up. Geoff and I began to research gear. That was our biggest challenge, because many stores aren't open and shipping items wouldn't get to us in time. It was a bit of whirlwind getting set up, but we were off.

Our girls haven't been to Oregon since they were small kids, so this was all new for them. We stopped in Portland to explore that beautiful city for a few hours, but the entire place was empty and boarded up due to riots the previous couple days. It was an eerie end-of-world kind of feeling. We got to visit with TK, who was working there for a couple weeks, and talk all about his mission to Paris!

A lot of Oregon was still closed due to the virus, which we somehow didn't think about too much. We had brought enough freeze-dried meals to eat on our own, but we ended up finding enough restaurants that were providing take out that we didn't have to rely on those. Any activities that Ceci found, such as the Tillamook Cheese Factory, were closed. But the amazing thing was, in most towns we had the place to ourselves. So forests and beaches were ours to explore, and the scenery along that coast was so absolutely spell-binding that it was all we needed. Riding along the coast and seeing it at about 13 MPH was a new experience. Wild flowers and ferns I may not have noticed were part of the experience. Bird song and waves were our surround-sound music. Thick, lush forests lined our way (and were our bathrooms!) Rain and wind and the cool air gave each ride its own personality. We all loved it.

We actually had dry weather three out of the five days. The fifth day we got rained out, but once we got settled into our Airbnb Geoff went out and braved a ride on his own. We had our car with us the whole time, someone taking it for a leg and then switching off each day. Four of the five days we biked around 25 miles, and that fifth day we biked 50. There were some bigger hills than we anticipated. Adele and Ceci, who were brand new to road biking, tackled some of the biggest their very first day. Their perseverance and determination were amazing!

Geoff insisted that someone wear a fluorescent vest as the trail rider to make sure cars saw us. It became quite a joke, although there was great wisdom in it.

We started in Cannon Beach, which is an adorable and quiet little seaside town. Some friends from our church (the Crittendens) have a home there, and we were able to see them for a short while, which was fun. From there we went to Rockaway Beach. Then on to Pacific City, Lincoln City, Newport, and we ended up in Yachets, which might have been our favorite spot.

The beaches were soft and expansive. We found some hidden gems too!

We worked for every view we got! And they were always worth it.

Tennie bought a pair of scissors and cut Ceci's hair on the beach.

Ceci performed some incredible feats along the way...

We stayed at an old little motel right on the beach just outside of Newport, Oregon that was so cozy and had gorgeous views. We extended our stay a day just to enjoy it. Tennie and Ceci slept out on the balcony, snuggled right up next to the window to stay out of the rain.

And lastly, in an effort to invite a peaceful family trip during a somewhat tumultuous time, we bought a little kiwi while at Fish Lake, and it became our mascot, named Emu. Whenever we ordered food Geoff gave the name, "Emu, the love kiwi." And he would tell the restaurant not to give the food unless the person picking it up said it. Emu sits on our dashboard still.

Overall it was an amazing family adventure; the first of many bike trips to come.