We weren't able to park close, because up at the Albion Basin there are only two parking lots, both of which fill up fast. The parking lot for the Cecret Lake hike was full, and we had to park a quarter mile down. The second we were out of the car Buddy Boy had some major meltdowns, and I wasn't about to walk up a freakin' mountain with him acting like that, so he and I sat in the car while Clay and Munchkin went up. I was so mad. I'd been looking forward to seeing this hike for awhile!
Anyway, after about 20 minutes of him kicking, screaming, and scratching (and a lot of stares from passerbys), he finally calmed down. I told him we could go and find Dad and Munchkin, but only if he would stay calm. We went through the list: No hitting. No screaming. Nice voice. Nice hands. Hold Mom's hand; no running away. On and on. He seemed truly calm so we headed up as well.
BEAUTIFUL hike. I wish I got better pictures to show it, but I only had my phone camera with me. It got me thinking that maybe we should do an overnight camping trip up there. It was just really pretty with lots of wildflowers and greenery. Most of the hike was pretty level, which made it easy.
The final ascent to the lake is really the only part that is steep. I'll be honest, it made me nervous looking at it, because it looked like it was all on a ledge that would be easy for runaway Buddys to fall down...but we talked it over, decided we would "take it easy and slow like a turtle", and that's what we did. It wasn't nearly as difficult as I'd expected it to be.
The lake itself...hmmm, I mean it was pretty, but it wasn't quite as amazing as I'd heard. It didn't help that the mosquitoes were out in droves!! There were a lot of people there (this is a popular hike), but there was plenty of room to explore, tons of rocks to sit on, and a bunch of chipmunks and squirrels to watch. We had a good time there!
I have to say, this hike was one of my favorites so far, not because of the destination, but because of the journey. The kids enjoyed crossing 4 little (teeny tiny) streams, the trail was a nice soft dirt trail, and the scenery was unbeatable. We enjoyed it just as much as we came down as well.:-)
1 comment:
The hike looks wonderful - he even looks like he had fun once he calmed down!
As for the mosquito's I have the best Home-Made (easy) child friendly Bug Spray Recipe EVER!
http://garriscooking.blogspot.com/2012/02/home-made-bug-spray.html
Nothing harmful or toxic - gentle enough I was able to spray my daughter as a baby in the face with it! Didn't even hurt her eyes.
It does wear off quick so you need to reapply about every two hours, but for how cheap, quick and easy it is, its worth the relief of knowing that your kid isn't in danger of rubbing it in their eyes or getting it their mouth!!!
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