Boston Day 1

It was a really long day! Our flight was supposed leave at 10:20 pm on Wednesday night, but we got three separate delay emails. By the last one, it was 1:30 am before we left. The only good thing was that we got to see the chickens put themselves to bed before we left. It was their first time finding their way into the coop without our help, so we were a little less stressed about them throughout the day.

Worst flight delays ever!

The bad news, of course, was that we got in at 8 o'clock instead of 5 o'clock. That three hours really cost us. First, the car rental place had given our van away. They had another one, but it wasn't ready, so they got it washed and gassed up, but that cost us another thirty minutes. After breakfast and shopping, it was almost 10 am, and we were supposed to be in Acadia National Park 5 hours away in Maine by 11:30.

Dad even fell asleep waiting for the van.

The drive up the coast was long, but pretty. We made a short stop in a parking lot and Mom made sandwiches out of the back of the van. Record heat and humidity from the notorious "heat dome" had all the locals commenting about the unseasonal weather. It was a little over 90 degrees, but the humidity was 90%, too. We were racing up the narrow, winding roads into Bass Harbor because low tide was around 3:30 and we had two places to check out the tide pools. 

The first stop was a figure-eight trail that ran through the thick forest. The trees were really pretty and we spotted an Eastern Blue Jay like the one for the baseball team and some squirrels. The boys even saw a few deer. Then we checked out the tide pools. Honestly, there wasn't much to see until Mark spotted a crab about the size of his palm. We saw some fun shells and lots of hermit crabs. Finally, we saw a starfish in the deeper water. 

This trail began in the trees. 

And ended up by the ocean!

The rocky coast was lovely.

We were barely alive after a long night. 

Next we had another tide pool hike. This one was about the same, but we enjoyed the walk along the rocky beach. There were quite a few people out and about, but not much more than we'd already seen. We enjoyed a few loons on the lake, and we listened closely to their haunting call. Then we stopped at a little lighthouse and took a few pictures. The walk wasn't much, but the view over the bay was picturesque. 

Mom loved these pretty pink flowers.

She also loved the purple mussels.

We had fun exploring the tide pools.

This was the coolest crab we spotted.

The seagulls were enjoying the crabs, too.

There were some big water areas in the tide pools.

Dad ventured way out!

We spotted this turkey on our way to the lighthouse.

Mom loved this cute little lighthouse.

It was kind of hidden by the trees from this side.

The storm clouds were rolling in.

They made for some great pics!

The lighthouse from the other side.

For dinner, we stopped at a serious seafood restaurant. The boys were good about eating Dad's appetizer of calamari. Mom loved her shrimp scampi, Mark and Dad enjoyed fish and chips (haddock), and Dax had a steaming bowl of clam chowder. Seth didn't love his pasta, but that was okay as there were enough fries to go around. 

The restaurant was right by the water, too!

By the time dinner ended a storm was rolling in and everyone was done. Well, everyone was done except for Dad. He wanted to do the 1.6 mile summit that we'd missed because JetBlue kept delaying our flight. There was some minor arguing, but finally we all made the trek. 

We probably shouldn't have. The hike was straight up steps for 681 feet. Between the sets of steps were slick rocks and Dax went down hard. Dad was getting some serious glares, but we finally made it to the top and the summit was a wonderful look out over the bay. It was getting close to sunset, and we hurried back to the van, careful not to take another nasty spill. We didn't get checked in to the motel in Bar Harbor until 8:30, and we were in desperate need of showers and sleep, but we had wrung every bit of fun out of this day. 

Dax before the fall. 

Seth gave up here before we reached the summit. It was like 2 more minutes, but he said no, thanks!

It was a really pretty view. 

Dax refused to be in a picture to document that he made it, so this is the best we could do!

It was a steep and difficult climb, but pretty up top.

Stake Young Men's Camp

All three of our boys got to go to Young Men's Camp this year. It was a Stake camp, so there were plenty of friends, and everyone had a great time!

Their camp!

Off they go!!!

Mark:

Young Men's camp was really fun this year, as I was able to go with a bunch of my friends. Only two Priests in our ward ended up going, so Bradley and I were the only ones in our quite spacious tent. I spent most of my free time playing horseshoes or 9-square with a couple of my friends from other wards, and often the Stake Presidency. Our planned activities included rappelling, a trip to the reservoir, and team building stuff. The reservoir was quite fun. We all jumped off the stump at Tibble Fork and tried (and failed) at fishing. Rappelling was just a bit daunting at first, but I was quick to figure it out, and I sped down my second run. After our activities, three friends and I had to rush down the mountain to play a couple tournament baseball games, (which we won obviously), and had a fun time in the car and messing around in the store while it rained. The nights back at camp were cold, but not too bad, except for my tent buddy getting sick the first night and me not having a pillow. Overall it was a pretty fun Young Men's campout, with some questionable behavior from the ward next to us leading into a detective style investigation by several of the Young Men. On the final day, we packed up quickly and headed down the mountain to get some actual sleep. 

Mark and his buddy!

These are the only kinds of pictures you get from Young Men's camp.

Mark came down both nights to play in baseball games.

Dax:

Yet another year at the old Young Men's Camp and it was an interesting one. The food was ok but the 1st Ward breakfast almost killed that one kid. We had a good time doing all the activities around the camp, like splitting wood and playing kickball vs. other wards. We went to Tibble Fork and almost died from pneumonia. My friend and I were on a kayak and I told him I would jump off the kayak. I leaped off, but my weight flipped the kayak, drenching him. We dragged everything to shore and my friend was furious even though he told me I could jump. We laughed and laughed because he did not want to get into the lake. 

That night we almost became popsicles because it was absolutely freezing, but we still had a good time staying up and talking. The second night we decided to go on a hike along a nature trail right outside the camp. Everyone was scared of bears and the Deacons even carried shovels and hammers to defend themselves. A few of the other young men were scared to go into the woods at night or in Seth's and Mark's cases said we wouldn't see anything. The Teachers and most of the Deacons went on the hike with two of our faithful leaders Lewis and Lewis. As we set out on the Lewis and Lewis Expedition, we all had flashlights, and all of the Deacons were very scared. As we came to the start of the nature trail Lewis was in the front, with me second, and everyone else behind us. Lewis started talking about how this was prime cougar territory, and how they like to sit in the trees. Naturally, all the Deacons were now whining to go back. About thirty seconds later Lewis in the front said, "What are those eyes?" Everyone stopped and shined there flashlights in the direction he was talking about, and sure enough there were two greens eyes staring back at us. It didn't take a genius to figure out what it was, and after seeing its tail and cat-like head shape everyone else was scared, while I was excited to see a cougar. Lewis and Lewis told us to go back. While they watched, everyone rushed back to camp. While my two friends and I excitedly talked about the sighting, the rest of our ward asked if it was a true story. Lewis and Lewis came back and told us that the cougar had run off. Everyone else went to bed scared, while my friends and I talked about the cougar. The next day we woke up and drove home. 

Mark took a few pics of his brothers.

Off to the frigid lake.

They did rappelling one afternoon.

Seth:

This was my first ever Young Men's Camp! It was so fun! On the first day, we drove down and got set up. We mostly messed around and had fun though. On the second day we went to the lake. It was FREEZING! The only thing at the beginning we were brave enough to do was canoe, but by the end we decided we were going to dump ourselves in the water. It was so cold, but I did that 4 or 5 times. At about 2:00 we went back to camp. When we got back we had dinner, the food this whole trip was horrible, but we survived. At night in my tent we were pretty good at sleeping. I thought we would be way worse! It was still very cold! 

The next morning we woke up and needed a fire. We were freezing! All the kids were trying and failing to make a fire; most had never been camping. We were finally saved by a leader with a lighter. That didn't stop the boys from being stupid with sticks though. That night we had confidence building activities. In the first activity we were blindfold and sat in a circle. Then the leaders than took us away one at a time. I was the last taken away. We were then read a spiritual message and given a cord that guided us to the end like the iron rod. The second activity was a wall 15 feet high with a board at 3-4 feet and 8-9 feet up. The leaders then let us use knees and hands to help each of us up, with one leader to pull us up the final section. The final activity was a bunch of stumps that we had to go through using only boards without touching the ground. I think my favorite was probably the first activity. When we got back we went to bed so in the morning we could pack up. In the end it was so fun! I can't wait to go next year.

Only two pics of Seth, too.

Brothers!

And don't worry! Mom and Dad had a great few days together. We tried to get everything ready around the house because the day the boys came home, we also left for Boston!!!

We did eat at Melty--our new favorite spot!

Bryce Canyon Day 4

We slept in until 8:30 on our last day. After one last breakfast in the hotel, we started the drive home. We had only one stop to make at Red Canyon. This is right up the road on Highway 12. We spent a few minutes in the Visitor Center and then did the hike through the cliffs. Though we enjoy that hike, we were sort of like walking zombies as we did the loop. Still, we stopped to smell the trees and look at the hoodoos.

It was Sunday, and we needed to hurry home because the chickens had been cooped up for three days in the house. Luckily, everything was okay. We decided that it was time to move their coop outside into the chicken run we'd been preparing. They were really glad for that!

Red Canyon is a fun quick stop.

We love the bright red rocks!

This little hike is awesome.

The chickens were all good!
(You can see our new fence construction in the background.)

They are moving outside!

Sunny likes it!

Bryce Canyon Day 3

After breakfast in the hotel, we hit the road this morning. We had two very long hikes and a significant amount of driving today. The first hike, Upper Calf Creek Falls, was 90 minutes away, and we wanted to get on the trail before it got too hot.

We were surprised when we arrived at the trailhead. It was pretty much straight down to the waterfall. The distance was only one and a quarter miles, but the hike was steeper than most staircases. Not only that, the trail wasn't very easy to follow. At one point, we heard one of the few people on the trail say, "The only trail marker I see is that guy in the red shorts," while pointing at Seth. 

Eventually, we got to the bottom of the canyon. There was a lush green oasis and the canyon floor was marshy. The waterfall was tall and beautiful, and we stood right underneath it. We couldn't believe what a different, almost tropical place it was compared to the desert above. I didn't take a picture of our family by the waterfall, but I did get one of everyone by it!

We'd also heard about some swimming holes above the waterfall, so we turned up the canyon. We soon came across three crystal clear places to swim. The boys hadn't brought swimsuits, and the sides were too steep for wading, so only Dad made a cliff jump into the water. The temperature wasn't too bad, especially since the day was warming up. We made the climb out surprisingly fast and moved on to our next hike.

Everyone considered jumping.

But only Dad took the plunge!

The pools were pretty fun, though.

The climb up was brutal. But we survived.

The last time we did Peek-a-Boo and Spooky slot canyons Seth was just a toddler. We almost died in the desert that day when we got lost without a map or any signs. This time, we were determined to do better. They'd redone the entire trail, including the parking area and signage, so we were sure it would be easier. The entry trail takes you through a third slot canyon, and they had the distance listed at just 4.5 miles. 

Unfortunately that was a lie. We almost died again. This time we didn't got lost, but we did clock the hike at nearly 6 miles. It stretched past lunch and well into the hot part of the day. Though Peek-a-Boo and Spooky were really amazing to explore, the bonus slot canyon called Dry Fork was our favorite. Sadly, it was just too hot, too far, and too strenuous to climb over, under, around, and through all those obstacles. It was after 4 o'clock when we got back to the car, and all of us were thirsty and worn out. But we made the 90 minute drive back to Ruby's Inn and quickly got showered.

We had to make sure we could fit through spooky.

Sorry for all of the pictures of this hike. There are so many fun ones!

Dry Fork Canyon.

It was such a cool slot canyon.

This canyon was really long.

It was fun to hike to Peek A Boo another way.

Honestly, we really liked the Dry Fork slot the most.

Into Peek A Book we go.

Mom was recreating pictures all over the place.

This canyon is a lot of work.

The slots are so narrow.

Lots of climbing.

We had fun!

It was nice to have big kids this time.

But it was still a lot of work!

Dropping down big rocks!

Spooky is a lot skinnier.

Dad decided to stay in the canyon.

Dax was our fearless leader through Spooky.

We were glad to hike this one together.

Look how narrow it gets.

Dad loves to video with the phone in his mouth.

This was the pic I wanted to recreate the most.

Look how much they have changed.

Our final adventure was a chuckwagon dinner show. This one was like others we've been to, but the country music wase much more modern. The boys didn't know what to think. With some reluctance, they trudged to Ebenezer's Bar and Grill for the show. But, as with all live music performances, this one was a ton of fun. We enjoyed the dinner of beans, pork and chicken, mashed potatoes, and a roll. Then we sang along to songs like Friends in Low Places, the Gambler, and Fishin' in the Dark. Everyone left with a smile on their face, and a feeling that maybe some country music wasn't too bad. 

Dax and Mom decided we deserved ice cream after that trail.

Dinner and a show!

It was a huge dinner!

And a super fun show!

We had a great time!