Pinecrest 2016

 We did not plan for our summer to include fun trips every other week, but that is just how our annual Pinecrest camping trip fell this year.  I make the reservation for a site back in February and just take whatever spot and dates are still available.  We lucked out this year and got our best site ever-- a super spacious one with a lake view, and at the end of the loop with no neighbors.  It was also the warmest we've ever camped in this mountain resort-- in the 90's during the days and only in the 60's at night.  No noise and not freezing at night means we slept the BEST we've ever slept while camping!  And that made everyone much more well-rested and happy!  Yay! :)

  

Our site also had this huge boulder by it, so the girls wasted no time in rounding up all the little girls in nearby campsites and getting some imaginative game going.  By the day we left, there were like 15 new friends on this boulder!

Something we'll remember forever was where we watched the super cute new Pixar movie, Finding Dory: in Pinecrest's outdoor amphitheater as part of their "Movies Under the Stars" program.  This was a GREAT movie, and watching it in this unique setting was one of the best parts of this year's camping trip.

Other fun parts of camping included family games around the picnic table, reading aloud by firelight, and tent snuggling.  One alarming part of camping this year, was all the bats we watched take flight to hunt at dusk.  It started out as another really cool wildlife sighting, until they were drawn to the bugs that our reading lights were attracting in the pitch dark.  Then we heard them squeaking RIGHT around our heads and, of course, screamed and fled into the tent.

On our second day, we took a hike on the 4 mile trail around the entire lake.  I just love this hike and all the variety of scenery it offers.  It was a hot day, though, so the hike was definitely strenuous, which Delia reminded us of (and her predicted imminent death) about 100 times.

My favorite view is always of the rushing river that feeds the lake.  This year, we slipped our shoes off and dipped our hot toes in the icy cold rapids.

Following the exciting rapids, a little snack, and this crazy discovery, we finally got Delia to give this hike a thumbs up.  While taking the above picture in a meadow of wildflowers, we noticed that we started getting covered in ladybugs!  We thought, "That's strange and very tickley, but pretty neat.  Why are there so many?"  When we looked down at the spot we were actually standing on, we noticed it must have been some sort of ladybug nesting grounds!  There were millions of them all over!  And as we started moving sticks and pine cones around to see them better, they started swarming-- like ants in a hill that's been disrupted.  We've never seen anything like this!  Our days of camping were marked with all sorts of cool wildlife sightings.  On this trail we also encountered 4 snakes, which may have a little something to do with why Delia was not loving the hike at first.

 After climbing rocks, and crossing bridges, traversing across the huge dam, and splashing through muddy little creeks, the hike ends with a walk through a few patches of jungle-like bamboo groves!  No shortage of beautiful things to see on this hike!

The lake water was nice and refreshing!  We spent LOTS of time swimming for two days straight in this perfectly cool, and very scenic, lake this week.

 Ice cream from the snack shop was nice and refreshing too.

 After several hours at the beach, Dave decided to take advantage of the end-of-the-day special the marina offers.  He scored a two person kayak for two hours for a fraction of the usual rental price.  He took turns picking each of us up at the beach and giving us a ride around the lake.  While out with Ella they spotted the bald eagle for the first time.  We saw him again the next day doing the coolest thing-- grabbing trout away from ospreys who had caught them all WHILE IN THE AIR!  It was a great sky show and, like the ladybugs and bats, wildlife unlike anything we've ever experienced before.  

After a few more hours in the lake on our last day, we took our totally stuffed mini-van home.  We will never be accused of packing light for a camping trip!  I would love to do a backpacking trip some day, but frankly, I think it would be impossible for the amount of gear we've become accustomed to having on a camping trip!

It was a wonderful 3 days of movies under the stars, tent snuggling, reading by the fire, s'mores, geocaching, hiking, swimming, kayaking, and bald eagle sighting.  And this is the price I pay for it when we get home...a hallway-long, knee-deep pile of laundry.  But, it's totally worth it.

MH2016

After a full week of friends, adventure, family time and worship, the Monday after Mount Hermon always feels like a little bit of a let down.  Think I'll try to cheer myself up today by right away writing about the TENTH great summer we've spent at camp.  We've been going since Delia was an infant, and neither girl knows a summer without this beloved tradition.  Mount Hermon somehow always meets our expectations and we've never left the week without feeling sad that our most-looked-forward-to-all-year vacation is over.  This year MH was extra special because my good friend Teri was up at camp with 2 of her kids and also Dave was able to stay for the whole week, making it really feel like a whole family vacation. 

Our week starts with a big carnival and picnic on the fieldhouse lawn.  We eat ribs and chicken and corn on the cob and watermelon and ice cream bars and watch a fun program introducing us to the week's theme and all our wacky counselors.

There is always dancing and Delia just can't resist leaping to her feet and joining in!

SO fun and different this year was a theme we really connected with: Settlers of Hermon, based on a favorite game, Settlers of Catan!  Funny jokes about resources, robbers and the desert were worked into the dramas.  And each childcare area was named after a resource.  The little ones in Child Care were Sheep.  The middle age kids (Ella and Delia) were Coal in the Day Camp "Mines".  The junior high and high school were "Lumberjacks" representing Wood.   We loved playing this game together in our cabin after hearing about it each day!

We were given a big version of Settlers to play as a family too!  Hidden all over the Mount Hermon campus, from the dining hall to the pool to the ropes courses to the boat docks, were resource cards!  We had to hunt them down and label them on a special map.  Chasing all over camp, and hiking miles up and down the hills, took an entire afternoon of free time and it was a super fun way to spend time together.  You know we love our games!  :)  When we turned in our completed map (first ones!!), we got a cool prize.

This year we tried a new cabin.  We loved how much space our new place gave us, compared to the tiny cabin over the creek we stayed in for 9 years.  We each had a bed and multiple rooms with closing doors.  We did not love its far distance from the hub of camp or the 60+ steps we had to climb to get to it!  We had to be strategic about bringing all our stuff with us everywhere each day so as to save trips back to the cabin.

But, all that hiking and stair climbing did have us feel just fine about taking an extra piece of bacon at breakfast...or signing up for a session with the Mount Hermon masseuse for the first time! :) The picture below shows another pro-- the path we had to take to get up to our cabin sure was pretty.  Even with the 60+ stairs, I think we will try to stay here again (especially if it means I get another massage!).

With all of our hiking, we found this HUUUUGE banana slug.  When stretched out, it was as big as a real banana!  We had to take a selfie with it.

Once again we hauled our tired selves up the hill for the totally-worth-it griddle fired pancake breakfast and pancake tossing contest.

 With our bellies full and hot drinks in hand, the walk down the hill is always much better-- especially when you get to do it with friends!

On Tuesday we took our traditional trip to the beach for the afternoon.  I was so freezing, I had a sweatshirt on, but these crazies spent most of the time time jumping around in the giant waves.

 They took breaks to bury each other in the sand.

We always look forward to Train Day on Wednesday-- an open air, hour long train ride down the mountain to Santa Cruz and a day we always share with Amy and her family.

Having just done all the rides at Disneyland, we opted to skip all Boardwalk rides this year and spent our time playing pirate mini-golf instead.  We had a pretty major cold front hit us at Mount Hermon this week, so we were actually happy to get out of the wind and stay indoors during this Boardwalk time.  With fake thunder storms, cannons going off, automated pirates popping out of barrels and even an "underwater" portion lit with black lights, this mini-golf course is our favorite.

On Thursday we were adventurous, tackling the ropes course, climbing wall and archery range.  Ella is just a few pounds shy of the BIG ropes course, so this little one is becoming a bit boring for her.  She flies right across.  But, Delia had some fear and we're proud of her for once again conquering it!

Thursday night is always the Adult Dinner night.  They feed our kids at Day Camp, and we dress up for a formal dinner and concert in the dining hall-- just adults!  I have always sat at this "Ladies Table" with all the friends we do MH with.  This year, Dave joined us and had 6 hot dates! :)

On Friday the girls each met their counselors and small groups in the ice cream shop to share a Mudslide-- a big trough of ice cream with something like 10 scoops in it.  When you finish it, you get your picture on the wall.  I think Ella's group tried to set a new record and slammed it down in about 3 minutes!

Then, we did what was probably my favorite thing all week-- took a long creek hike through the redwoods with our group.  We started down by the ropes course, and, with our water shoes/flip-flops, hiked through the creek all the way to the beach and waterfall.  We battled various challenges along the way, like deeper water, fallen trees, and no way across except to scale rocks.   Delia loves a hike that lets her climb and figure out the best way to go, so she really came alive!  I think we found a new Friday tradition, which is cool because there are very few things about MH that are "new" each year!

As always, we were challenged and encouraged with words of wisdom from amazing speakers who this year brought Psalm 71 and 90, Ecclesiastics, and the story of Josiah to life.  It is hard to walk away from Mount Hermon without reflecting on your life and making some new commitments to the Lord.  The worship times are just incredible too-- especially the energetic multi-generational time we share with the kids.

Even with all the laughter, all the ice cream, all the adventure in hiking and conquering ropes courses, all the time being fed The Word by world-class speakers, all the meals I did not have to plan, make or clean up, and all the excitement at the beach and Boardwalk, my favorite thing about Mount Hermon remains this beloved church family we get to share it with.  We were able to give them a little shout out when our family was picked to be interviewed for the video.  They have invited and included us and for an entire decade blessed us-- our whole family now!-- with this wonderful gift of Mount Hermon!  It's a legacy we see continuing in our family for, hopefully, multiple generations!