Leavensworth

This summer we did a lot of camping. We would have liked to do more, but had an extremely busy summer as it was. You will also notice I am trying to fill in with some events that we did in hopes of getting caught up. This time we went to a small town by the name of Leavenworth. What used to be a poor mining town, they reinvented the town to mirror an old German town complete with Ye Olde Starbucks. It is a really cool town in the middle of the mountains and is an incredibly fun place for Oktoberfest.

We went to an outdoor concert in the valley to see a local production of "Joseph and the Technicolor Dreamcoat". It was quite splendid. We then headed back to camp to get the fire going with some of Ryan's sweet "fire gel".

The next morning we headed down to the river to go tubing. This is an annual tradition which seems to fall on the hottest day every year. There's no better way to enjoy the sights and sun that to take a leisurely float down the Whenatchee river. Afterwards we walked around town to enjoy the local festivities.

PS. we stopped to get an Oreo Blizzard on the way home :) I'm such a sucker for Oreo Blizzards.

Camping, Mt. Rainier

About 2 months ago we went camping just outside Mt. Rainier near the Soda Springs area. This was located off a logging trail about 2 miles in. The first thing you notice is how far you are from everything, including the light pollution that the cities give off. This lead to some beautifully clear skies that gave me some fantastic time lapse shots.




There were 9 of us total. Some co-workers, some friends, all good people.

Brandon had just gotten a new Axe and Machete for this trip. I mean every man should have an axe (for splitting wood of course).

There was a river near by with a fallen tree that gave us a natural bridge to get across. We had many adventures on this trip.

Later during the day we went for a hike up to Jug Lake. It gets its name from the sound it makes when the wind blows across its surface. It was a good hike on a hot day.

Once we got near the top we soon realized it was the middle of mosquito season! And I don't mean 1 or 2, we're talking 1-2 million directly around us. Half of the group turned back to camp, while the rest of us forged ahead. We ran to keep the mosquitoes away, but had little success. Though we were glad we made it to the top to witness the beauty the jug lake had to offer.

Thinking the water would keep us safe from the mosquitoes, we quickly dove it only to find frigid glacial water. Although it was cooler than a polar bears toe nails, it was refreshing. That is until the mosquitoes found our heads bobbing in the water. No matter where we went we could not escape.

We found the only way to keep the mosquitoes at bay was to apply 100% DET lotion.

We made it back with tons of bites and tired but feeling accomplished. We sat and relaxed at we began a fire to get dinner going. Brandon mean while began whittling away at a stick. He ended up making a creepy rabbit to ward the evil mosquitoes away.

We also went on a mini hike to check out what these "Soda Springs" were actually about. This is a natural spring that contains high amounts of sodium. This gives the surrounding rocks a candy orange color. Leslie tried it out and said it tasted salty. Fyi.

The accompanying stream made for some great photos as well.

That night we played a game of spies and saboteurs. It got pretty heated as we accused each other of sabotage. But a very fun game.

The next morning we awoke to Sarah making an egg, veggie and potato skillet meal. Que delicioso!

On our way back we stop atop the Naches pass to check out the beautiful sight of Mt. Rainier and the surround Cascadian mountain range.

All in all it was a very fun trip with some good friends and something we will be doing again!