A Winter Hike

When I was younger I used to think winter was really ugly unless the ground was covered in freshly fallen snow. I am sure it wasn't helped by the constant inversions that plague Utah winters. The inversion hovers over the Wasatch front sucking any hope of blue sky's and fresh air with it. I vividly remember flying back to Utah in early January after spending three weeks in Hawaii and seeing the grey smoggy layer floating eerily below the airplane. It reminded me of horror movies when an unsuspecting victim walks in to the fog and then is ferociously attacked by some scary animal. Thankfully, we were only attacked by -10 degree weather that day (which was horrifying enough after the beautiful 75 degree weather in Hawaii). Here in Washington inversions are very uncommon and most people have no idea what an inversion even is. I can honestly say I have not missed them at all. It may be my favorite thing about the state thus far. I am however trying to get used to the humid cold. All I can say is BRRRRRR!!!! Humidity makes everything feel about 10 degrees colder in the winter and 10 degrees warmer in the summer.

On Monday we were able to venture out in the cold and go for a family hike because The Germs classes were cancelled for Martin Luther King day. It was fabulous! Between the humid heat of summer, medical school, and morning sickness not much hiking has happened around here. It was so nice to get out of the house and explore. Since there has only been one light snowfall here we sadly left the snowshoes at home. Here is to hoping we will get a big snowstorm soon.

Mandatory family picture to prove we did this -I refuse to use the "S" word to describe this picture

We decided to do a pretty simple hike since we haven't hiked in a while and Peanut needed to get used to being in a backpack again. The trail had a barren beauty about it. The grass was yellow, gigantic black boulders bulged out of the grass, snow was on the edge of the river, and the trail was lined by leafless bushes with crimson red branches. Something about it made me think of Lord of the Rings but I am nerdy like that.  

 I may have pretended that this was mount doom and we were hobbits

The view from the "top" (we turned back early)

Peanut was a great for most of the hike and loved looking around. She has become very talkative lately and jabbers all day long. She is only quiet when she is really focused on what she is doing (AKA Sneaking) or when looking at something new. When this happens she becomes very quiet and will only whisper. She was quiet for most of the hike and would whisper excitedly when she saw something she liked. For example, she was fascinated by the river we crossed and kept whispering excitedly while pointing at it! It wasn't until she got overly tired and her hands started to get cold  that she became grumpy. She insisted on holding her bottle which meant we had to pull her hands out of the "Gumby suit" she was wearing . This caused her hands to get cold and make her unhappy. Next time we will bring some socks to put over her hands for an extra layer so she can do things like hold her bottle with out sacrificing warmth.

Peanut getting locked and loaded for the hike

I cant put my arms down!

Giving kisses

Peanut not to impressed with the view

Getting ready to head back!

Even though the hike ended with The Germ running back to the car with Peanut, it was still a blast! Here is to hoping that I keep feeling good so I can enjoy a few more hikes before we become a family of FOUR!


 *** The "S" word is the Six letter one used to describe a poorly taken self portrait.