Summer hike #2: Lake Marie

Our second hike of the summer was minus two kids and plus one dog. Hike #2: Lake Marie in Island Park on Friday, July 20. (We LOVE that Seth gets every other Friday off with his new job.) We arranged for Miriam and Winnie to play with cousins at Aunt Rachel's house in Island Park while the rest of us took Peach on her first real hike.

Seth's GPS clocked us as hiking nearly 9 miles, with a lot more elevation gain/loss than our first hike (which is why we let the younger ones sit this one out). We ate lunch, bathed our feet and had a contest to see who could keep their feet in the runoff longest. (Seth won.) We had the trail almost to ourselves on the way in, and Peach readily introduced herself to the group of Scouts we saw as we left the lake.

Bekah, Peach and Seth looking over a ridge. 

 Peach and Analee frolicking among the wildflowers.

Some of the beautiful Western Blue Flax we saw along the way. 

 Rebekah and Peach wading in the lake. Later in the summer, the lake completely dries up since it's only fed with runoff.

 Lake Marie and the surrounding bowl.

Analee, Peach, Seth, Rebekah and Andrea at the lake. 

Taking a break on the way out. Peach didn't know to pace herself (she was prancing all over the place on the way in), so by the end of the hike, she was sticking to the trail and flopping down in the shade every chance she got.

Summer hike #1: Fairy Falls and Imperial Geyser

With softball season completed, our family took to the trails this summer. First, Fairy Falls and Imperial Geyser in Yellowstone National Park on Saturday, July 7. The trail was congested until we got to the Grand Prismatic Spring overlook, then it thinned down. There were several other small groups at the falls when we were there eating our lunch and wading, but hardly anyone continued the extra half a mile past the falls to the geyser.

A few of us hiked past the geyser to the top of the ridge so we could see the falls and the geyser from above. Seth's GPS reported a total of 8.5 miles of hiking by the time we got back to the car. The girls were troopers (especially Winnie since her legs are shorter than anybody else's), so we stopped for some ice cream at Old Faithful before driving home.

The older two girls and I tried to hike this trail last summer, but the trail head was closed. We had more success this year. 

Hiking (more like walking ... this trail is very tame) down the path. 

Miriam and Winnie at the falls. 

A chipmunk eating the Sour Patch Kid it took from Seth's hand. 

Bekah, Winnie, Seth, Miriam and Analee at the falls. 

Miriam and Andrea wading in the water. 

Winnie climbing over a blackened tree to get to the to the base of the falls. She was worried about the ashes in her hair. 

The girls petting the frog Seth caught along the way to Imperial Geyser. 

Hiking next to Imperial Geyser's runoff. 

 At the geyser.

Miriam and Rebekah opted to stay down by the geyser with our bags while Seth, Andrea, Analee and Winnie hiked up to the ridge above the geyser. We walked farther along to the trail and found two lily pad-covered lakes, too.