Red River Gorge Family Backpacking/Camping Trip!

Somehow I neglected to write up this post about our first ever family camping/backpacking trip that took place last October! I don't know how such a big event could have been forgotten but it was. And I mean big because I literally hadn't slept in a sleeping bag since our first year of marriage. So I'm back to write about it! Jack and his friend/colleague Nicola had been talking at work for quite some time about going camping down in Kentucky. Jack had told Nicola all about his adventure last summer with Connor at Red River Gorge and the two had decided how fun it would be for the families to do it together. Well, to be honest it wasn't something I was looking forward to doing but I felt pretty confident that Nicola's wife who I love wouldn't really be up for it either so I wasn't too worried, not to mention they had no camping gear whatsoever, as they are based here in America for just a few years. But between our husbands banding together to tell each of us that the other's spouse had already agreed and Nicola hitting REI and purchasing everything in one night we were committed and before long Maria and I found ourselves with a pack on our back and no sign of a Four Seasons... Ale and Marco and their son, who are friends of the Brandolese's also joined us and we all had a great time!

So here is how the trip unfolded! After stopping at the Park Visitors Center and talking with a park ranger about various hikes and level of difficulty we decided on doing a small hike first to Rock Bridge Arch and although the scenery isn't what we see in the west, it was a nice hike with a decent waterfall.




After doing that hike and eating the lunches we had packed we drove towards the Clifty Wilderness area where Jack and Connor had hiked to before but located the Swift Camp Creek Trail which would supposedly take us to great camping sites where we could fish and sleep alongside a river but were closer than the sites that Jack and Connor had hiked to. After about a two hour hike we ended up finding a nice spot on the river where the kids could fish and their was enough space for all of us! It had rained earlier that week so we struggled to get a fire going but once we did, it was a good one! It was a clear night so it was nice to look out and see the stars. Ty decided he'd give the hammock a try and aside from being a little freaked out over noises he heard in the middle of the night, he enjoyed it! I have to say I felt much more comfortable knowing we were a large group than had it been just our family camping out in the woods!!!



The next morning after slowly arising, preparing breakfast and tearing down our camp, we headed back out on our journey to the car so we could drive to another section of the park and do a couple more small hikes. The first one was the Sky Bridge Trail where you hike over and under a natural rock bridge formation. Again this is no Arches National Park but for this part of the country it is a place people love to come and spend their days hiking around.



After that hike I insisted we see one last arch before heading back on the road to come home. I had read that the Natural Bridge State Park which lies just outside Red River Gorge was a must see. Since you can both hike or take a chair lift to get to it and yes, we took the lift...lol, it seemed the perfect way to end our 36 hour camping trip! And indeed it was. Once at the Natural Bridge you can hike around to this other area and have a great view looking across at the arch. It was quite nice.







So there you have it! I survived and my sleeping bag Jack bought me over twenty years ago finally got used...by me!

What felt like a minute in Maui...

I really feel like the luckiest girl to have a husband who always encourages me to join him on business trips and parents who are always willing to come watch the kids for us so I can go! So when Jack asked me a week before Christmas if I'd be up for joining him in Maui on business in January, there was absolutely no hesitation...of course I would! Being it takes 15 hours of travel and a five hour time difference to get there I told him we'd somehow need to turn this into more than a business trip, especially if we were going to fly my parents all the way out here to watch the kids. So indeed we did. It's never easy for me to leave the kids behind because although I know they are in good hands with my parents, I naturally think of all these terrible things that could happen to Jack and I, particularly related to the plane... but thankfully all went well, no lives were lost, my parents still have their sanity and I got to spend over a week in paradise with my hubby during what normally feels like the most depressing month of the year!

Being we arrived so late, this is what we woke up to our first morning and what we'd see each night as the sun went down...



Unfortunately this view wasn't enough to keep me stress free that first day. My phone had decided to die in the Seattle airport on our way over. Seriously, the worse timing ever. Jack was smart enough to see I wasn't going to be able to relax and enjoy the vacation without my phone so he insisted on getting me into town to pick up a new one that first morning. Thankfully T Mobile had a loaner phone they gave me until I figured out if I indeed needed a new phone or not. It's hard to believe that just three years ago I didn't even have a texting plan and now I can't live without texting. It truly felt like my lifeline to my kids, their activities, and the world had been disconnected. But once we got that taken care of I was in true vacation mode! Jack had no work engagements for those first few days and we were both looking forward to some snorkeling and sun! That first weekend we headed out to Honolua Bay first thing in the morning and caught the 'Honolua Mens Open' surf tournament which was really a fun scene. We had such a nice time that we returned first thing the next morning to see what was going on. Sure enough a bunch of locals were taking advantage of the huge swell that had swept across the west side of the island the past few days. It worked out great because there was no way I was getting in that water to snorkel with the waves like they were so instead we enjoyed our muffins while watching the surfers from above.




We have only been to Maui a couple other times and the most recent trip was probably eight years ago so it almost felt like we were visiting a new place. The only places I had clear memories of were Kaanapali, Wailea, snorkeling Molokini and biking down Haleakala. This trip though was about pure relaxation so aside from golf, we had nothing planned and no excursions booked! We spent the majority of our days visiting various beaches and snorkeling spots I had researched ahead of time. I had been a bit nervous about January weather as we had never been this time of year but it was picture perfect throughout the trip. The swell however, caused some not so friendly snorkeling conditions but that didn't stop Jack from still getting in to check things out even when I was a bit too scared. We did find a few places that were decent and we both agreed that during calmer surf conditions the reefs would probably be quite nice. We may not remember seeing a whole lot of fish on this trip but we will remember all the whale sightings we saw from the shoreline, and the super sized turtles we encountered. We even unknowingly captured the sound of whales singing on our video footage while taping a turtle we were snorkeling with.



What do you know, this is Hawaii's state fish, the reef triggerfish!



One of Jack's business appointments was with Maui Jim, so we spent an hour in their office in Lahina learning about the company and their culture and getting a tour of their quarters there. As big fans of their sunglasses, it was nice to learn how great of a company they indeed are.



After our visit to Maui Jim it was off to golf at the Kapalua Plantation Course. By far this is the nicest course I have played on. Granted I've only played on like six and the majority were public but still, being the PGA was here the week before I'm assuming many other people think it's pretty nice! We had a great time with one of Jack's colleagues Judy and her boyfriend Tom! Aside from Jack not being very happy with his game, it was a good time. When we arrived it was gorgeous but later in the day they warned us weather was on the way and sure enough in the distance you could see the low clouds. We took this opportunity to head into the clubhouse and enjoy some lunch before heading back out. Sure enough it cleared right up and just as we got to the last hole the clouds and mist returned. What a great place to spend the day!



During one of the cocktail receptions Jack and I attended, I was able to capture this photo of the nightly cliff diver jumping off Black Rock. I'm not quite sure what the fuss is over it but apparently he draws crowds from all up the Kaanapali beach. One of the other attendees even asked me to send her my photo. So there you have it...lol! Usually in the evenings we'd grab dinner in Kaanapali or Lahina. I never get tired of having someone else cook dinner for me. We didn't make it back to Mama's Fish House on this trip but we did make it to the Lahina Grill which had great food and some of the best service we've ever had in a restaurant. You really can't go to Lahina either without taking a photo of the Banyon tree grove. I didn't even get the main tree in my photo but thought all the vines hanging were so cool. I can guarantee Ty would have never obeyed this sign...haha!




I can't post without including a photo of our beloved beach chairs. Jack recommended we grab a couple beach chairs our first day in Maui to make our beach visits more comfy. We were lucky enough to find some at the grocery store near our hotel. They turned out to be the best investment ever...yes, investment because you bet I showed up at the airport in Maui with them and had Delta check them with the rest of our bags! Granted they ended up in Atlanta at one point even though we never did (nor did the rest of our bags) but a day later they finally reached our doorstep. Thank you Delta! Clearly "priority bags" indeed means priority bags because the chairs were the only things not labeled as priority and they were the only things that ended up going home a different route than us... lol!



Maui you were sure good to us! I was able to meet a new friend at the pool whose husband was attending the same conference. She happened to be from the Seattle area and is also LDS. We exchanged info, became FB friends and if it turns out Jack returns to the conference again next year, I'll perhaps join him to meet up with her. We said this could be the start of a new annual meet-up! As much as I still prefer Oahu as my favorite island, we will definitely make a point to return here again! We have our snorkel spots mapped out and are already missing the delicious banana pudding and pesto chicken sandwich from the 808 Deli in Kihei!!!



Couldn't have done it without these two... Love you both!

Hello 2016!

Well, we are almost done with January already and it feels like just yesterday we were ringing (or should I say blowing) in the new year! :)



Although we had a wonderful time celebrating with the Hayes', our hearts were all heavy thinking about our friends the Denisoff's and poor Michelle who had lost her sweet mom earlier in the day to a heart attack and wasn't able to make it. Our prayers continue with their sweet family in hopes that this new year brings them much peace.