You drive over Washington Pass here...
... and then get here:
The bike ride was a blast! Steve hung out with Eva at the river and playground, while my two sons and I rode our bikes on an incredibly scenic road. Lukas' bike had problems shifting into first gear, which made it really hard for him, since the first ten miles were mostly uphill. Also, his bike has really fat tires, so the poor guy worked extra hard, and had an extra shitty attitude because of it. Kai and I tried to be sympathetic, but we were pretty blissed out on endorphins and nature. I called Steve to request a pick up for Lukas, which happened at the half-way point of the ride. Relieved of our cheerleading and slowing down for Luke, Kai and I blasted the rest of the ten miles at high speed. Kai kept yelling, “This is soooo beautiful!”, which made me smile even more. What a kid to ride with!
On my actual birthday, we hiked up
Patterson mountain, four miles of non-stop beauty and bliss. At some
point, I heard cowbells and was reminded of the alps, where I hiked
as a kid. The cowbells belonged to a herd of mules, who took
themselves for a walk without any people. It was a very surreal
scene, but incredibly romantic. Eva walked a lot of the way,
although Steve and I served as mules when she got tired and whiny.
See the mules sauntering along? |
How very reassuring... |
Daddy as a mule |
Mama as a mule |
We celebrated all this physical
activity (and getting older, sigh...) with a stop at Sun Mountain
Lodge, where the view is breathtaking, the rooms are sinfully
expensive (we didn't stay there, of course), and the food is excellent. The walls are decorated with
many dead animals, which is creepy and cool at the same time. On the
deck, we consumed root beer, white Riesling, and a strawberry
daquiri. A perfect birthday!
What beautiful spots to celebrate. Happy birthday, welcome to 41 :) All the best for a wonderful year ahead.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Kim! 41 hasn't treated me too badly so far!
DeleteWhat a stunning trip!!! I love how freaking active you guys are. When we went to the Methow, we played by the river and ate loads of ice cream. Lol!
ReplyDeleteHappy 41. The muscle shot was the best!
Erin, there was a lot of ice cream eating and hanging out at the river going on as well! Cheers!
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