Frogs at June Lake

June Lake

Yesterday we went hiking on the south side of Mount Saint Helens. It was so awesome. You can see St. Helens in the background of this picture.

We hiked up to June Lake. It was only 2.8 miles....thank goodness! We were really out of shape. We shouldn't have taken any time off! Seriously! It was bad.

We made it to the lake though. It was nice. We let the kids take their shoes and socks off and get their feet wet in the lake; they found three frogs in the lake and were able to catch two of them. They had a great time catching frogs and cooling off in the lake. They also learned some history about St. Helens.

We also took a short walk through the lava beds and collected some ash. While we were taking pictures there: water started coming down the trench. It was pretty neat to see how quickly the water came through.

When we were almost back to the car, we stopped down by the river. We found another frog there....he/she was bigger and faster; the kids weren't able to catch it.

It was an amazing hike. We spent about 3 hours there....either on the trail, at the lake, in the lava beds, or down by the river.

It was really hard. Especially since we had taken such a long break. I hadn't been riding the bike like a good girl either. The kids and I were dreading the hike. I wanted to go, but I didn't want to have to do the work. I think this was an important hike for me. It showed me that even if I take time off (hopefully I'll never have to take that much time off again) I can start over. It doesn't matter if I've failed for a week...or 3. All that matters is that I try again! I'm proud of myself for going again.

While I was relaxing at the Lake, enjoying it's beauty, I realized that I had to get back on track. I so desperately want to go hiking in the Wallowa's with my hubby next summer....really, I'd love to go this summer; I'm just not physically ready yet. The lake was amazing. It had a mirror finish...so calm and serene. Two water falls dropped into the lake. It was just amazing. I could have stayed there all day; maybe for a couple days. I'm excited to get back on track. I'm want to hike on the north side of St. Helens now. I want to see more of its history and magic.

After we finished our hike at June Lake, we took a side trip to the Lewis River Lower Falls. It's a short walk down to the view point where you can see the falls. They had information about the falls and the the Indians that once lived in the area. They were so beautiful and HUGE! I could just picture Indians standing on the rocks fishing for salmon. The falls are near a camp ground. We plan to return to the camp ground and stay for a couple days....hopefully this summer. You could also walk down to the falls, but we were a little nervous with the kids.

It is TRUELY amazing what beautiful things we have hiding in our backyard....there has been free entertainment right here the whole time....who knew! I'm just so happy we are taking our kids to enjoy these natural wonders while they are young. Hopefully they will have some favorite spots to take their children when they grow up!

I love hiking; it helps you to forget about all the troubles of life. I am really looking forward to our big trip.....I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a hiking birthday gift. ;)

Until then, I need to get back into gear! I have a goal....I'm not going to reach it if I don't continue to try!