A quick trip and a great visit

Last Friday we made a quick trip up to SLC to see Bonnie's mom. She is on a little break from her mission. Marilynne brought her down to her house from Washington for a few weeks. We had to hurry back home on Saturday afternoon, but it was great to get a chance to see mom and a lot closer than driving all the way up to Washington. The Sanderson's were great hosts and we also had a nice visit with them and some of their kids. Too bad we all don't live a little closer. We made a quick pit stop in Fillmore on the way home and got to see the Randalls for a few minutes. Their garden is looking good and Brady can ride his bike like a pro...with no training wheels!

Father's Day & the June birthdays!

The latest family get together was to celebrate the June birthdays and Father's Day. Unfortunately we didn't have Lance here to be a part of the June party. On Father's day we met up and had cheesecake and very chocolate brownies to celebrate all the good things happening. Derek, Moss and Bonnie all got a little older and Paul got remembered for being a great pop. Thanks to everyone for the good company and the presents!

We made it!

Beautiful stream & ginormous tree in route

Our intended destination...Anderson Valley

Anderson Valley Trek

Paul and I took a new hike on the Pine Valley Mountain trail system yesterday. We had been wanting to go and check out family camp spots, but when we called the ranger station in Beaver, they said the road we wanted to check out was still closed...so we opted for a local hike instead. We decided to go to Anderson Valley and find the old cabin there. The trail we took started in New Harmony and according to the not too good map we had was from 7-9 miles one way. Let me tell you, this is one strenuous hike. We decided that a three-word description would be steep, rocky and overgrown. But, it was also beautiful. The weather was so perfect with lots of cloud cover to keep things cool. We did find the cabin. We had hoped to find a connecting trail over to Mill Flat, but didn't see it. We also added a few extra miles hiking on a trail that may have ended up in Browse at the sequoia. We started the climb at 10:00 and ended up getting out by 6:30 pm. We think we did somewhere between 18 and 20 miles. There are magnificent views of Kolob Fingers to be seen. Actually, we could see all the way to the mountains in Beaver some of the time. Looking down on New Harmony was very pretty too. All in all, we are glad we did it, but it's one we won't do again, at least for a while!