Camping: Pipestem

We love camping at Pipestem and had great sites to enjoy another weekend this summer! It's good for the kids to help setup the camper and site!

Willow is already working on bracelets to give the kids in the DR next summer. Hannah has been helping her!

We checked out Brush Creek Falls for the first time. It's a short hike not too far from the campground. Next time we'll wear swim suits! Regular clothes didn't stop the boys!

The boys asked to jump off the falls, like others were doing. It made the moms too nervous!

Owen has a solid farmers tan from band camp!

We love the inflatables on the lake! They switch them up a bit each summer and we're always thankful when we leave without injuries! They didn't have the blob this year, which is good!

They had the swing attached to the sign this year!

Willow and I love chasing the sunset views!

S'mores with caramel chocolate squares from NYC! (They were a bit much, I felt).

We had a few fireworks left from the 4th

Here's a quick video for IG:

Spring Break - Camping at Misty Mountain

We tried a new campground for a few days during Spring Break. There were lots of great hiking opportunities that we took advantage of!We hiked to Humpback Rocks. It's only a mile from the parking lot but very steep! There was a 180-degree view at the top!

It was windy at the top!

Up high with the birds!

There was a wildfire nearby that we could see helicopters dumping water on. It was reminding us of Owen's favorite movie when he was little - Planes: Fire and Rescue. We were singing the theme song on the way back to the campground. 

That rock at the peak of the mountain is where we climbed!

The campground was nice but didn't have much shade in the section we were in, even if there were leaves on the trees. The sites were also pretty close together. There was an upper section that we'd try if we go again, with some fun cabin options as well. They invested a lot of money to have their bouncy pillow be "rain or shine!" The kids enjoyed it when they had it to themselves the first day. 

We checked out Blue Ridge Tunnel, which was really cool! Some friends had done a bike ride through it with headlamps. We haven't figured out how to bring the bikes with us camping so we just walked through. It's 4,273 feet long (0.8 miles) and very dark! We dressed in layers, which was good, because the temperature dropped A LOT as you got to the middle! Ours hands, ears, and noses were very cold! It was a cool experience!

The light by Chris's head is literally the light at the end of the tunnel. It was perfectly straight from one end to the next. We just kept walking towards the light ;)

Don't worry, Owen had a stick ;)

Owen found a tangled fishing line with a hook that was tangled in a tree. He untangled it then used it to create his own fishing pole. He spent loooooots of time trying to fish with it, using a leaf as bait. Shockingly, nothing bit ;)

We tried a couple recipes from a camping book we have but neither of them worked out well enough to be repeated. I think Willow's face says it all. 

We drove into Shenandoah National Park a bit to hike to Dark Hollow Falls, which was 1.6 miles. There were plenty of people who had the same idea ;) but the falls were beautiful!

We were grateful for a guy who offered to take our picture...just didn't get much of the falls in with us ;)

Just us with a few of our friends ;) We ended up climbing up the falls a bit, then just continued to the top and across the water to jump back on the trail. 

At the visitors center we ended up getting a National Parks book for each of the kids to start documenting their adventures. The only park they've visited but won't have documented is the Grand Canyon. With Owen's lack of enthusiasm about it when we visited, he might opt to visit it again someday with greater appreciation ;)

I loved the campground's logo and wished they had a sticker of it!

Apple Picking and Cascades Hike

We met Nana, Grandpa, and the Caldwells for apple picking. It doesn't quite feel like fall until we have! 

These were the prettiest color of apple that were off limits :(

Check out the size of that apple!

The trees were packed! There was no need for an apple picker, except that the kids like to use them. The dwarf trees are great!

Kim and I took the kids on a hike to the Cascades and packed a picnic lunch. 

Owen couldn't resist the water, though it was NOT warm at all! He was the only one that got totally wet.