I took Holly and Greta on their first backpacking trip (and actually only my second!) and we had so much fun! We went with our friends and a dog - so fun to have a dog with us! We went to Bead Lake, which is about an hour and a half away. It was a there and back hike, about 12 miles total, and we probably did around 2/3 of the distance on the first day. The girls were so strong and total troopers! I was really proud of them. And they want to do it again! I'm hoping this will become an annual thing. All 4 of the kids shared a tent and I think that was a dream come true for them. They've always wanted to have a sleepover (and they basically had one in Banff last month), but all the giggling was adorable.

Gotta say, the girl power vibe of this trip was strong. How awesome is it that all 4 girls first backpacking trip was led by 3 woman? I'm kind of bursting with all the "hear me roar" feels. Here are a bunch of pictures from our first day!

One last stop, a dip into Two Jack Lake!

Day 3 in the mountains, took us to Grassi Lake, but the roads were closed. So I've saved that one for a family hike in the future. Instead we went to Grotto Canyon. Once we arrived in the parking lot, Conor and I recognized it. We had done this hike when I was pregnant with Maeve! So a repeat, no big deal. Enoch wasn't feeling very well (day one of covid for him, poor guy), so he stayed in the backpack carrier the whole time and no one was allowed to look at him! The hike began feeling really dystopian, dried out creaked, walking past a mineral processing plant. We got some laughs out of that. But as we arrived at running water and cooled off the the canyon, it all felt a little better. Ira loved playing in the water and I didn't mind having his damp little self on my back for the the hike back to the trailhead.

Next stop, we were crossing our fingers we'd find parking at Lake Louise and could do the hike to the Plain of the Six Glaciers. But no luck, so that hike is one I'll do as a day hike the next time I have the opportunity. Instead, we hiked Boom Lake. We had a bit of stalled start as we heard about 2 grizzlies and a black bear on the trail. We went anyways, carrying our bear spray and didn't see one single bear. The hike was really pretty and the fresh air smelled so good! When we reached the lake, we stopped for lunch, water play and rest. Once, Enoch saw the lake, he wanted his clothes off and he hung out lakeside in the nude until we packed up and headed back to the trailhead. I was so proud - so McNeill of him. Notice the picture of Enoch sampling everyone's water bladders. I think that's how he effectively spread Covid to almost everyone in the group.

We took a little side trip to Banff this summer with our friends, Amorette and Parker and their girls. We left Maeve behind with my sister (Thanks Kim!), and threw the babies on our backs. Our first stop was Sunshine Mountain Lodge where we caught a gondola (Ira was terrified) and a chair lift up higher into the mountains. We then hiked through wildflowers and to Alpine Lakes. It was breathtakingly beautiful! I just wish we had gotten there earlier in the day and didn't have to worry about catching the last gondola back down the mountain. What a great start to our couple of days in Banff!