Category Archives: Vacation

A Cabin in the woods

October 22, 2014

These pictures make it look like the middle of summer but these are from our trip to Michigan in September. The weather was a bit all over the place but we got a few beautiful days of sunshine and warmth. We had planned to head up to my uncle’s cabin in the upper peninsula for some truly restful days and boy did we get lucky. His cabin is wonderful and this is only the second time I’ve been and I was really excited we were able to fit it in the schedule.

The cabin is relatively remote and situated on top of a bluff. It’s a one room log cabin that has an octagonal shape and is pretty rustic. Perhaps one of the best features is the sauna on site. There is no running water in the cabin but my uncle built a sauna for bathing in the Finnish style. A wood stove heats both the room and the water that is attached to it. On my first visit to the cabin it was a very cool fall evening and the sauna was just what I needed. This time around it was warmer but we still took advantage of it.

We explored in the woods a bit. Walker tried fishing and I tried panning for gold. We both failed but we are also both pretty impatient. Finally we decided sitting on the deck of the cabin and drinking a beer would be the best way to spend the day. And I’m pretty sure it was. In the evening we looked at the stars and tried yet again to figure out if we were looking at constellations.

After a couple of really nice days in the woods we hopped back in the car and got Walker to the airport just in time. Our mad dash to the airport was totally worth spending one extra night and it all worked out just fine. Although I was sort of secretly wishing Walker would miss his flight so he could stay one more day. Hehe…

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Swimming in Michigan waters

September 22, 2014

Earlier this month Walker and I traveled to Michigan. We planned the trip to get a few things settled for our wedding next year but we left a lot of time for fun. Luckily the weather at the beginning of the trip was warm enough to swim because it was almost all I could talk about. I had been swimming a few times over the summer in Seattle but there is just something so refreshing and healing about swimming in a familiar lake and setting. I probably dived in about 3 times on our first night there. Walker decided to kayak around the lake a bit first and then after a game of tennis Walker, my dad and I all jumped in for a spontaneous swim!

Not only did we have an amazing time swimming in the lake, the surroundings were perfect for getting some wedding details figured out while warming up by a fire. I probably won’t be sharing a lot of details ahead of time but I’m super excited about it and I hope its warm enough next year in September to swim also.

Diablo Lake Camping

September 16, 2014

Last month we went camping near Diablo Lake in the north Cascades. Some friends of ours had planned the trip and invited us along. It was perfect because we weren’t able to leave until after Walker was out of work but they arrived early and reserved a couple of spots for the group.

I really like remote camping but I think over the years I’ve also come to really like staying at camp grounds. Have a bathroom is nice but I also like the smell of all the fires and food cooking and the low conversations you hear as you walk around the loops. I think we also stayed at a pretty low key camp ground because everyone was pretty quiet-it’s not always that way and in that way it can be frustrating.

We got there pretty late Friday so we set up our tents and joined the group for dinner. The next morning we ate breakfast around a fire and caught up with everyone’s lives. Once it started to heat up for the day we all got dressed and headed to Diablo Lake. As you can tell from the above photos it was beautiful! I wanted to swim so badly and I was the first to get in but let me tell you that water was cold! And that’s coming from a Michigan girl who likes cold water. I got in up to my neck and decided that was good enough. I got in a second time with Walker and it actually felt warmer (that or I was numb). After a little while by the lake we headed back to camp to explore and have dinner. We got to enjoy one last fire before packing our things up the next morning and heading back home.

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