Mountain Day Trip

I was recently reading a devotion, "Summer Adventure" and I got overly emotional. Now for those of you who know me well, you may be thinking - no big deal, that is quite normal and you may be right. It may have been because I was a little overtired or overwhelmed by God's grandeur as we just spent the day in the mountains or because we had just dropped Jaret off with his friend Nathan to camp for a few days and the ride home without him had me reflecting on this new season we are entering and how quickly the years are passing by.

The devotion talked about how the author, Roger W. Thompson, was not a great adventurer - and I can relate. But then there are parts of me that just feel a pull for some adventure. Not the real risk-taking adventure of doing crazy things like skydiving but finding adventure in just being in nature. We hadn't been to the mountains in awhile and my heart was just feeling a desire to get out and hike, much to Kirra's disappointment as she doesn't love hiking. However, she does like time with family and she likes that I bring candy to motivate her along the way. 

I love the feel of the sun shining down as we hike the trails. Hearing the sounds of nature just fills my soul - the wind through the trees, the rustling of the leaves or the trees rubbing, and the sound of the waterfall that beckons us closer to feel the spray on a hot day. When I am in the mountains, I feel so close to God and feel that it is His voice I am hearing that draws me in and closer to Him.

"There is something embedded in us that draws us to the horizon. We are not entirely at home here. So we look beyond the oceans and deserts and mountains to the stars, and we wonder why. It's the distant wind that catches our face in the breeze and we breathe it deep through our nostrils and it smells of freedom and we know it is freedom we seek." ~Roger W. Thompson

In reading that quote, I had a rush of memories of times I have looked out over the ocean, looked up to the mountains, and gazed at the stars. And as all those memories came flooding back, the emotions came and I felt so grateful for the trips to the ocean, the mountains, the lake - that allowed me to step back from the regular routine and enjoy the freedom of living.

Roger then went on to remind the reader that there are only a handful of summers that we have with our children and when they are at the age of adventure so "lean into the wild" and make the most of the time you have. And again, that is what probably brought me to tears as the realization of how little time we have is fleeting. The time with our children as children but also just the time we have and how often we take it for granted. 

I am grateful for the day as a family in the mountains to just be together and to experience the freedom we have in Him through life's adventures. And summer isn't over yet so there are more adventures to be had...

Lake Louise - named after Queen Victoria's fourth daughter

Stoney Nadoka First Nations named it Ho-Run-Num-Nay (Lake of the Little Fishes)

It was more crowded than we had ever seen it at the lake but we managed to get pictures without the hundreds of other people being in our photo.

We were a little concerned about how busy the trails would be with seeing the masses at the lake, but most just say at the lake and don't all take the hike so the trails weren't overly busy.

Driving down from Lake Louise, we spotted a grizzly with her two cubs.

We pulled over to watch for a bit and were shocked at how many people did the same but many got out of their vehicle, some even running along the road closer to the grizzly to get a better picture. It wasn't long until a Parks Canada Conservation Officer came along and guided visitors back into their vehicles.

As we were driving toward Mount Kidd to drop Jaret off for some camping, we came even closer to a grizzly bear. A little while later we also saw a Black Bear. The kids were thrilled at how many bears we saw on our day in the mountains. It was quite impressive, really.