Sunday, August 2 {Sunriver, OR - Smith Rock & Alpacas}

The huge muffins at Costco are an easy breakfast item when traveling. The kids enjoyed eating them this morning before leaving for our hike at Smith Rock. When Abigail was here in June they did a short, easy hike there and it looked like something Justin and I definitely wanted to do with the family. There are a lot of different trails in the state park. Justin chose the most difficult one, appropriately called Misery Ridge Trail. 

That’s Misery Ridge Trail zig-zagging up the mountain

Even with the cooler temperatures of hiking in the late morning, it was far too hot for our families liking. The most difficult part of the trail was at the beginning when you climb up a dusty, narrow trail along the side of a mountain without any shelter from the sun. We had to take several breaks and that was not just for the young kids’ sake. It took us nearly 45 minutes to go 3/4 of a mile. 

Thankfully, we had brought with us a large container of blueberries which was the perfect reward for us to enjoy when we finally reached the top of the ridge. 

We made it!

The rest of the 4 mile hike was either mostly downhill or relatively flat along the river. It really was unique and gorgeous surroundings and well worth the strenuous effort. Thankfully we had just enough water for the family. In hindsight we should’ve brought much, much more. 

Monkey Rock

There were parts of the trail down that we pretty slick due to all the loose dust

There were some interesting nests under the ridges of this rock face, wonder what lives inside…

There was a refreshing sprinkler at the bottom of the trailhead that Justin and some of the kids enjoyed cooling off by…

We were all starving by the time we got back to the car so with a quick Trip Adviser search I was able to find a place nearby that was open and had high reviews. Since it was near closing we were easily able to find a table outside large enough for our family and we enjoyed a delicious and very late in the day brunch. 

Katie really wanted to visit the alpaca farm near the hike so we drove back there to let her have that experience. In truth I think Justin was the one who ended up enjoying the alpacas the most. That’s not to say that everyone else didn’t love it, it’s just to emphasize that Justin REALLY did love it that much. In fact he said it was the best five dollars he spent in a very long time. 

It really was fun to watch everyone have a great time feeding the alpacas and trying to catch some fun pictures of them. 

“Rosie”

They really are some bizarre, though strangely adorable, looking creatures. 

“Lun”

Everyone was pretty tired when we got back to the house. Some of us relaxed for a little bit in the hammocks, but we weren’t home too long before we decided to go on a bike ride. 

Back along the river route loop although we biked it in the reverse direction tonight. An enjoyable five miles. We had a late sacrament service today. We didn’t get around to an actual CFM lesson but we did spend a little bit of time talking about gratitude and being specific in our prayers for what we are thankful for. We spent the rest of the evening back at the house with everyone doing a little bit of their own thing – hot tubbing, working on pictures or videos, watching TV, snacking and rotating through showers. 

Summer 2020 {Week 7: August 1 – 8 – Sunriver}

Sunriver, Oregon quickly became our Plan B when COVID cancelled our plans to travel to Europe this summer with Justin’s family. It’s like stepping back in time in Sunriver and we love it! We’ve only been once as a family - back in 2012.  That trip to Sunriver was the first family vacation we ever went on without traveling with or to extended family. That vacation started our family travels I suppose.

 

Saturday, August 1 {Sunriver Arrival}

 

The six hour drive to Sunriver was uneventful. We got by with only stopping once to pick up lunch and use the restroom. When given the option between McDonald’s and Papa John’s the kids opted for Papa John’s. We had to wait a little bit longer for it to cook it but it was definitely more tasty than McDonald’s would have been. We decided to stop in Bend and pick up some groceries before heading to our rental house. We left a few kids in the car at both our Walmart and Costco stop. We didn’t do a full grocery run but enough to last us for the next couple days. Our van was loaded to the brim after those few errands. We got to the house around 5:30pm and got everything unloaded and cleaned up. The house is managed by a rental company and to ease travelers minds they indicated they had additional cleaning precautions in place due to current circumstances with COIVD; however, I found the house not to be very clean at all. Thankfully I had thought to bring along a container of Clorox wipes and I was surprised how dirty it was even just wiping the kitchen table. I think that subconsciously messed with my ability to fully relax and sleep well that first night. It’s not that I’m a clean freak but I don’t like the unknown of other people’s messes. Our little rental house was definitely outdated but ended up being just fine. It was a split level home and had air conditioning which actually made the bottom level where the bedrooms were quite chilly. Too cool is definitely better than having a hot, stuffy house. After we unloaded we quickly got onto the bikes and went for a ride around the river with a quick stop at our friends house which Justin and I (and Abigail) have been lucky enough to stay at when we’ve come with friends.

We also rode by the SHARC and village just to give the kids an idea of what the little town had to offer. Of course, Abigail was here in June so she is very familiar with Sunriver, but CJ and K haven’t been here in eight years and this is Drew’s first visit. The bike ride it was glorious.  It really is such a beautiful area and I love biking along the river as the sun is setting. 

There were ALWAYS deer around our house.  Sometimes a huge buck and often a few little fawns.

Abigail and Jason didn’t waste anytime getting their hammocks set up outside the house.  We quickly learned we needed to get the rest of us some hammocks as well.

After K&D went to bed Justin went out to the hot tub with Carly and Jason for a little bit while Abigail and I talked a little bit about some of the things she needs to get for school. She has a lot to figure out still. I slept terribly tonight, as did Justin, I’m not sure if it’s just being in a new place or what but it was a long night.