Take me to the River

Things are well in beautiful Eureka, California. Hope everyone got at least a day off for the 4th. Since I usually work until Thursday and all labs were cancelled for this last one, we decided to take off for an extra long weekend. We would have liked to go to West Virginia, but it wasn't in the cards this year; perhaps next year we'll plan a little earlier and make it happen.
We packed up our camping gear and drove east on Wednesday with hopes of hiking and swimming and of course, relaxing. By the time we got there it was obvious how much hotter things were on the east side of the mountains and how uncrowded it was. After living in Seattle and always having to send someone a day early to "try" to get a camp, it's a relief to not have to battle the crowds. We camped near Coffee Creek with plans for a short hike (a warmup for the rest of the weekend) the next morning and some swimming in the afternoon. Luckily the hike was only a few miles long because it was a scorcher! At least over 100 degrees! We had brought plenty of water, but that still made it one sweaty adventure.

Boulder Lake is very quaint with the granite backdrop and the lilypads, so after eating some peanut butter sandwiches we headed back to find a swimming hole- Trinity Lake. Never quite sure how I feel about lakes- you know, the water just sits there. The day was so hot that we didn't care as long as we were refreshed and we were!

For the next two nights we continued to camp (just car camping, since hiking was unbearable) and search out the great swimming holes- we tried a couple of creeks. Although it took a little longer to drive to, the Trinity River was the winner hands down. On our return Saturday we stopped several more times to dip in and stay cool! Next on the list will be renting a raft and making a day of floating down a few miles. Stay tuned!

It was good to return home (and sleep in our comfy bed, of course) because the weather on the coast stays moderate and by moderate I mean mid to hi 60's. CD of course returned to work on the deck:

and I did a bit of weeding and getting ready for our dear friends the Lanimals that will arrive for a visit next weekend. I ignored the garden that is completely out of control!