Fourth of July 2016

I've so been looking forward to this three day weekend. As the long weekend approached we thought about either trying to go camping or exploring a city we haven't been to yet. But any campgrounds I checked out were all sold out and any hotels were crazy expensive because it was a holiday weekend. So we decided to stay close to home and it has been such a fun weekend! We planned a mix of little adventure activities and relaxing around the house.

Saturday
Mike and I went kayaking at Howard Prairie Lake. It was about an hour drive from our house and was recommended by a couple people. The lake was really nice and it was easy to get the kayaks in/out of the water. We brought a picnic with us and found a cool spot to sit and enjoy it. Once we were finished on the water I had to get an ice cream to complete the afternoon!

Saturday evening we went to Kaleidoscope Pizza for dinner. We wanted to try something a little different so we went for the Chicken Thai Pizza. It was SO good! There was peanut sauce, grilled chicken, carrots, bean sprouts, red onions, cilantro, mozzarella, and provolone.

Sunday
Sunday morning we went on a hike at Roxy Ann Peak. There was great overlooks of the city, it wasn't too busy, and the trail was mostly paved which was nice for walking. We brought another picnic lunch and just enjoyed a leisurely morning/early afternoon.

After the hike we stopped by Roxy Ann Winery. Neither Mike nor I had ever been to a winery so I've had it on our bucket list to stop by one. The tasting room was beautifully decorated and had a quaint atmosphere to it. We decided to do a wine tasting so we could try a variety of different types. We got to sample six different wines, which was really cool because I haven't tried many. My favorite was the Pinot Nior and Mike liked the Malbec.

Monday
Happy Fourth of July!! Monday we just wanted to stay at home. We made a pancake breakfast, watched a movie, ate snacks, read books, just relaxed. In the evening we made burgers and dogs and watched fireworks around our neighborhood. I couldn't have asked for a better weekend!!

Crater Lake National Park

Two weekends ago we went to Crater Lake National Park to get away for the weekend and celebrate Mike's 29th birthday! Before going we read that some roads and trails might be closed due to snow (Crater Lake gets about 46 feet of snow annually). Once we got there we were a little surprised to find out all of the trails were closed except for one...a strenuous one. Unfortunately, hiking was out. We did enjoy driving through the areas that were open and stopping to stare at the bright blue lake.

Most of the time when we visit national parks we like to camp if the weather is good, but we decided to stay at a cabin this time. The cabins were cute, but very simple (per the usual for the national park system). It was decorated with a rustic cabin feel, and had neat pictures of the park from the early 1900s. We had a nice view of a wooded area and spent some time just relaxing in the room.

We then headed out to dinner and enjoyed a yummy meal at Annie Creek Restaurant. The rest of the evening was spent looking at the stars and hanging out in our room.

The next day we went and checked out Crater Lake Lodge. It was built in 1915 and went through a renovation in recent years. There was a large porch with a great view of the lake! The inside lobby was nicely renovated, keeping the original feel of the lodge intact. There was also a small museum room with the history of the park and lodge displayed in photos and dioramas.

We then started heading on our way out of the park, but stopped one more time at a pull out with some pretty awesome views.

It was another great trip to one of our national parks! And a very happy 29th birthday to Mike!!

Union Creek Camping

Last weekend we started talking about what we should do for the upcoming weekend and we quickly decided on camping! So we checked out a campground we hadn't been to yet called Union Creek. It was a fairly large campground with mostly shaded spots and a creek running through...hence the name Union Creek. We decided to take our time and go out Saturday afternoon rather than trying to rush out on Friday after work. We arrived in the early afternoon and found a great site near the creek!

This campground happened to be really close to an area with a restaurant, country store, ice cream shop, and BBQ!!! So we had brisket sandwiches for dinner and ice cream for dessert. It was awesome!

 Mike had chocolate chip cookie dough and I had mountain revel blackberry. I probably don't need to tell you it was delicious, but it was delicious.

We wrapped up the night with a campfire and some stargazing. Another great weekend in the books.