When Bison are on the trail...

Friday night, after work, 

we had just enough time before sunset 

to enjoy a little hike on Antelope Island. 

We weren't far down the trail when we saw this guy. 

We hoped he'd head up hill 

but he was liking the trail 

so we 

 bushwhacked down to the lake. 

Suddenly, Rascal's ears shot up 

and he whirled around toward the Bison. 

All we can figure is he must have caught the Bison's scent 

in the air. 

He took some persuading to forget about that big guy.

Skipping stones in the lake did the trick!

He was ready to go right in after them!

Man am I ever grateful for these sweet people 

who will go on rambles out yonder with me.

A twig at Yellowstone National Park...

Hunter got to go on a High Adventure Scout Camp in August, 

thanks to generous leaders who used their hard-earned vacation time to take the boys out yonder. 

The 2 motor boats towed the 4 canoes across most of Yellowstone Lake 

till they entered a "no motor zone" 

then it was every boat/man for himself

to paddle the last leg to their campsite. 

The next few days they hiked to a lake to do some fishing...

(Brother Barnhill's pic of one of the fish Hunter caught)

and had a good time together in the beautiful outdoors.

 while I was back at home praying like crazy they wouldn't get eaten by bears!!!

No bears, just lots of beauty.   :)

Kipper the dog...

When the twigs were just little sprouts, their pleas for a new family member were finally entertained. We searched the dog pound and rescue shelters till we found just the right guy, then we brought him home and named him "Kipper" after the cartoon "Kipper the Dog."

Kipper the Dog Theme Song

He was a crazy guy for the first couple years and could hardly contain himself if we pet him, he just had to shake it all off the second we were done. He grew to tolerate us and our affectionate ways, then he grew to love us.
And oh, how we loved him!

He also loved cats, chasing cats! He didn't know what to do with them once he got close so he'd just stand there and wait for them to start running again so he could chase them again. haha

He was always up for some garbage...

...and a friend...

...and a ramble out yonder.

...and a ride back to the car when slickrock made his feet hurt.

Our buddy, Kipper, got terribly sick last week and on Saturday morning left us to go chase cats in that big field in the sky.

Do you think dogs go to heaven?

They must 'cause it wouldn't be heaven without them.

We love you Kipper!!!

Ramble out yonder...

A friend posted a note (thanks Deena!) on facebook about a pretty little hike she and her family loved and it was close by so one night when the twigs were working an overnighter at Camp Kiesel, the Mr. and I took the dog and headed out to partake.   :)

It's the Green Pond hike by Snowbasin. Our friend was so right - it's beautiful!! The first chance we got we took the twigs and went again.

No dog this time as the "pretty little hike" is also a totally popular single track bike trail and the dog was completely put off that he should have to, at any instant and in many instances, bail off the trail into the bushes to avoid getting bike tracks up his back!

Another hike another day for him. That's okay because as much as he loves hikes and all the fascinating smells they bestow for his pleasure, he loves sun puddles just as much.

Our girlie loved the hike too! In fact she says it's her favorite hike ever in Utah! We've done a lot of hiking in Utah so that's saying something. One thing it says is that as much as the Mr. and I love slickrock, she, like her oldest bro, prefers green trees and water. It's all good!    :)

 

We enjoyed the beautiful fall colors...

...and skipped stones...

but mostly enjoyed being together.

The interesting fellow, Edward Abbey, wrote..."While you can. While it's still here...get out there...ramble out yonder and explore the forests, climb the mountains, bag the peaks, run the rivers, breathe deep of that yet sweet and lucid air, sit quietly for a while and contemplate the precious stillness, the lovely, mysterious, and awesome space."

Come stop by and let's go for a "ramble out yonder."    :)

Oregon punch with a side of crab...

This was our first visit to the Devil's Punchbowl on the Oregon coast and it didn't disappoint! We skipped looking into the punchbowl from the top and just headed right under the arch and inside because the tide was rising and our time would be limited.

Since Hunter was a tiny little guy he's always been interested in crawly things. He could spot a bug lickety split!

This moment made me laugh... there's our Hunter...looking at some interesting itsy bitsy creature.

 Back out on the beach, Hunter found more creatures.

I used to say he might be an entomologist some day. He's leaning more toward Orthodontics. Guess brackets are itsy bitsy things too.    :)

 The tide caught our girlie and the Mr. out on this sandbar.

I think he was trying to persuade her to give him a piggyback ride to dry ground.    :)

No luck this time, big guy. Looks like you're wading.    :)

Oregon...we love your waterfalls!

There were more fabulously beautiful waterfalls along the Colombia River Gorge than we could fit in! Along with Oneonta Falls here, we did manage to see Horsetail, Ponytail, Middle Oneonta, and Triple Falls.

Zac, (Elder Branch now) was learning to use his camera that Rachelle & Debbie gave him for his mission on Horsetail Falls. Thanks ladies!   :)

The next falls on the hike, Ponytail Falls, looked interesting to us when we were planning our trip because the trail actually goes behind the waterfalls! We couldn't wait to see it.

Halfway up the mountain we lost this guy. He stopped to tie his shoes then...he took a "short cut" and we didn't notice. I know, how could we not notice? His "short cut" went straight up the mountainside instead of following the dozens of switchbacks.

We started calling for him and when we'd pass other hikers we'd ask if they'd seen a really tall blonde guy dressed like batman.

Finally our paths crossed, whew!

Just around the next turn was Ponytail Falls. It was spectacular!

Zac wanted to get the full experience of the falls and climbed down next to the pool.

After Ponytail Falls we continued on and up to Triple Falls. It was a beautiful hike with numerous little waterfalls, bridges, lush moss-covered trees, and wildflowers along the way.

The twigs loved this tree near Middle Oneonta Falls.

Our sweet girl and our photo-bomber...

I noticed a trend in these pictures of Zac trying to climb everything he sees. Ha ha ha   :)

 

There were opportunities to talk together of our gratitude for people who make trails and repair washed out trails like this one.

 

We eventually reached Triple Falls! The viewpoints were from across the gorge (below) which makes the scale of the falls deceptive until you realize the little dots at the tops of the falls are actually people, pretty gutsy people, we decided, when we hiked around to the top of the falls but passed on getting to their same vantage point.

Oregon, we love your waterfalls!