Finally...something new!

Wow...starting to realize how hard it is to make myself get online and write a recap of our adventures!!

Day 11-July 24th~ A long day of driving. Instead of visiting Twin Falls, ID, we drove to Boise and arrived late at night. Not much of any note. Above are pictures from our drive including our picnic spot that we found along the highway!

Day 12- This was a great day in Boise! It is a beautiful city with a wonderful park system (27 miles of parks with bike paths, hiking, playgrounds, and river access). We spent the day exploring the parks by taking a trolley ride, walking on the many paths along the river, visiting the zoo, and rafting the Boise River. In the middle of all of this, I visited the rose gardens while Jason and Fletcher looked around the sites of a "Goddess Fest" that happened to be going on that day. I think that they were most impressed by the belly dancers. Also, if visiting the zoo in Boise, don't go in the middle of Summer in the middle of the day...most of the animals are sleeping, but the lions, tigers and penguins did give us a little show. Tiger wins "Most Photogenic":) There was so much to do in this "City of Trees" that we wish that we would have had more time to spend there.

Day 13_From Boise, we spent this day driving to Bend, OR. A pretty uneventful drive. If you want to know what eastern Oregon looks like...drive through west Texas! There were some nice sites along a valley and mountain pass though. When we reached Bend, there were no sites at the Tumalo State Park (we really wanted to stay there), but when you have no reservations and you reach a state park on a Sunday night, that is a risk you have to take. The Sisters/Bend KOA took us in for the night...and the next four nights after for that matter. We got set up and went in to the town of Sisters, OR for some dinner at "Bronco Billy's" who claim to have the "best burger in Oregon". We decided that we happened to have the worst "best" burger in Oregon that night.

Day 14~ Shots from our hike at Three Creek Lake

All three of us went on a pretty adventurous hike at "Three Creek Lake" in the Deschutes National Forest Three Sister's Wildnerness area. What we thought was going to be a three mile "easy" loop hike ended up being about six miles of moderate hiking, but the scenery was beautiful though. Fletcher was feeling pretty puny so we took it easy at home for a while. Eventually he was running a fever and vomiting. After two episodes and never-ending headaches, we decided to take him to the ER (the only medical help available so late at night). I was worried that he was suffering from some altitude sickness or meningitis. It ended up being Strep. He is 100% better now though! Until he got sick though, we had no indicators that he was having any trouble at all except for the occasional headache that we attributed to altitude change. Seriously...don't worry. He's back in action. After our ER trip and almost restful sleep, we were ready for a nice relaxing day the next day.

A strange and beautifully sculpted tree

Jason decided to take a dip in the ice-cold lake at the top of our hike!

Day 15- Fletcher and I were going to take it easy this day. We had the oil changed in the truck, visited Wal-Mart to "look at the toys" and rested. Jason went on a hike. This wasn't just any hike. He was going to the top of "South Sister", 3rd hightest peak in Oregon. What we thought was just going to be a 6 hour hike for him ended up being 10 hours of him wandering, finally making it to the top with the last 1.5 hours in the dark(no flashlight of course). Yes, I was very mad, worried, etc. Yes, he knows that he was stupid and wreckless. This is a situation that he will not be in again!!!!! He did make it to the top though even running out of water in the mean time. If you want to know what central Oregon looks like from 10, 358 ft., here are some shots.

Day 16- We started our day by checking out nearby Redmond, OR and having breakfast at the "Black Bear Diner"- a great place to eat if you are ever out west! We made our way into Bend and spent the day exploring the city. We had the best time at the "Working Wonders" Children's Museum. It is a fabulous hands-on museum that Fletcher really enjoyed. After that we ventured downtown to Drake Park where we fed the geese and also got chased by them! We were lucky enough to also enjoy the Bend Farmer's Market where we had a chance to sample some local fruits, veggies, baked goods, cheese, and meat. It was great!!! We then drove around town and explored. After a short game of putt-putt and a little cleaning it was time for dinner at the Tumalo Feed Company.

Working Wonders

Drake Park