I really liked this!

A hike into the Beartooth Mountains

Two weeks ago, (during the workweek) we had a pretty big week.  Clint interviewed for a K-9 slot at his work and was chosen for one of the handlers.  I am so proud of him!  I must tell you (he is too modest, but I can brag!), he is very good at his job.  He has that wonderful balance of empathy and strength that enables him to handle situations and people in an intelligent manner.  This is a really neat opportunity for him!  But, it does come with some new challenges!  The first being that he will leave for 6 weeks on October 2nd.  This is for his K-9 training school and he will return with his new dog, Shep. 

Then on that Friday, we closed on the sale of our rental house!!!  Woo hoo!  We had the rental for a couple years and decided with both of us working full time, the kids, and all of life's other challenges it was too many irons in the fire.  The market isn't great right now so we were a little concerned about getting it sold.  Plus sitting on an extra house and making all the payments for an extended amount of time can be tough.  But, we did some work to get it pretty and then our awesome realtor had it sold in just over 2 months.  What a relief.

With Clint's impending 6 week absence, we are trying to get a lot of things done, including a scouting trip to the area that I have my elk permit.  Clint unexpectedly got last Sunday off, so we took advantage and headed up to the Beartooth to take a hike.   The weather was a little cloudy and cool, but it was a wonderful hike!  Here are some pictures!

A couple fawns checking us out.

If you look right above the timbered ridge line in this picture you will see the Golden Eagle. 

No eagle in this picture, just beautiful landscape!

The whole way up there Dane kept asking "can we fish there?", "how about there?", "Daddy can we go fishing?"  Never one to disappoint, there was a little creek and Clint took Dane down to see if they couldn't catch a fish.

Success!  A beautiful cutthroat.  The boys caught several and they were pretty good sized for how little the creek was.

The hike in is actually a closed road.  So, Clint had the great idea to take the baby jogger for Dane when he got tired of walking, and Kimber rode in the Kelty!  My hubby is so smart!  It worked out really well. 

Daddy and Kimber

It was actually a little cold and Kimber was a little tired of the Kelty.  So we squeezed both kids into the jogger!

The hike was super fun, and although we didn't see any elk, we were able to scope out the land and talk about how we could hunt it!  It was a great day!

Snipe hunting with the family

 About a week and a half ago we were were able to head out and do some snipe hunting.  There were a fair amount of birds, Clint and I were both shooting well, and the weather was fantastic.  All of this equaled a great time for us and the kids.  Here are some pictures from the day.

The kids were excited while we were getting ready.  Here is Dane wearing Daddy's vest.

 Kimber traipsing around with her ear muffs.

 Kimber rode on my back and Dane walked with Clint for the hunt.  This is one of the first times we didn't even bring the Kelty backpack for Dane and he did really well.  It's not easy walking, cause it's swampy and the grass is really long so we were proud of him.

 Starting the morning off right with the first bird of the season!

 Clint and Dane with a snipe that Clint shot.

 Dane posing

 Dane using the "over the shoulder" carry for one of the birds.

Later in the weekend Dane and I made some cookies!  Yummy, chocolate chip cookies.  Reduced fat, whole grain goodness!

Mommy's amazing helper.

That was also the weekend that I did the Kickin' Assphault 1/2 Marathon.  It was a great run and I ended 4 minutes faster than the last time I did it...  Even better was the fact that Clint and the kids were waiting and Dane ran across the finish line with me! Woo hoo!!!

A weekend at the cabin

Well, I'm a couple weeks behind on the blog...  but I will catch up!  Two weeks ago, we made it up to the cabin on an overnight trip.  We got a little work done and had so much fun!  Here are some pictures from the trip...

Clint and Dane checking for loose screws in the siding...  however I'm pretty sure I know where to find some loose screws and they have nothing to do with the cabin!  :)

The weather was perfect for spending the afternoons at the water.  We caught crawdads, swam, and just had so much fun!

Apparently there was a spot on my lens...  sorry about that.

Kimber with a little bitty crawdad...  and she didn't even try to eat it! 

So, I'm inside with Kimber, Dane and Clint are out doing some "man work" and I hear the dog going crazy...  Whining and carrying on.  Which is very unlike Bones.  So, I peek out and this is what I see.  A pine squirrel on the ladder. 

I called Bones back and then was able to sneak up and get a couple pictures.  Clint and Dane showed up about then and Clint said it was hiding under the outhouse and booked it back to the cabin when then disturbed it.  Poor thing is a LONG WAYS from any pine trees!

Then we were out on a walk, and I spotted a horned toad (aka horned lizard)  I told Dane he could hold it for a minute, but as soon as it dropped on the ground he would have to let it go.  Surprisingly it stayed put for a while.  He thought it was pretty cool!

Dane helping Clint with some very important "man work".

That is one big crawdad!!!  Yes, we did eat them both nights.  Their little tails are tiny and I struggled to get the meat out, but they taste fine once you get it out.

Just having a good time!

22 Miles of Fun!

First I have to thank Lisa, I didn't take my camera on this run and my brother took a ton of pictures.  All of these pictures were poached off of their wonderful blog!  Thanks guys!

As I said in my previous posts, Dad, Erik and I ran a 10 mile run one day as a "warm up" for this run.  This run was to the top of the Matterhorn.  22 miles total and we will climb to about 9830 feet.  This is my dad and I at the beginning just arriving at the trailhead.  Erik is behind the camera!

There is one place that the Forest Service had to take out a bridge.  Fortunately a nice big tree fell right in that area to cross.  This river is  really cold so I was glad that we didn't have to wade across.

Here we are going up...  there is a lot of that on this run! 

My awesome Dad...

8 miles in is Ice Lake.  It holds fond memories for Erik and I.  He came home on leave from the Navy when I was about 14 and we backpacked in and spent the night.  We caught fish and just had a great time.  Those high lakes are so beautiful, I never get over it.

Erik (my amazing brother) and I with Ice Lake behind us.  Actually the Matterhorn is also behind us, but I don't think you can see the top from this angle

Two great guys!

Although we are about 9 or 10 miles in...  I apparently still have a little sass!

 

There are notebooks on the top of the peaks that you can write messages in...  It is a neat opportunity to look back and see who has been there in the past and read what they wrote. 

Here are the three of us on top!  It was so beautiful.  It totally reminded me of goat hunting with Clint last fall.  Made me wish he was with us so I could share the experience with him as well. 

Dad always tells us to "suck in our gut and stick out our chest" when a picture is about to be taken.  It always makes everyone smile!

Views from the top

Erik on top of the world!

Erik remembered this little arch from a past trip he took up there.  He found it again and we had to get a picture!

On the way back down to Ice Lake

Our trail back down.  If you look hard you can just see us towards the bottom of the switchbacks.

Erik on the way down.

The downhill is actually kind of tough as well.  You aren't really breathing that hard, but your quads take a beating and your legs can feel kind of shaky after that many miles.  (Okay, mine did.  There was no indication from Erik or Dad that they felt anything but amazing...  they both have this incredible toughness that goes way beyond the physical component.  It's this amazing mental drive.)

We did it!  I wish Erik would have told me he was taking my picture and I would have mustered up a smile or a thumbs up or something.  (Okay maybe he did tell me and I flipped him the bird.  He may have waited until I put my hand down to take the picture!  Ha ha!  Just kidding!) 

Truth be told, I was spent.  I have never ran that far and honestly I'm proud of myself for doing it.  However, my quads were pretty tight for a few days!  (everyone got a good laugh every time I went to sit down or go down stairs... ) 

I can see how my dad and brother enjoy it so much though.  It is a completely different style of running that is really fun.  I look forward to the next time I can do it with them!