Rushmore Lion's Park

We only made a quick trip to this trail with the whole fam. EZ previously took M for a 2 mile hike here and wanted to take us back. It is easy walking with so many fun quirks and easy access to the Rapid Creek which flows into Canyon Lake. Definitely Stroller friendly. The scenery was beautiful. We saw a GIANT Osprey nest. Being a school teacher, I love to ask random kids questions, especially if they are locals. We saw two girls biking and I asked if they knew what type of bird made the huge nest above us. They went on to tell me that they get a lot of Osprey in the area and they make those huge nests near the water. We've seen quite a few birds or prey flying super high in the sky, but I assumed they were hawks or maybe the occasional bald eagle.



\

We also saw a boy riding the rapids and I asked him all the details in case we ever wanted to go back with tubes! It looked like the most fun you could possibly have. This seemed to be a little bit of a local secret, so there weren't many tourists around. Nothing wrong with tourists, but I am never a fan of a crowd.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Sisters in Seattle

Image
One of the main reasons we took our 3 week trip was to see my oldest sister and her hubby out in Seattle! They've lived there for 25 years and we've been out a few times, but the boys had never been. One thing about my sister is she is the most incredible host. We showed up to gift bags on our beds, the use of their 2 bedrooms while they scooted down to the basement, and a pantry packed full of everyone's favorite snacks. This was a multi day stay, so you are in for a longer post here! Day 1: We drove in from Coeur d'Alene with a stop at Snoqualmie Falls . We were tired, but still had enough energy to venture out to Alki Beach in West Seattle. The boys ran along the beach and harvested mussels. M really wanted to take them home and eat them, so we boiled him and let him have at it. He said they were good, and E tried a few. Crazy. My brother in law treated us to home smoked brisket and challenged the boys to some video games which was the perfect end to a long travel d...
Read more

Coeur d’Alene, ID and Snoqualmie Falls, WA

Image
From Glacier, we headed to Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. This stop was such a pleasant surprise! I did not know how beautiful it would be. The weather was perfect the day we were there. We spent time at McEuen Park playing on the playground. Then while T napped with EZ, the boys and I walked the floating boardwalk and hiked Tubbs Hill to a small beach area where the boys climbed rocks and collected pieces of nature to create a treasure pile.  The next day, we headed toward Seattle and made a stop at Snoqualmie Falls. With my sister having lived in Seattle almost 25 years, we’ve visited a few times and went to Snoqualmie about 20 years ago! (Surely I’m not old enough to have memories from 20 years ago.) The top of the falls are easy to get to from the parking lot, but the bottom of the falls was a steep hike down past all the worn out people climbing back up. The boys are great hikers, but after 3 days in the car, and not great sleep, we were apprehensive about lugging them back up the hill...
Read more

Reptile Gardens

Image
Reptile Gardens is exactly as the name describes it! I was pleasantly surprised by how beautiful the gardens were. I am not a reptile fan, but M sure is. He is all about snakes which give me the heebs. I prefer tarantulas over snakes any day. The main dome of the gardens is one of the first things we did, and there was a point where I felt like I was in a bad horror movie where someone might release the snakes and crocodiles at any moment. EZ shook his head at me when I relayed that story later on. The first trip to Reptile Gardens could be pricey for a tourist, but you can get a season pass with the price of admission by snapping a photo with their designated signs throughout the park. We had a playdate here with a mom and her two boys that I met at a park. It was a great place to spend the whole morning with friends and there is a good mix of indoor/outdoor activities. It was crowded by 11AM, so I am glad we started our morning there at 8AM. The prairie dogs were my favorite...probab...
Read more