August 1, 2016
We have been married for 19 years! So hard to believe!
To celebrate we decided to go on a hike like we did last year. An anniversary hike might become a tradition! Lee’s schedule just happened to work out so he had our actual anniversary off. We chose Opal Creek for this years adventure.
The Opal Creek Wilderness area is the biggest old-growth forest in the west. It is gorgeous. These pictures do not do it justice.
There is an old abandoned logging mill along the trail.
The water was so clear and a beautiful green color. Again, the pictures don’t do it justice!
Lee had to use the outdoor facilities at one point and thought this tree looked like the perfect spot. When he got closer he realized it was used as an oven. He figured he better find a different spot…
Before you reach the Opal Pools you walk through a depression era mining town called Jawbone Flats. It is now a research area, but it is also still an actual town. The old miners quarters are now private residents and vacation rentals. It was very interesting!
Right after Jawbone Flats we found the Opal Pools. They were beautiful!
We ate our lunch by the most gorgeous green pool of water.
We were so excited to get in that clear, inviting water. We even took stuff to go swimming. But oh man, the water was FREEZING cold.
You can see how disappointed Lee was in that cold water! We could barely wade around, it hurt our feet so bad! We watched a few people jump in and then jump right back out again. We knew we didn’t need to try it ourselves.
We gave up on the swimming idea and just enjoyed the scenery on the way back. So pretty!
On the way in we passed what we thought might be the natural waterslide, but we weren’t sure. On the way out we came to that same spot and knew it was the slide because there were several people going down it.
We went back and forth about going down it ourselves. At this point we were fully clothed and there was nowhere we could go to change. We were also worried about the cold. But we gave in to peer pressure and decided to do it. We were so glad we did! It was the highlight of our hike. If we hadn’t had all our clothes on we probably would have gone down several times. Next time we will be better prepared. The water wasn’t even as cold there as it was in the pools.
We hiked the rest of the way out in our wet clothes. It was worth it!
It was a great 7 mile hike. Not too difficult, gorgeous, and the perfect opportunity to talk about the last 19 years and more to come.
We went home and had a quick FHE with the kids. We all laughed at how Gracie matched the pillows.
Then we left the kids again to continue our date at Tilt for dinner. We tried the tater tots this time. Yum!!
For dessert we drove to Mike’s for an ice cream cone and a walk before heading home.
The last 19 years have sure been a wild ride, but such a good one. Especially with him, I think I’ll keep him!
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