Magnolia Picture

The Magnolia is flowering and that can mean only one thing, it's time for the annual family picture! We are missing one important family member but we know Spencer is in the right place serving in Mexico! From left to right: Mindy (with rescued cat Riley), Paul, Justin, Denise, Nate. Enjoy! All our love to you!

New Mountain Bike Ride

I decided to check out a new mountain bike riding area I've heard of over the years. It's out by the State Patrol office near I-82 (you can see the office on the middle left edge of the Google Earth image). It was a neat riding area with lots of single-track trails. The main ascending trail has lots of jumps and stunt areas (I stayed clear of those and another hospital trip!) Then, you are on the top side in the bottom of the picture and you can go down any of several trails. It's a nice, semi-gradual ride to the top then you can blast back down any of the down runs. I also rode up a neighboring hill then back down, a nice run through the desert sagebrush!

Rattlesnake Composite

Here's a couple of new perspectives on the Rattlesnake hikes we've taken. I took Nate and Justin with me the other day and we hiked about 8 miles. You can see my first two hikes and the lengthier one with the boys all on the same map for comparison. We may go out and spend the night out there later this week so look for more posts! See Ya!

Rattlesnake Revisited

Two days later, I was back on the Rattlesnake Natural Preserve. I wanted to explore the area more. I went to the top of the hill for a great view over the other side to Benton City, the Horse Heaven Hills, Mount Adams and the Lower Yakima Valley. On my way back down, I ventured over to the gulley and hiked it back with beautiful rock formations. I flushed out several sage birds along the way. I so enjoy the chance to see all the beauty that is here in the desert. It is nice to just be able to walk and watch and get exercise. You can see my path from the trailhead on the map picture. I also wanted to share some of the pictures I took. I hope you enjoy them and get a little taste of this beautiful area. Paul.

New Hike on Rattlesnake

I decided to take a new hike today at the Rattlesnake Mountain Recreational Preserve. I set out from the trailhead on the highway just outside of Benton City, about 15 miles from home. It was a nice, quiet hike, only saw one other person (with his dogs). I hiked in about 3 miles to some burned out trees that would make a nice camp site for a scout outing. There was a Rattlesnake Mountain foothill to the south that would be nice to hike up on a day when I had more time. Some interesting looking rocky canyons to explore, beautiful desert wildflowers are starting to bloom. I even came across a geological survey marker. Definitely a place for future visits with an overnight pack on my back.

Skiing Bluewood

Well, it was a beautiful day Saturday for a ski trip to Bluewood, just half an hour up the road from Grandma Lin's house. Justin and I got there bright and early and got our lift tickets and Justin's snowboard lesson set up. Grandma showed up too and we hit the slopes. We rode up the platter pull a few times to get Justin a feel for the board. His first run, he wasn't sure how to stop so it was Banzai down the hill with a hard tumble as the slowing down method. Once he recovered from getting his wind knocked out, he was ready to go back up. I gave him a few pointers (the old snowboard pro I am!) and he remembered to keep his leading edge up and did great from then on. Then Justin went to his lesson and Grandma Lin and I got in a few runs on the Skyline lift (the green runs) and the Triple Nickel. Its the first time I'd been to Bluewood and it was really enjoyable. Sunshine all day! After Justin's lesson his instructor said he was "carving and shredding" already (and she doesn't give out those complements that easily). We all went up and down several times, Justin kept improving on every run. I took one tumble and banged my head but all was okay. We took a quick break for lunch and it was back on the slopes. Grandma headed home mid-afternoon and Justin and I put in multiple additional runs up Skyline and Triple Nickel. The snow was melting and it got a little slushy but still a lot of fun. You can check out the video and pictures. Thanks to everyone for a great day!