Mini Mountaineers

Michelle was having a girl day this past Saturday which gave the boys and I an opportunity to do something rugged! We headed up the Kern Canyon and well above Kernville to hike the Packsaddle Trail. It is a 2 1/2 mile hike, that crosses a stream and ends at a cave. I didn't know if we would make it, but I thought it would be fun either way. We found some interesting things along the way.

We made stops along the way to rest and drink/eat and each time the boys would play swords with sticks, climb on the nearby rocks, or throw rocks down the mountain.

Well, we didn't make it to the cave. We were warned by other hikers that the water level of the stream was high this year, and the hike took a turn downhill and I didn't think the boys would be able to do the uphill on the way back. So when we made it to the peak of the trail we instead decided to head off the trail and to the tallest rocky mountain-top nearby which would offer the best view. So we crossed two mountains and ended up able to see everything, even our car.

After playing on the rocks and taking some pictures we finally started to head back. It took a lot less time as it was all downhill. Ian hiked the whole way with no complaining. Luke got tired faster and so I would carry him on my shoulders every other stop for rest, but he still hiked more than half of it. I took this picture when we got back to the car for some perspective on just how much we had accomplished.

In total we hiked over 3 1/2 miles and had a lot of fun. Ian collected a bunch of rocks in his pockets as we hiked, Luke had 3 "swords" we had to bring home, and keeping with tradition we stopped for Ice Cream in Kernville before heading back home through the canyon.