Paradise

This weekend we had a baseball game cancellation that left us with an entire free day.  We decided to take advantage of the beautiful weather and do a day trip to Mt. Rainier.  We drove to a point inside the Park and took the free shuttle to Paradise.

It was a really beautiful day, in the mid eighties at sea level and probably the low 70's on the mountain.  When we hiked up into the snow, the sun warmed us and a very light breeze blowing across the surface of the snow was pleasantly cooling.

(that's Mt. Adams in the distance)

When we got off the shuttle bus, my intrepid husband just began climbing up...and up...and up. I was sort of thinking we should go in the Visitors' Center and look at the trail maps, but I just followed him.  It was a pretty vertical climb and when we returned to the visitors' center we saw that the trail we took was one labeled "strenuous".  I thought on Sunday I would be calling it "the ibuprofen trail" but the strengthening of my legs from running served me well and there were no ill after effects.  It is also exciting that Big Red is getting older and we are able to go on longer explorations everywhere with him.  I love this picture of Tank.  He looks just like his father.  Somewhere I have a picture almost exactly like this of him.

I took about 50 shots that day.  This hike reminded me of some of the reasons I fell in love with my husband, why we need to get outside, and above all how important it can be to just drive away from a messy house and the demands of life with the ones you love and go see some of the wonders of the world.