Big Bend National ParkThi

This is a summary of our vacation (written by Joshua):

FRIDAY (October 31)-We drove down to Big Bend National Park through the night.

SATURDAY-We drove that whole morning and after lunch we got a flat tire.  We had to stop to get it repaired.  After about two hours, we were on our way.  When we got there that night, we had to set up camp, and then we got to go on a little hike in the dark.  During the hike, we saw little trinkets and walking sticks on the side of the trail, along with a jar for money, and a piece of paper that had all of the of the prices for the merchandise. Although it is illegal to buy the trinkets from the Mexicans, some people bought some stuff, and we even saw some 10 and 20 dollar bills in one of the jars.

SUNDAY-That morning some of the kids drove to the hot springs then hiked three miles back to the camp and the whole family hiked to the hot springs meanwhile some of the kids got separated but, eventually got back together.  When we got to the hot springs we sat in it for a while and then got in the van and drove back to camp for a well needed night of sleep.

Starting off on our hike, we got separated.  We spent an hour just trying to catch up all together at the trail head.

We found this plant that we decided to all hold onto, while taking a picture.

At the end of our hike, we got to enjoy the hot spring beside the rushing Rio Grande River.  The grass in the background is Mexico.  The water was nice and warm.


MONDAY-When we woke up we started breaking down camp to head to the chisos mountains to go backpacking.  It wasn't that far of a drive to the chisos basin so when we got there we were ready to start hiking.  It took about three and a half hours to hike to the pinnacles backpacking campsites.  When we got there we started setting up camp and saw two deer while we were doing so.  In the middle of the night it started raining and I calculated it rained for the next 36 hours straight.

After two nights in Rio Grande Village, we went to the Chisos Mountains.  As a family, we backpacked up into the mountains for one night together.  The second night, the plan was to have James and some of the kids do another night, further up into the mountains, while the rest of us set up camp in the campground down below.

on our way up...

This deer came up close to our campsite at dusk to do a little eating.

We forgot the utensils.  We used sticks to eat our ramen noodles.  James didn't want to go another day without spoons and forks, so he and Jay hiked back down to the van (six miles round trip) early, the next morning.  It started raining during the early morning hours, but it was a stead drizzle, and wasn't too bad.  We were getting drips in our tent, but the other two tents were dry.  Only Josiah and Jesse wanted to continue backpacking another night.  The rest of us went back to civilization.  We sent Abby and Jed down with Josh and Jon, since they were getting cold and whiny.  We met up with them at the bottom.

TUESDAY-When we woke up we had some hot cocoa and some oat meal under the tarp. Then we split up and James, Josiah, and Jesse hiked 4. miles up the mountain while the rest of us headed back down to the van to set up camp. It didn't take very long to set up so after that we just sat around in the screen tent.  At about 6:00  the wind started blowing and it blew so hard that we had to sleep in the van.  It was not very comfortable but it was better than the tent.  During the night we drove to the bathroom.
This is where Josh's account ends.  I (Lori) will finish it.
Tuesday night was awful, one of the worst nights of my life and the worst night of James'.  I was real concerned they might all make it down alive.  The van shook in the wind all night long.  

Up on the mountain, James and the boys were soaked and cold.  James didn't sleep most of the night.  They ended up leaving some gear in a bear box at a campsite six miles from where we were.  The boys were not able to carry stuff well because of the cold.  As they came down the trail, they saw plenty of damage from the storm, including a place on the trail where many large boulders had barreled down, creating a path of destruction.  They made it back to the campground on Wednesday afternoon.  It was still misty and damp.  We rejoiced!  God was so faithful!  We were so happy they were alive and well.  They were pretty chilled.  That was when I said, "Do you want to go to a hotel?"
 "Okay, you talked me into it," was James' quick reply.

James is getting warmed up in the screen tent.  The boys, Jesse and Josiah, amazingly, didn't seem as chilled as James.

The backpacking boys enjoying the warmth of the hotel.

The next day, James and the three older boys hiked back up the mountain to retrieve the gear.  It was 12 miles round-trip.  It took all day and they made it back just before dark.  We spent most of the day in the van, waiting for their return.  The weather was still yuck.  We were in a cloud most of the time.  We didn't want to spend another wet night there, so we decided to drive all night, north to drier weather.  So we had reserved three nights at the campground in the Chisos Mountains and didn't actually sleep at our tent site at all.  At 7:00 the next morning, we arrived at Red Rock Canyon State Park in Oklahoma.  We chose to go here because we had been there before.  We were able to dry everything out.  It was a beautiful, breezy, sunny day.  The kids had a ball, climbing the rocks.  In the evening, we got to enjoy a short hike.

We spent one night there and then drove to Springfield, MO and stayed at a KOA there.  It was pretty cold that night.  

The kids watched a movie in the tent on their laptop.

Mom and Abby, enjoying the campfire and trying to keep warm.

The kids took our picture at the KOA campground.

We went to breakfast the next morning at Cracker Barrel, of course.  It's tradition.  We made it home later that afternoon on Sunday, in time for the boys to go to youth that night.  We sure had our adventures, but I am ready for some warmer camping.  Next year I think we will be heading out to Yellowstone in July or August.  Hopefully, it won't be too cold there.

For an early Christmas present, I got James a winter tent.  Last weekend (Thanksgiving weekend), James took Jay, Jesse, and Josiah on a backpacking overnight in the state park.  He wanted to get the boys back out there and have a better experience. They had a wonderful time, one of the best ever!

Johnson Shutins and Elephant Rocks

Outside of Johnson Shutins, up high, up the trail, we have our own little campground.  We don't own it of course, but we feel like we do.  It is a very cool spot, off the path of the trail.  It is perfect for our family.  The downside is we have to pack our water up and use it sparingly so we don't run out.  That just means, we may come down with dirty dishes.  We have now camped there two years in a row.  This last time was Labor Day weekend.  

Again we got caught in a rainstorm while at the shutins.  As it started to rain, we all got out of the water.  It was pretty crowded and in the rush of people, we lost Jed.  The rest of the kids were together, trying to keep dry under the stairway.  Some of the older kids went looking for Jed and found him back at the parking area.  A couple found him and picked him up and carried him back to the buildings.  We were so happy to find him.  He thought we had left him, when in reality, he left us.  Before the rain, the kids had a great time in the water and climbing the rocks.

 Our last day we went to Elephant Rocks State Park.

NH Vacation

At the beginning of July we went to NH to visit Lori's family.  We stayed with Lori's brother and sister-in-law, Bob and Sarah.  Lori's Dad also came up from Florida.  We had such a busy time there and lots of fun.  The above picture was taken at the home Lori grew up in.  Her parents are trying to sell their home, since they now reside in Florida.  That may have been our last visit to this house.

Here is Abby, Jed, and Rachel on the slip and slide with their cousins Lyndsey and Ethan.

James and some of the boys went backpacking in the White Mountains for one night.  While they did that, we went to the beach for one of the days.

While in NH, we got to go to a family reunion on  Lori's mom's side.  Here is a picture of Bob, Lori, and Abby.

Hahn State Park

Over Memorial Day weekend, we went on a backpacking trip to Hahn State Park in Missouri.  The first night we hiked up to camp (about a mile) and set up.  Then we went for a 3 mile hike and ended up making it back to camp just before dark for a late dinner.  The next day we meet some friends, who would join us for the rest of the weekend.  We went to Pickle Creek together and had lunch.  Then the thunder started to rumble and it started to rain.  As soon as it really started pouring, the kids took off down the trail that led to the parking lot.  The couple we were with helped with Abby, carrying her all the way back to the van (over a mile through rough trail and lots of water in the trail).  I (Lori) was carrying 6 week old Hannah.  The thunder and lightening was scary.  The wind was strong.  It started to hail when the pavilion was in sight.  There were people there, having a barbecue.  They received out kids as they came out of the woods with no parents.  They even fed them.  When we got there they took Hannah and wrapped her up in a big blanket to get her warm.  We were soaked to the bone.  It turned out these people were Christians.  They were JOYFM listeners too.

We were thinking we would have to pack everything up and go home early, especially since we left the tents open.  Fortunately, we were able to dry everything off and stay, since the sun came out.  We were so glad, since our friends had just driven down two hours to experience backpacking for the first time and two hours after they got there is when the rain started.  We ended up having a great time.  We didn't do much hiking after that, but enjoyed it anyways.

The kid's clothes were soaked.  We had some towels, so here's Abby, walking back to camp, from the parking lot, with nothing but a towel on.