Summer Adventures 2015, Part 2

June 14th
The morning started with another one of those creature sightings.

We visited a church in the area we had always wanted to check out. I think this is actually one of the first churches we have visited in which they didn't somehow fish to know what we did for a living. I liked that. Actually, in hindsight, I guess if they surveyed us on the outside (our dress and possibly our children's smell) they may have thought we were river gypsies and probably didn't have a stable source of income. Oh, how great that would be!

 Afterwards, we took some time to sit and relax a few minutes at the campsite. We watched the rafters float by.

 We then watched a live lumberjack show.  We were all glued to the action and kind of sad when it ended.

We then loaded the boats and headed to Copperhill, TN to paddle the Tocoa River. We had never went down this one-it is just a swift river that people tube down. We drove down to Horseshoe Bend Park to put the boats in. I met the guys at the bridge in town to pick them up. The boys were super excited to be paddling their own boats in the moving water.

John always makes a cautious start.

And within minutes, he is confident and moving along. He always has to access the safety first I suppose! Definitely not his daddy's genes!

 This guy led the way from the beginning and was mad when the end came. Johnny encouraged him to slow down a few times--he wasn't having it-full speed ahead!

At the finish line, the boys took the opportunity to swim and jump in.

 And of course, in the background, the safety line stands.

 On our way back, we stopped at this little place to make a picture and inhale the beauty of creation. There was a professional selfie taker there when we arrived. I mean he was shooting them from all angles. I hopped out and asked him if he would take our picture, I mean I was sure he would do better than my little tripod and timer. He agreed as long as I took some of him. I figured he already had plenty, but I complied. You would think he could have at least took one with the lighting a little better of us. But to be honest, just watching the whole experience of him having a self photography shoot was worth the poor pictures!

June 15th

We woke up, packed up camp and traveled to Murphy, NC. Blaze came along with us. You know, typing that out, it sounds so easy. It really is a task. And for those of you who haven't really done the camping thing without a camper--it really is a lot of work-putting up, taking down...unpacking at home-washing everything you took (biking gear, paddling gear, sleeping gear, clothes...) You get the idea--having adventures and making memories TAKES WORK! It is not for the lazy soul! We landed that afternoon at Josh & Karen's house (Johnny's brother). We slept outside in our hammocks and the boys slept in the back of Johnny's truck. He built a cool little sleeping setup and storage drawers and stuff back there in case we get caught in a really bad rainstorm. They had been begging to sleep back there since he built it! After we got there, Josh decided he wanted to go swimming, so we all loaded up and went to a local lake. It was surrounded by mountains and very beautiful.

 Elisha is definitely a boater. He was content as long as he was in a boat with a paddle!

 Katie and Elisha rode with me during the 1/4 mile paddle to an island. Johnny and Josh swam as JG paddled along side them in case either started to die.

 Jackson manned his own boat on the way there.

 We arrived at the island!

 Elisha--content--just needs a boat and a paddle!

 Katie and Jackson started exploring.

 Family pictures

 Johnny paddled the board back-not near as well as JG!

 The kids played on the playground before we left.

June 16th
We packed up and headed to Tsali Recreational Area near the Nantahala river. We set up camp, again. Here are a few of our hammocks with the tarps.

We recently had some racks and tables added to our little trailer. One of the tables on the side made a GREAT place for a hand washing and a dish cleaning station.

On the other side, we had our cooking station set up. 

Once everything was set, we loaded the ducks and headed to the Nantahala. Want a workout? Come pump up one of these. We did it several times. Who needs a gym membership?

And here are the pictures of the trip down.  (Johnny & Jackson)

 (John Gannon & Blaze)

 (Johnny & John Gannon)

 And what happens when they pull up for a break? Jackson does this...

 John and Blaze--they try to use the heat from the concrete to warm up from the numbing cold water!

They ported the duckies to the take out.

 They were starving, so what better place to eat than by the river?

Back at the camp there was bike riding,

 Fire starting,

 and cane sawing.

June 16th

First thing in the morning, the boys find a box turtle and make a temporary habitat to observe it.

 Jackson leads me on a hike through the mountains, across the stream, to the lake, and then to where the bike trails lead in and back!

 He makes me pose for pictures.

 We then load up and head back to the Nantahala for another day of river fun. Remember those air pumps--yep--another good workout! Blaze was ready to tackle it in his kayak for the first time.

 Here was my crew and Johnny was the photographer this time in his kayak.

No, John isn't waving-- this is his definition of "riding the bull." Got to love his safe side!

 You can see the other child right? Both hands in the air in a rapid!

 Our favorite rapid--appropriately named "Bump."

This time at the end, we were all starving! So while the guys piled up all our stuff...

                             

I got some hotdogs and other food ready!

Really, those hotdogs were the best I've ever eaten. If you have ever been down a river you know exactly what I am talking about!

 This is for all you people over the years who have commented that you wish you tanned as easily as I do. You see the downside? You wear 3/4 length spandexy things to keep warm on the river for an hour and a half and what do you have? 2 toned legs There is always a disadvantage-just love who you are!

 We had some visitors stroll through.

 The boys continued to entertain themselves by the river while we packed up.

Back at the campsite, we had visitors, Josh/Karen/Katie & Elisha! Jackson wanted to take Katie for a spin.

 Josh cooked up some fish, fries, & hushpuppies.

 We all ate in honor of Karen's birthday!! 

 The night ended with some good music around the fire!

June 17th

After waking up, we started packing up to begin our return to TN later in the day. Johnny decided he was going to ride a couple of the advanced trails at Tsali. Guess who followed? John Gannon was so excited to tag along. Blaze decided to stay and hang out in the hammock (smart guy). JG learned a few valuable lessons #1 You can't turn back when the trail gets tough because you are too far in #2 ALWAYS KNOW that if Johnny says a bike trail is fun that means that before it is over, your legs will be aching, you will be covered in sweat, after the 50th steep hill you will think that just laying on the side to die would be better than continuing...But he did it (John Gannon)! He did it! This is a major accomplishment for him--He probably has legs of steel at this point! As for Jack and I, he wanted to go for a swim. He led me to the lake and jumped in!

 We all met back at the camp and finished packing up. We stopped to say a quick "bye" to the Smryl's. Jackson wanted to play with Katie in the water before we left, so...

When we got back to Thunder Rock in TN, Ms. Roxe was in need of care so Jackson didn't hesitate to pull out his "first-day" kit to fix her up with a bandaid.

We set-up camp again and then hopped in the truck and went to the Horseshoe Bend park in Copperhill for the Thursday night "Pickin' in the Park."

 Johnny had picked up a few real estate books and John Gannon found them earlier in the day. He read every single ad and studied them over and over. After much deliberation, he announced he found the place he would buy. A quaint cabin-but the selling point for him? It had a wood burning stove and he reasoned that his electricity bill would low. (That boy has got my genes for sure!) Who would have ever thought he would be interested in a real estate book?

 This was our view as we listened to the acoustic music and watched silver haired people dance and hold hands. Such sweet times.

 And I bet you couldn't guess what the boys did. Yep--it was cold!

We stayed there until darkness fell and then returned to our hammocks for the night. I love living simple. Listening to the frogs and crickets as you close your eyes and thank God for the gift of time. Time spent just cherishing the smiles of two energetic boys-watching a daddy lovingly play with his sons; The gentleness of a sweet kiss from my husband of 18 years; Meeting people and hearing life stories from random people, like Mary-at the lake-mom of 5 who longs to live a less rushed life. Sitting with people, hearing their stories, having no time limits or places to be; No phones, text message alerts or any commercial toys. Just creation, people, and time. 

Live a Meaningful Life!

I'll finish up this trip with one final post sharing the last of our adventures tomorrow!