3 Lakes Trip - Saranac Lake - Part 3

We woke up to our second morning at Saranac Lake to sunshine again! Our friends made a delicious breakfast of pancakes and sausages. We sat around the table for some time and talked before making sandwiches for lunch again. Today we would kayak across Middle Saranac Lake and hike (climb) Ampersand Mountain!

From Alltrails.com: "Ampersand Mountain Trail is a 4.9 mile moderately trafficked out and back trail located near Saranac Lake, New York that features beautiful wild flowers and is only recommended for very experienced adventurers. The trail offers a number of activity options and is best used from June until March. Dogs are also able to use this trail."

DISTANCE                   ELEVATION GAIN

4.9 miles                      1811 feet

"Only recommended for very experienced adventurers" never mind that we had a 4, 6 and 7 year old with us, but they had great practice playing adventurers at the campsite all day!

No photos from the paddle across the lake because of strong headwinds but I do have this short go pro video!

The hike started out very easy, nothing more than a walk through the woods, and a little buggy but turned into a serious hike soon after and all the way up the mountain. It was a tough hike for myself and the only reason I made it, was watching 4 year old Isaac climbing up the mountain!

Let me tell you about a huge misconception about my kids... someone recently asked me "can you give me a list of your kids favorite hiking trails in Cincinnati" the truth is, there are non! My kids don't have favorite hiking trails because they don't like hiking! They do love an adventure though and that usually gets them through the hike! The first mile on the hike, I had one kid actually in tears crying "I hate hiking". He soon came to me and apologized because he realized how cool of an hike this was AND he beat us up and down the mountain. If I would give my kids the option of staying comfortable in our living room, campsite etc or go on a hike... they would always choose to be comfortable at home BUT I give them an extra push and they are always (seriously ALWAYS) glad they came a long!   well an extra push and a big bag of Swedish Fish in my pocket got them through!

On top of the mountain we were greeted with amazing views of the Adirondacks and some astronaut ice cream from our friend Matt! We explored the summit for a little bit, took a lot of photographs, and made sure kids didn't tumble down the mountain.

The pictures below you can see how far we paddled/ hiked that day! The first picture is from the summit of Ampersand Mountain (3,353 ft) and you can see our campsite (arrow) below! The second picture is of Jake at our campsite pointing up to Ampersand Mountain.

The way back down was tough!!! Apparently not for the big boys and Finn, all 3 of them just ran down the mountain and met us at the trail head! Isaac had a tough time and eventually fell asleep being carried by his Dad... Fireman's Carry Style! The paddle across the lake was not to bad but we did fight some headwind again!

We spent the evening around the campfire. The big boys, Ian and Jake, made dinner for us. Kielbasa & Jambalaya, I posted the quick recipe HERE! This was probably our favorite dinner of the trip. And we finished our Family Olympic Day events! You ask what Family Olympic Day is?

Scroll up, the second picture of our post you can see our home made trophy! We played about 10 games throughout the trip. The Roberts Family against the McGill Gamily. The winner gets to keep the trophy BUT needs to display it on their mantle at home for the year! Some of the games were (and we had funny names for them), who sets up their tent the fastest, who gathers the most firewood, who tells the spookiest camp fire story, who has the most mosquito bites, who catches the first fish etc. The other rule was that next year we are battling for the trophy again and the winning family has to come up with the games. The Robert's won but the McGill's are going to fight hard next summer and win it back!!!

The big boys (and Dad's) also played who can pull out the biggest rock out of the lake. Jake won and since no one caught a fish we counted the rock as the "catch of the day". Jake won us that game! Finn had such a bad allergic reaction to mosquito bites and required Benedryl that we decided we don't even need to count bug bites that he would win that game as well!

The next morning was sadly our last... we cooked breakfast and started packing up the campsite. It was a little bittersweet. We all would have loved to stay longer but we (the Mom's more than anyone) were really looking forward to a hot shower and a real bed! We will be back though Saranac Lake! 

Next stop was Lake Placid (hotel) and introducing the Robert's to our favorite pizza and swimming hole before we went on separate ways again! It was hard to say good bye but all good things have to come to an end... and next stop for us was VERMONT!!!

You can click here to read about PART 1, PART 2, and PART 4 of our trip!

 

 

UPDATE! and about 7 months later I finally put together a small video from our go pro footage. Enjoy!

Ohio Road Trip - Part 1 - Travel Photography

WARNING lots and lots of pictures!!!

I used to say things like "Ohio is flat like a board" or "I wouldn't want to live anywhere in Ohio except for Cincinnati". Looking at a map though, I realized that I really haven't seen much of Ohio except for I-75. We decided that we needed to change that and so we left on our Ohio road trip.

I really didn't plan this trip like I plan other trips. I only had two nights/ three days for this trip and not much time to plan anything. Checking Pinterest brought a ton of ideas but what we really wanted to see where these three main things: Hocking Hills, Cuyahoga Valley and Put-In-Bay. We have been to Put-in-Bay but that was 13 years ago and without kids. Or other main goal was for the kids to collect more National Park Passports. See more about that HERE

Checking our National Park map we decided we would also add Hopewell Culture and First Ladies in Canton to our trip.

We left in the morning and our first stop was Hopewell Culture Historical Site in Chillicothe.  

As soon as we arrived we were invited to join a Atlatl demonstration. We never even heard of an atlatl (Have you?) and to hear about it's history and get to use one was an amazing start to this trip!

Afterwards we checked out the Indian mounds, learned about the history and Finn finished up his first Junior Ranger Program of the trip!

These pictures below crack me up... very typical if I try to take a picture and Finn is not the center of the universe (or the picture!)

From the Hopewell Culture we headed out towards Hocking Hills. Like on many trips (SEE HERE) we had to make a U-turn and save a turtle from it's looming death. We decided on Old Mans Cave for our first stop in Hocking Hills. But not before a quick lunch break with Spam sadwiches in the parking lot. Haha

It rained that morning and all the colors were so vibrant plus the waterfall was really strong!

We loved the stone bridges and all the little tunnels and caves so much we spent quiet a bit of time there.

We left Hocking Hills to head towards our tee pee we booked for the night near Logan, Ohio. It's only a short drive (maybe 25 minutes) and we checked out Logan Lake on the way. Another tip for road trips is that whenever you see a fruit stand.... STOP! We always buy something for a snack and talk to the locals about events or other things happening in the area!

We arrived at our tee pee mid afternoon. Set up camp and relaxed for a little bit. Our tee pee was next to this pond and as cute and entertaining it was for the kids during the day... at night it was LOUD! At some points during the night, I seriously thought there was a donkey in our tee pee. It was that LOUD! haha

After we settled in and relaxed we decided to head over to Rockhouse and take a (very) small hike there.

Rockhouse was really amazing and except for the million steps going up and down it was a relatively easy hike.

Back at the tee pee we fixed dinner... a family favorite and such an easy meal to make on a camping trip. Only three ingredients: Jambalaya Rice Mix, Crushed Tomatoes and Kielbasa.

We ended the night with a serious talk about behavior and expectations we have from the kids and settled in our tee pee.

My highlight of the day: driving down the winding roads towards Hocking Hills and realizing how stunning Ohio really is!

The kids highlight of the day: Throwing the Atlatl.

Scot's highlight of the day: learning about the Indian mounds.

 

Have you been to Hocking Hills? We can't wait to go back as there is so much more to do and see!

Out West Trip 2015 - Day 6 & 7 - Zion National Park

Day 6: Left early in the morning, stopped at Glen Canyon Dam and drove to Zion National Park. We camped at Watchmen Campground and explored the area and swam at the Virgin River.

Day 7: Lots of rain. Hiked to Emerald Pools and got caught in a hail stone. Lots of flash flood warnings and trails are closed. We were suppose to stay here for 3 nights but with the weather forecast looking grim we decided to pack up that night and drive through the night to Los Angeles.

Day 9 McGill's Go Up North - Saranac Lake

Day 9! Probably my favorite day of the trip! We had to get creative with our daily numbers because I forgot a pen/ crayon/ marker at the car and that was a 20 minute paddle (one way) away from us.

About 3 minutes after waking up, Finn was already fishing again.

It was really chilly that morning and I forgot my long pants for the trip (which I didn't, I found them at home at the bottom of the suitcase). After trying to warm up by just being busy and making breakfast, I decided to crawl back in my sleeping bag and lay in the hammock. It didn't take long for my little snuggle buddy to find me and join me. We stayed like this for at least an hour!

Late morning, it warmed up a little (but the sun never really came out that day) and we decided to go for a little paddle across the lake from us and explore this little island. We first paddled over to the cliff where we watched people jump from the cliff the day before. Jake climbed up to the top to see if he would want to jump down later and the answer was : NO WAY!

While on the island we looked at our map and decided on a plan for later in the afternoon.

To make it easier for you I decided to show you with help of Photoshop where we were and where we decided to go. The blue arrow is where our campsite is located. The yellow circle is where we parked the car and the boat access to the lake. We decided to kayak to the lock system in the Saranac River this day (blue line). It took us about 2 hours (but we took our time with the kids) one way to get there.

We explored this little island for a little longer and in the back you can see our campsite (blue cross)

We paddled back to the campsite, and made a big lunch so we wouldn't get hungry on our adventure. First time in 10+ years that I had Spam and surprisingly we all loved it! Finn made us a big bottle of lemonade to take and he has perfected his way of mixing the powder with the water. Throw it up in the air as much as you can...

And off we went... the fist half of the trip was a little strenuous, crossing big bays with lots of wind and boats. But the second part of the trip went through the river and that was really peaceful and beautiful. Of course Finn had his fishing line out most of the way.

The lock happens really quickly after a bend and a boat was already waiting for us, so we joined them in the lock. We had to hold onto the rope and the locks closed and the water rushed in. It was pretty cool. The other side of the lock opened and we were in the Lower Lake. Pretty cool.

We decided not to go any further but to stop at the locks and have a break. The boys were allowed to operate the locks and that was really fun for them. They needed to use a lot of muscle power but they did a great job!

We took a lot of pictures there since it really was absolutely beautiful. The picture of Scot and I cracks me up... this is not how I usually pose and I am not sure what possessed me to pose like that haha I guess I was super happy!

There is a lock operator who lives at the locks all summer. She has her house (in the background in the last picture of this block), her little boat and her dog there. She opens and closes (and answers a million questions from our kids) the locks all day and writes down each boat and passenger that goes through. Really a cool job and I am a little tiny envious for it. But Scot says, I would get bored after two weeks.

Ok and the shoe saga continues... remember how I packed Toms and Flip Flops... well the Flip Flops decided to break on this trip. The Toms were back in the car (and really useless on this trip) and now this. I was barefoot for the next 24ish hours!

(I love the above picture of Scot and Jake so much). We went back through the locks to paddle back to our campsite. This time we switched off. I paddled with Jake and Scot with Finn. Jake and I had some pretty cool conversations and he had lots of his stories to tell me, plus he taught me some pretty cool Boy Scout camp songs.

After another 2 hours of paddling we finally arrived back at the campsite!

The boys went swimming again, while Scot and I fixed dinner.

I brought a flint and steel with us and this kept the boys pretty entertained trying to make a fire!

Soon after Finn fell asleep in the hammock and we were able to just relax at the campfire. He slept in there until about midnight when Scot and I carried him into the tent.

It was just a really peaceful day with my favorite things to do in life (camping and kayaking) with my favorite people.

Day 8 McGill's Go Up North - Adirondacks

We woke up in our little hotel outside of Quebec, took advantage of the continental breakfast and got out of there before 9 am. We had another 4 hour drive to our last big stop... The Adirondacks!

I am asked a lot how the kids do in the car. I have to say very good for kids! Of course they fight and whine, here and there but we try to ignore it for the most part. Also, Audiobooks and snacks are a big key! What usually happens is that the kids will be on their Kindle for 45-60 minutes (I usually get them a new game the night before a long road trip), we then turn those off and listen to an audiobook for at least 30 minutes. Finn claims that he doesn't like Narnia but he still listens and quietly colors. When we stop to get gas and the kids have been good since the last rest stop they can each get a treat at the gas station. Also, this time we played a bunch of games such as Road Bingo and Mad Libs. Our entire road trip was a little over 40 hours driving time both ways and yes it was hard some parts with the boys, but it really was worth it and we try to make the journey part of our trip, and not just the destination.

Before we arrived at the Adirondacks, we had to cross back in the US and also exchange our money.

I am kicking myself a little that I don't have any pictures from where we picked up our kayaks. We rented the tandem kayaks for 3 days from St. Regis Outfitters in Saranac Lakes. The staff was amazing and they answered all of our questions (and the boys had a lot of them). They transported us to the boat ramp and even provided us with a map. It really was a great experience and we highly recommend them. I know we will be back one day!

We booked a campsite on Saranac Lake which was on a peninsula and only accessible by boat/ kayak. We chose a campsite (actually when we booked it was almost full) near the boat ramp but not too close. It was about a 20 minute paddle to get to the campsite and of course we had to load all of our gear into the kayak. We actually ended up having to make two trips.

The campsite was amazing! We stayed at #56. Each campsite has a large fire pit and an outhouse, which was surprisingly clean but still scary to me haha I have a thing about outhouses but that's another story. I made Scot sit in front of it whenever I needed to use it.

The kids went swimming and the water was pretty warm. They loved jumping off this smaller rock and we all enjoyed watching people across the lake jump from a much higher cliff.

Scot and I decided not to go swimming but just enjoyed ourselves relaxing and watching the boys.

The great thing about this campsite was that we had a huge area for ourselves. There was no one around. The kids were free to explore, swim and be loud as they wanted.

In the evening we all were tired and just really relaxed. We all took turns in the hammock.

Scot made us a great Spaghetti dinner.

This little guy followed us around the campsite on out first day there.... no wonder after Scot fed him :/

We made a huge fire, with sticks and leftover firewood from a previous camper. The mosquito's up there were really minimal and they only really came out at night but not even where it was too bad.

After using up most of our wood and playing enough with the fire, we all went to bed happy and relaxed.