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It’s been a stressful few weeks and this has been my brain–except all the outdoor pools closed after Labor Day.
But it’s also been unseasonably warm so we headed to the closest reservoir Sunday and Got! In The! Water!!
The water was cold but I did go all the way in and those Victorians were on to something–taking the waters really does help. It wasn’t too crowded (I can’t imagine it in summer though) and we even got to see sailboats!
For our last hurrah of summer, I had the idea to take the new pack up to the same trail that nearly killed us and do it again, this time prepared for every eventuality. It started out so well–look at that pack stuffed full of gear!
But there is no such thing as lightning gear. We made it to the first lake and then the clouds started coming in fast and the thunder started getting louder. We were above the treeline in a thunderstorm the last time we tried this hike; the trail was about to climb; and we looked at each other and said, “NOPE.”
But before the clouds rolled in, the first lake was doing its best Bob Ross impression. (There’s about 10 minutes between the last pic and this one, that’s how fast things changed.)
We got off the trail of doom, the weather changed again, and we went over to Mirror Lake to eat our lunch:
And then we hit Provo Falls on the way home, even though it was cloudy again. Things are looking a little autumnal up at altitude–that willow is turning and there were one or two maples on the mountainsides going orange.
But the water was still pretty warm so we Got In. It was a good adventure.
Maybe we weren’t too scarred from our big hike last week, maybe I just can’t resist a chance to Get In The Water–but we were out Friday night and most of Sunday (and it was fine!).
Friday, we went up to the top of kindly Millcreek Canyon at golden hour and splashed around:
(If you don’t get all the way in the stream, you miss the bluebells growing out of mossy rocks!)
And Sunday we took nephew and sister-in-law and a visiting aunt and uncle tubing on the Provo River. It was about a thousand times busier than the stretch of the Bear we did at the beginning of the month and was a LOT colder, too–but I had fun the whole way (I was In The Water!!) and I think the group had an overall enjoyable experience.
It sure is a pretty canyon and river. There were people who used the tube rental place like us and also people out in their own kayaks and SUPs. I think it’s just a matter of time before I convince Doc that we need our own watercraft.
It’s still really hot. We weren’t feeling motivated for a dusty, sweaty hike but I did find myself longing for the apocalypse, which meant I needed some kind of nature. Sometimes just sitting on a rock and wading in an icy stream is enough.
It was refreshing and idyllic but also full of flies (you can see one on my knee up there biting me)…I guess that’s to be expected with nature.
It was another big weekend for Getting In The Water: Friday we drove to Idaho to the hot springs we like, which was offering tubing down the Bear River along with hot springs soaking after.
I had never been In The Water in a tube! It was amazing! There were calm spots and some mild rapids, the sun wasn’t too hot and the water wasn’t too cold…
…and we brought snacks and beer!
I think I need more tubing in my life. There are plenty of rivers here in Utah and Doc’s job rents tubes and PFDs, plus he’s on sabbatical soon. Anyone want to join us In The Water?
Clearly I like to Get In The Water but I really, really hate the Olympic swim strokes–mostly because the breathing never clicked for me but also because of my shoulder mobility and not being able to see where you’re going. So this post about Nihon Eiho, the Japanese traditional swimming styles, really clicked for me.
What most people practice as swimming then is the offspring of a completely unnatural environment, devoid of current, waves, salt, lack of visibility, unsure depth and wildlife … The Japanese classical swimming arts are the polar opposite–they are highly practical strokes and strategies, systematically designed to give the practitioner mastery of the natural element. In essence, to give the individual the same confidence they have on land, in the water.
[…] One begins with prone strokes that allow the practitioner to hold their head out of the water, a major difference to modern strokes. Indeed, the Kobori-ryu contains no techniques that take the practitioners eyes away from the objective.
The strokes are then broken into methods of crossing water, whether with, against or across currents, those for speed or those to conserve energy.
There are a few videos in the post showing the strokes in action and they look so natural–there’s barely any splashing. I want to learn this someday … maybe I can win the lottery and take a course in Japan.
It was a big weekend for wading in bodies of water and taking pictures of your foot: We went to Great Salt Lake on Friday night and Millcreek on Sunday. Highly recommend Getting In Some Water for this summer heat.
The temperatures here have been closer to early July than early June, but we found some shade on the way to the Terraces in Millcreek.
There was also a post-hike Get In The Water moment, very refreshing*
*”refreshing” = I couldn’t feel my feet after about 20 seconds. And look how deep the water is! This was right next to shore where it’s usually ankle high in full summer. That big rock behind me was blocking the current but it’s running fast, too.
We took our nephew and went to explore Willard Bay, a reservoir north of Great Salt Lake that none of us had ever been to. Was it the most serene and natural lake? No! Was it fun to hang with the crowds and get a party vibe? Yeah! Plus, it was popular enough there was a place to rent canoes and kayaks:
^ How I would like to spend every weekend this month: neck deep in a body of water.