Google Earth had paid off again and we found ourselves with a sweet little spot to ourselves. The air was colder than last week. It was nice to not only escape the heat but to feel a hint of autumn coming on!

As with most mornings, waking up was a domino effect – Kai’s up first and his lack of volume control results in us all waking up shortly thereafter.

First on the agenda was to check out a lake about a half mile from camp. Fish rising to eat large ants that were getting blown into the water were enough to get us to stop and catch a few brook trout.

One fish, two fish turned into three fish four fish.

After a few hours of taking turns catching fish we debated hiking back to camp; our other option was hiking further in to a lake we had seen on Google Earth that looked quite beautiful – sitting at the base of a 1500′ cirque. The debate was that it was already 3:30 so it was a tough call. We thought we had enough snacks to keep the kids happy so we went for it. Against the advice of the couple we met earlier in the morning, we opted for the straight route over the ridge (no trail) verses the longer, mellower route with the trail. I was uncertain about this decision but time would tell!

The gorgeous scenery made the climb over the ridge worth it…and so did the plentiful wild raspberries we found!

The kids couldn’t get enough. I couldn’t get enough of the view. My wife and kiddos snacking on berries with a valley full of pines – I was in heaven. These are the weekends I long for during the week. The only thing missing was our oldest, Zev (in CA visiting grandma & grandpa). I was sure missing him up on that ridge.

After a relatively short decent we found it. Man was it worth it. The rocky cirque rose high around the small lake. We’d for sure have to come back and setup camp here. Maybe on one of our first backpacking trips we’re planning on taking with the boys next year. Stay tuned for that!

The kids soaked in the water and mom and dad soaked up the views.

Before long it was time to head back so we’d have time to break down camp before it was pitch dark.

Surprisingly enough, after a long day, the boys even ran and I got some small person trail running photos. Ha! Great end to long day in the woods. Now for that drive home…