Skip to main content

Hikes with Kids: Princeton Walkabout

thankful to dip my feet in the water, at least until the wasps came

This trip happened just a little over a month ago but it feels like it was months and months ago. The four of us took off to camp with friends at their cabin on Allison lake, in the Oakanagan region. It was hot the days we were there, but we had a lake to splash in, with rope swings, a kayak and a paddle board to try out, and plenty of kids to entertain ours! I mentioned to Stefan that this was probably one of my favorite camping trips to date because of three things: 1) other kids to play with our kids 2) going with our friends, and 3) indoor plumbling on the premises(!). Thanks to our generous friends who own the cabin, we were 1 of 5 families who set up a tent and enjoyed the area throughout the weekend. 

The first day we took a long hike with half the kids in very high heat and pooped ourselves out (the swim after was amazing!), but that's not the one I'll tell you about, because it's not even on the Allison lake recreation website, it's a local spot that you have to find once you're there. Instead, I'll tell you about the one we did the second day with nearly all the kids. We walked part of the Trans Canada Trail to the Red Ochre cliffs along the Similkameen River. 

I'm convinced that haze was the heat radiating off us all

We took the 30 minute car ride to get to the route our hosts had planned for us. There is a large tunnel through rock right at the beginning, which our huge pack of kids loved, and the rest of the way looked like the second picture above, just out in the open, sometimes next to a small cliffside of red clay. It was hot that day and we were all sweating quite a bit, so I was glad to plop down to the creek here and put my feet in the cold water! We all were. 

After a good rest, and the wasps cornering us, we started to head back, but I enjoyed the simple walk. We saw a lot of bikers around, too, and the gravel trail reminded me of the Jamaica trail (well, without the water) back in Lincoln that we'd ride on often. This trial is very easy and great for kids who need to burn off energy, whether they're walking, biking, or just plain hot, they'll have a fine time going through the tunnel, throwing rocks in the creek, or bottling up tiny minnows like mine did. 

 Thanks, Pawsey family, for letting us enjoy your neck of the woods for the weekend!

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

How To: DIY Sand/Water Table

How To: Build A Sand/Water Table for Under $30 ! Sorry this took me so long to blog, but I had to have a tool list and full instructions before I could do so. A little history on my love for the sand/water table . I love the idea behind tools for tiny hands, i.e. the Montessori Method , and like to have Lukka 'figure things out for himself', even when he is playing. I try to have the most simple and basic toys available for 3 reasons: a) simple toys generally have less parts, which means less of a hassle for me b) simple toys inspire way more creativity and imagination than do 'exact replica' toys c) they are much more aesthetically pleasing to look at, therefore, not making every nook and cranny of our house an eyesore! I know the last reason is just for me, but it's true. Plastic things don't generally last 1/2 as long as wooden or fabric toys, and they are unattractive. For this reason, I started to look for a wooden sand/water table as opposed to a pl...

Home School Activities: Board Games We Love

My children have recently become enthralled in the world of board games. I was never a board game player. Sure, I remember long summer hours (days? it seemed like it..) spent around a Monopoly board, but I was never one to suggest to get out the cards, or a game. As my children have grown and they are now able to do activities with me, I started noticing that they really took to puzzles (when done all together) and the one or two board games I happened to have kept in the storage room. They were always asking to play Candy Land and so I figured I should branch off a bit. Over the course of the last year, I have found GREAT games, even ones that I love to play alongside them. The amount of 'teaching' they have gotten through games is jaw-dropping. Counting, team-playing, math related patterning, are just some of the skills I've watched develop. I asked before Christmas on facebook what my friends and their own kids loved and I was thrilled with the response. We have found ov...

November - December Titles // 2024

 a moody December scene at Glen Valley I am just squeaking into the final few days for this post, and I am so glad I had Christmas break to boost a few more books into this somewhat meagre offering for Fall of 2024!  What did you read that you loved?  No Bootstraps When You're Barefoot by Wes Hall - This was a memoir I read for my bookclub, and although I found the first part very interesting, I read at least 75+ pages of his job (working his way up the 'wall street of Toronto') and I still don't know what he does.  This author grew up in Jamaica and honestly his ingenuity, quick learning ability, and resourcefulness helped him achieve amazing things, but it did feel a bit hollow toward the end. I don't think that was the intention, I just didn't overly love it.  The Hotel Balzaar by Kate DiCamillo - Again, I will read anything DiCamillo writes and be the first to have it ordered to my library! This lovely, nostalgic, and somewhat dour (at times) little middle...