Invariably, water is always the game changer. The deciding factor. The extra plus weighted into the yes column. Almost any park or outdoor venue can be a good destination for my kids, but when you add water? It becomes the better choice.
Our favorite hikes in southern Utah a couple of summers ago were the wet hikes. Edging carefully up slate waterfalls and through canyon streams, swimming along the way in natural pools… those moist moments elevated extraordinary scenery into extraordinary experiences that grew us in new and delightfully freeing ways. A shameless wordsmith might say that they saturated us with remarkable memories.
Even in frigid winter, we’re drawn to the frozen falls and iced over trails of the Hocking Hills in southern Ohio. Maybe it’s that changeable aspect of water that invites us closer. It’s duality fascinates us. Eroding and building. Freezing and thawing. Ebbing and flowing. Changing the earth, changing itself. All the while sending leaves, logs and rocks on whimsical journeys…
I totally agree. Water is the deciding factor for vacations and kid-friendly activities. Nothing like water to wear them out! We’ll be in PR the last week in August, when will you be there?
Heather, you are so right. I especially like it when a hike is accompanied by water, either a whitewater river rushing by or a lake view at the turn-around point. The photo of the foot under the water faucet looks so refreshing on this hot summer day.
Where I live we’re surrounded by water. Lakes, creeks, ponds, waterfalls. Hard to calculate the immeasurable debt we owe to water in terms of pleasure, survival and beauty.
Fly Girl: I hope your trip is as wonderful as ours was. Loved it. I’ll be interested to hear your experiences there!
Donna: All I have to do is mention a waterfall or stream if I want to energize my family of hikers! It works for me too : D Oceans are kind of nice too, huh?
Nothing Profound: Water really is everything to us. We no longer have to live directly next to a supply, but it makes the living nicer when we do!