Good news! I'm not dead!

We've just been so busy with our adventures that there is no time for the blog.

We tried to climb Ben Lomond the Saturday after school was out, but it start snowing so hard we had to turn back. This is a lovely view of Ogden Valley with a nice blanket of mist.

The next week we went camping at Payson Lake. We nearly froze our butts off. This is a nice little area in Payson Canyon called The Grotto. It is an absolutely stunning little waterfall that falls into a little cavern in the rock.

The chickies did a great job enduring the cold. There was still snow in our camp--the second week of June! Crazy times.

The sun shining on The Grotto

Emma competed in a fiddle contest in Weiser, Idaho--my home town. She did a great job and had a fun time. Brock and I LOVED all the live music. This is a national competition, so the musicians are really top notch quality.

Towards the end of June we gave Ben Lomond another try. This time we made it. This is a pretty little spot on the way up. It is a 16 mile round trip hike.

Brock at the summit.

Pretty wild flowers on the way back down.

I thought the paintbrush was especially vibrant.

The first week of July we went to two family reunions. The first was for my family. We camped at Upper Payette Lake near McCall, Idaho. This is Kate getting reading to jump off a cliff into the ice-cold lake.

And here's Emma.

This is a waterfall above the lake. This is my niece, Stephanie and Kate. It was a beautiful area. And much warmer than the Payson camp-out. But there was still snow on the ground in the camp area. Crazy.

The second reunion was with Brock's family. We went to Newport, Oregon and stayed in condos on the beach. This is the bulb in the historic lighthouse in Newport.

Da Cheney Boyz.

The cousins playing on the black-sand beach below the lighthouse.

Brock on the beach. There are a bunch of seals on the rocks behind him.

Kate checking out a tide pool.

Jane touching a sea anemone.

Emma checking out a huge starfish.

That red thing is a crab hiding under an anemone. The purple things are starfish.

We thought this one looked like Patrick.

Jane really enjoyed holding small crabs.

It was pretty cold, but we all had fun playing in the ocean. The kids all went completely under. Brock and I got up to our necks or so.

Look at all those star fish!

I'm not sure what this thing is--it is like a starfish but has a lot more legs. This guy was hanging out in a tide pool upside down. Those little yellow things are tiny leg things that move him around. They were all just waving in the water--helpless as can be. The kids begged Brock to pick it up and move it to a safe spot, right side up. It was purple of the other side. I don't know why I didn't get an after shot. Oh well.

The second week of July was girls camp for Emma, so the rest of us went on a little nature hike.

The columbine was blooming--and thick, thick, thick.

Isn't it pretty?

We also saw some sego lilies. It's the Utah state flower. Pioneers used to eat the roots.

We are now in our second week of no kids at home. Last week we spontaneously packed our backpacks and headed for the High Unitas. We hiked into this beautiful high lake filled with cutthroats. As you may be able to tell by the green of the lake, it gets very deep very quickly. It was great fishing. This lake, Priord Lake, is about 10 miles into the Uinta Wilderness area.

Brock pointing to a fish.

This is a pretty stream that connects Priord Lake to Norice Lake, where we camped.

A lovely sunset.

Norice Lake. This is a pretty shallow lake, but there were still fish. Brock had fun fishing the stream that feeds this lake.

It was pretty marshy all around the lake, which makes the place a glorious color of green. It also makes the place a perfect breeding spot for mosquitoes. We stayed two nights here instead of the three we had planned because the mosquitoes were so thick. But despite the nasty little bloodsuckers, we had a great time fishing, nature gazing, and eating the fresh fish fry from our little campfire. It was a grand adventure.

We've managed to hike about 70 miles this summer so far. We're hoping to fit in another 30 before we give up the freedom of summer and head back to school. The next peak on our agenda is the Pfeifferhorn. We're also planning on Timpanogos this summer. If any of y'all wanna join us, just let me know! We'd love to have you along.