On our first sabbatical 5 years ago the children ranged in age from 5 to 10. Now, at 10 to 15 we have many more choices about what we are able to do. Last time, I brought a stroller; this time, bikes. One of the things I have always loved about bikes is that riding them feels youthful. I rode my bike a lot when I was a kid. I almost never ride it in Denver but I am always game to rent bikes on vacation. Riding a bike means I am not in a hurry and I have time to enjoy where I am going.
Our 6 bikes on the back of our RV required a lot of advanced planning to arrange. Thanks to David, they are all here with us. Last night the girls and I took the bikes out for a short test ride. Magnolia's bike is new to her and she needed a little practice getting used to her gears. The ride was on a seasonal dirt road that is not yet open for summer. If you take it for 47 miles you end up in Idaho. Last night was a quick ride but so rewarding with beautiful views and scenery we new it would be the primary activity for our day today.
It rained all last night, it rained this morning, in fact it rained almost all day. When the clouds broke ever so slightly at 4pm the girls and I headed back out. The boys didn't trust that the weather would hold and opted to stay behind. It is difficult to know exactly how far we rode but I am guessing 5 miles each way. I loved it the most but we all had a great time. We were all alone, no other people for miles. We saw really cool birds, ground hogs, and a fawn on this bike ride. Much of the ride is through an old burn area and that lends to some interesting landscape as well. The river was on our side the entire ride and we crossed several streams and saw a few beaver dams. We laughed, we pointed out our favorite wildflowers, and we munched on gold fish. Then the rain came.
We probably rode the final 4 miles home in a decent rain. We picked up our pace and didn't stop for anymore goldfish. I continued to look for more wildlife but mostly I kept my eye on my 3 amazing daughters. I was so proud of them for riding hard, in the cold, in the rain, and for mostly laughing all the way home. I try to tell them all the time not to lead a vanilla life. If we had skipped the ride because of the chance of rain, our afternoon would have been fairly unremarkable. Instead, it was amazing! I loved every minute of it. I even loved the cold and wet parts. I loved that we were in it together and they weren't intimidated by the chance of rain.
They are all tucked in tight now, and, it is raining. I have hopes of blue skies tomorrown but either way, it will be amazing.
Jll
No comments:
Post a Comment