Palisades

I love the hike to upper Palisades Lake. It is somewhere around 14.5 miles depending on what extent you hike around the second lake. This time I convinced Chad to join me!

The view has looked better. Sadly, the water is really low this year.

I love this man dearly but he drives me a little bit crazy. I have been walking my tail off training for R2R. I've gone on several hikes and really prepped. I felt good on this hike. But so did he! He cruised! I kept up, but barely. The part that drives me crazy is that he hasn't been doing any training... and nearly out-hiked me! My one consolation is that his hip started hurting toward the end. So ha! Sorry Chad. But thank you for having the good grace to at least be sore afterward.😉

On the hike up, as I mentioned we were cruising, I would pause occasionally to get a drink or a snack. Chad did none of the above. At one point I exclaimed over this but he told me he liked to push his body to see what he was capable of. Weird, but ok. At the top he started getting irritated with Atlas for making a mess with his food. Imagine, a dog eating messily. I suggested maybe Chad eat something too. He took my suggestion and started pulling food out. He sat down and ate and ate and ate. At one point he looks at me and exclaims "This is crazy! I'm eating all this food and I don't feel full!" I laughed right out loud. Hiking sure works up my appetite so it was pretty validating to hear... especially after his comment earlier. He may prefer to push his body but I prefer to fuel along the way and actually enjoy myself!

It was a beautiful day. I'm grateful for my health that allows me to get out and appreciate such excursions. I'm especially grateful for a husband who loves me and our kids, and shares my interests! And I'm grateful we live in a place that so accommodates those desires! I'm also grateful for my kids who love each other enough to not kill each other when their parents abandon them for half a day!