We managed to get an early departure from Riverside Friday allowing time to get settled into camp with my parents arriving shortly after. We ended the evening with a campfire and a dip in the indoor hot pool. Both nights were notably cold, but the days comfortable. Saturday we drove out to Arroyo Tapiado (popular!) to check out a few of the mud caves. We all went through Chasm Cave, which was a little rougher than I remembered (particular kudos to my mom for making it through). I then led the kids over the top and down the wash walls, which was a small adventure. We then checked out Plunge Pool Cave and my dad and I checked out Big Mud Cave. Arroyo Tapiado was busy (there was a group of 20 girls with their fathers and that was only the tip of the iceberg!) and Claire wasn't feeling great, so we ended up heading back to camp after those.
Back at camp we had lunch and then a lengthy swim. Heather, my dad, and I then did the Moonlight Canyon Trail loop which I had never actually done before but enjoyed. It offered some nice expansive desert views and nice cholla patches.
After dark there was a nice surprise in my brother rallying to come out to spend the night while he was still briefly in-country between trips. It was nice to spend time around the fire with everyone, enjoy some birthday cake and cheap champagne, and go for another relaxing soak in the indoor hot pool. In the morning Claire was still feeling lousy and so we ended up packing up and heading out early. We were thwarted by some accident in inland Temecula that had us at a standstill for about an hour but eventually made it home. So it was a pretty mellow weekend and was not everything I hoped it would be after months of anticipation and planning. I was glad to be able to share a favorite campground with my parents and brother and was glad they enjoyed it and my parents seemed interested in revisiting. Thanks to everyone for coming out to celebrate, especially Heather for planning.
No comments:
Post a Comment