A Summer Hike

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Yesterday, we spent the morning at La Roche D’Oëtre — it’s about 30 minutes from our home and has some great hikes and a really cool zip line course. We started at the zip lines. Some of their courses are way intense — but only Ralph and Maude were old enough to participate, so instead, we played around on the little kids course for a bit, and then went on a hike.

I love hiking with my family! The trail went down the mountain through a lush forest, along a river, and then circled back up again. It was nice and shady (and lined with wild blackberry bushes) and just challenging enough to keep everyone interested. My favorite part was watching the kids play on the river rocks — and seeing if they could get across without getting their feet wet. (No, they could not. : ) I also loved seeing my kids help each other as they climbed up and down the bigger rocks. Nothing quite pulls at my heartstrings like watching them work together.

I have fond memories of seeing my children play on rocks in a dozen different rivers. I’ve concluded it’s one of the most fun things a person can do in this life.

How about you? Do you have any favorite family hikes?

30 thoughts on “A Summer Hike”

  1. Great photos–love the sunlight filtering through the trees. We love romping around the mountains too, it’s such a great activity for the whole age-spectrum of kids. Though, we tend to spend more time in the river than on the trails. :) In fact, we’re packing up to go splash around at Metcalf Bottoms today (one last hurrah before school starts).

  2. Funny you should mention hiking! My husband and I just finished a 41 mile hike on the Appalachian Trail (in one day)! We went with friends and left the kiddos behind, but it was fun to do with my husband! We try to hike with our kids a couple times a summer, but around us, the hikes are sorta like this: straight up, straight down. At the top, however, we have some AWESOME views! :) My blog post on our 41 mile hike is called “The Maryland Challenge.”

    1. Wow, Kelly! 41 miles in one day is so impressive!! When I lived in New York, I had the chance to hike a (tiny) portion of the Appalachian Trail every summer. I loved seeing the trail markings and imagining the same ones across the entire trail. Very cool!

  3. My kids are a little young yet for hiking, but nature walks are our absolute favorite thing to do as a family. My husband and I love a good hike, and the Appalachian Trail is on our bucket list!
    (off to check out Kelly’s post on the Maryland Challenge)

  4. Great photos! Hiking is one of our favorite family activities. We do it around home (love Rockefeller State Park in Westchester Co, NY) as well as on vacation. I always say it’s not a vacation unless we’ve had a hike!

  5. Sandra Gonzales

    Oh it looks so cool there. I’m in hot-house Houston TX baking at over 100 degrees with no relief in sight. Lucky duckies!

    1. It has been unreasonably cool this summer. My kids are in hoodies almost every day. It’s crazy! I’m not sure what to think. I’ll blow some of this cool air your way.

  6. It’s going to be 106 here today – our 40+ day over 100 this summer. I am glad I can look at your photos and pretend it’s that green and cool here!

    We will probably love hiking as a family if it ever gets cool enough during our son’s lifetime!

  7. Grateful for the glow of light and love and nature! And the beautiful , happy children! Felt as though I was with you all! Millions of thanks!

  8. Cute pictures. I live in Oregon, we are blessed with so many beautiful hiking destinations including countless waterfalls. I think kids always remember those hikes and learn to appreciate nature. Looks beautiful!

  9. I love hiking! Thanks for letting us travel along with you and your lovely family on your adventure in Paris! I can’t travel right now, so it’s been fun to “virtually” travel with you and see all of the great pictures!

  10. Our family recently went to Harpers Ferry WV while my husband was on a two week pass from deployment. We have been many times over the years and despite how small the town is, we never get tired of going. There is also alot of hiking there and just seeing the sights requires climbing since it is a mountain town. Enjoyed your post!

  11. What fun! We have a favorite trail at a state park near our house. I should say it’s everyone else’s favorite. I’m usually too busy getting eaten by bugs and taking pictures to enjoy the trail…

  12. Looks like sooo much fun! Although we all don’t have the enviable joy of hiking in France! Such memories. I grew up hiking the Northern Alleghenys and we spent many, many a long day on the giant rocks of “Jakes Rocks” at Kinzua Dam in PA. As the years went on and we started taking our kids we found they “adopted” the same rocks we had claimed as ours years ago….

  13. Great photos! It’s full of fun and enjoyment! It’s good to see a family doing one activity and spending time together. And it’s good that we bring kids to hiking so they will learn how to take care of our nature.

  14. What fun! I was just wondering, do your children speak french to each other at all, or is it pretty much english only at home? My kids pretend to speak spanish to each other all day long, I think because of our Mexican neighbors, sometimes I think they’re convinced they really know how!

  15. On just about every family trip we’ve taken, our kids’ favorite part ends up being the unplanned stop to play on river rock or dip our feet in the ocean. Better than Disneyland or seeing bears in Yellowstone.

  16. I need to see if we can find some great trails out in the bush near Sydney. I’d love to find zip lines or some other cool park type place for my kids to enjoy. I know in Europe the playgrounds are as constrained by law-suite fear like here in the US. Have you found any cool playgrounds in France? I know my friend who lived in Amsterdam found several seemingly unsafe playgrounds. I can’t wait to find some Down Under.

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