After our delicious Canada Day lunch, we all relaxed for a bit. Some of us chatted, some of us napped, some of us golfed, some of us watched tv, and some of us read. After some rest, the next activity on the agenda was to go off-roading on Jim's Uncle Alan's Rhinos (I think that's what they're called). He owns two off-road vehicles that accommodate nine behinds total. Jim and I decided to go and hold our kids on our old lap-a-roos. So Uncle Alan, Ross, Dan, Henry, Keaton, Kelly, Katie, Jim, Tralee, Hunter, and myself all drove up a country road, parked our cars, unloaded the big boy toys, loaded ourselves onto the off-road vehicles (Dan had Kelly on his lap, I had Hunter on mine, and Tralee sat on Jim's lap), and drove up the mountain on the wonkiest CRAZIEST road to "the old ski cabin."
There's a lot of family history up on that mountain trail. Jim grew up ski-doing and horseback riding up it, often to get to the old ski cabin. Ross pointed out part of a stream where he caught his very first fish when he was six years old. He told us how Grandpa Jacobs rode him up on horseback, and then showed him where to cast his line. A few seconds later a trout was hooked. It was a nice story. We also found out from Uncle Alan that some of his relatives built the ski cabin many years ago. It's since been used for many a camp-out, scout outing, and family gathering.
The road to the cabin was once a prominent logging route, but hasn't been used for that purpose since the late 70s. So, imagine a dirt road that has seen absolutely NO upkeep in thirty-something years. Not only that, but it's a road in the mountains. Not only that, but it's a road in the mountains up in Southern Alberta where there is ALWAYS butt-loads of snow in the winter which makes for A LOT of mud puddles, run-off, and debris in the spring and summer. There were a few moments on our adventure when everyone but the driver unloaded and walked through an obstacle while the driver navigated and plowed through. There were other moments that we literally drove up a river! There were moments that the vehicle was straddling two narrow parts of whatever road was left while strait down the middle was a HUGE pit we could easily fall into if not navigated just right. It was a CRAZY ride. It was also So. Much. Fun! Jim, Tralee, and Hunter loved it too. I didn't get many great pictures along the whole ride, because I was holding onto my child and myself for dear life, and the camera was in its protective case. However, I did get a few shots of Ross navigating through some obstacles while the rest of us were walking through. They're pretty crazy.
I know Tralee enjoyed this outing, since on the drive down the mountain she sang a made up song that went like this, "Oh. . . I LOVE CANADA! There's a flower, we just passed a rock. . . IN CANADA! Oh I love it here! Oh CANADA!" She must have sung like that for at least 30 minutes. We made it back to the trailer and trucks to see Aunt Venice (Ross' sister, Alan's wife) and Grammy Jacobs. They drove up to meet us after our adventure. We told them all about our trip to the ski cabin, while the guys loaded up the muddy Rhinos. Jim, the kids, and I drove back to Mountain View with Grammy and Aunt Venice. Tralee and Hunter both crashed within a few minutes of being in Grammy's 1994 (give or take a year) Jimmy. That was about 4pm. Both of my munchkins woke up some time later that night, ate some food, crashed again, and didn't budge until 9am the next morning. All their Canadian adventures in the fresh country air wore them right out. I actually fell asleep early that night and didn't wake up until late the next morning either. It felt WONDERFUL!
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| Ross right after he drove over a hug dip in the road |
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| Jim, Hunty, and Ross trying to figure out how to get over a huge mud puddle ahead on the road. |
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| Unlce Alan helped navigate. |
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| I like this three generation shot. Hunter's trying to hang out with the big boys. |
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| Another pic of Jim, Hunty, and Ross |
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| The whole group at the Ski Cabin |
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| This sign hangs above the door |
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| Jim's spent many a night in this cabin. There are names carved into the wood, and Jim's sure his is among them. |
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| Uncle Alan sharing some history of the cabin. |
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| Henry being cool |
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| Katie just chillin' |
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| Ross at the cabin |
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| Hunty |
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| Hanging at the cabin |
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| Another nice cabin shot |
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| On the drive back, Katie lost her shoe in a mud hole. Luckily Henry rescued it for her. I got a picture of the shoe after it had been cleaned up. It looked like a big gooey clump of mud before. If you want to get an idea of what the mud hole looked like, look below: |
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| Ross tried to find another way around this massive mud pit, but plowing through was the only way. So plow through he did while the rest of us watched. |
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| Now that's just crazy! |
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| I almost thought he wouldn't make it. . . but that vehicle is pretty amazing! I think he was only on two wheels at this point. |
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| Tralee, Grammy, Jim, and Hunty. It was nice to see Grammy meet us there. |
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| Another picture of Jim, Tralee, and Grammy J. |
When we got back from our off-roading adventure, we put Tralee and Hunter in bed, then the rest of us roasted hot-dogs and made s'mores in the fire pit, ate some of Grammy's yummy potato salad among other delectables, visited some more, and waited for the firework show Ross and Jim put on. Ross always stocks up and lights lots of fireworks on Canada Day, at least every year we've been there he has. My kids slept through it, and I actually crashed by the time the show started. Lucky for us, they had round two the next night.
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| Cammi, Zayah, and Auntie Nikki |
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| This family REALLY likes massages |
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| Cute baby Zayah |
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| Grammy Jacobs hanging out with us by the fire pit. |
Canada Day was super fun this year!
