So, a couple weeks ago, Tommy and I had 2 days off in a row together (this has not happened in probably over a year...). We decided that we would take a small car camping trip up to Mount Lemmon. We were so excited to do some hiking and climbing and wake up to see the sunset from the mountain :) I researched some camping sites and we drove up there rather late on Saturday night. When we approached the top, it was pushing midnight and we were tired. We drove by the camp sites I had found and discovered that they were full. We didn't know where to go from there, so we drove to the very top of the mountain. There is a parking lot at the top and we pitched the tent right next to the car.
Barley slept in our 2 person tent with us... on our legs. It was adorable! :) We woke up to a beautiful view and perfect weather :) We boiled some water for coffee and had some breakfast (energy bars), packed up our stuff, and then headed down a trail for some hiking. It was a magnificent hike! There were wildflowers everywhere, a natural spring, and the views were incredible. After the hike we enjoyed sandwiches for lunch and then drove into the small town on the mountain, Summerhaven. On Sundays, they have "Music on the Mountain" where they have a stage and bluegrass bands play live for free. We listened to the music for a little while (the band wasn't that good...) and then decided it was time for climbing.
We went to a climbing spot called Ridgeline. It's at about 8,000 feet and it has a fairly short approach along a stream. When we arrived we met others at the wall and started climbing. On our second wall, Tommy was climbing and it started thundering. It sounded far away and so we didn't think much of it. About 5 minutes later, the sky opened up and started hailing and pouring rain! Tommy was still climbing and didn't want to come down because he would have had to leave some equipment on the wall. Poor Barley (who hates getting wet) was hiding under tree branches and looked so sad! After Tommy completed the climb, he repelled down to the ground while I started packing up our stuff. By this time, there was a river of water flowing at our feet and we had puddles in our pack. I went to stuff everything in our pack when I slipped on the rocks and landed on my forearms. It was PAINFUL! I looked down and saw two huge bruises already formed on one arm and a lump the size of a lemon. I was running on adrenaline and didn't feel it though. The thunder and lightning were cracking above us and poor Barley looked so sad and scared... After we got everything packed, we started for the car. We ran through the woods, down the stream, and then proceeded to butt slide down the rocks (it was too slippery to stand on them). Barley was scared and kept looking at us like we were hitting him with the hail... it was so sad...
After much pain and falling and slipping, we made it to the car. We were soaked to the bone and cold. Once in the car, we dried off as best we could. I showed Tommy my bruises and he immediately thought I had broken my arm. It wasn't broken (luckily), just swollen and painful. I iced it on the way back down the mountain. That was probably the scariest storm I have ever been in, and I felt so horrible for dragging Barley into it.
Through the grace of God, we made it off the mountain and arrived home (a day earlier than expected). We hung all of our wet equipment and enjoyed the evening on the couch, re-cooperating. Barley slept well that night.
The next day, we found ourselves with a whole day and no plans, so we decided it was time to paint! We cleaned the walls, taped, and painted our entire living room a beautiful pale green. It really brightened the room and plays well with the purple hues on the ceiling that Kat painted. Now that we have a wondering living room, we are looking forward to painting the kitchen and then the bedrooms and hallway.
It has been almost 2 weeks since our adventure and Barley is back to his usual self (such a resilient pup) and I'm still watching my bruises fade, but grateful that we are all in one piece :) Pictures to come later :)
"Don't knock the weather; nine-tenths of the people couldn't start a conversation if it didn't change once in a while."
~Kin Hubbard (American cartoonist, humorist, and journalist)
