1 year 9 months - Hiked Crater Lake, Oregon on July 4th!

Friday, July 4, 2014

Happy 4th of July! 

A friend of mine and I did a road trip up to Klamath Falls, Oregon to stay with a friend and to hike Crater Lake on July 4th weekend! I had so much fun! We hiked up Garfield Peak Trail, narrow, windy, rocky, and picturesque! It was sooo pretty! Saw snow, water, lots of trees, and fresh air!

This time, I purchased a hiking stick to aid me. I also put on my ankle brace since I've learned my lesson hiking in Tahoe the week before. 

Along our hike, I came across this rock to sit on with the most gorgeous views! My friend snapped a panoramic shot of me. It was the bluest water I've ever seen in my life! 

It was a great 4th of July! Fun fireworks show! 

I got to purchase and light my own fireworks too! It was my first time and it was too much fun haha. 

The next day, my friends and I went back to Crater Lake! This time for the boat tour inside the lake! I was prepared again with my hiking stick and brace. It actually made all the difference! I wasn't even sore that much. What a difference compared to not wearing a brace! 

The hike down to the boat was only about a 25 minute hike. It was so exciting! 

The tour itself was about an hour and a half total. The water was unbelievably clear and blue. Everyone was just so mesmerized. The guided tour was great! We learned so much, so much history and beauty of the changing seasons.

I still couldn't believe there was still snow on the crater and we're in shorts in 80 degrees weather. Something I've never done before. 

After the tour, we went for some scenic drives and stopped at Cloudcap overlook with the view of Wizard Island in Crater Lake! My ankle was happy and surprised to still be able to hike for a second day straight! 

The final hike after, was to Pinnacles Trail. It was an amazing straight, and flat trail with views of the volcano spires. It was a great trip! I'll never ever forget it! Though after the second day of hiking, I did feel more tired in the ankle. Surprised I wasn't crazy sore. Yay! I want to do more hikes! 

Here's a beautiful view of Crater Lake from Garfield's Trail.

1 year 8 months - Hiked Emerald Bay, Lake Tahoe!

Saturday, June 28, 2014

It's nice to be back in Lake Tahoe! I organized a summer cabin trip for 12 with friends for a weekend trip. So much fun! On Saturday, we went to Emerald Bay for a hike! It was a beautiful and perfect day!

We decided to take the Rubicon Trail.

It was a pretty easy hike. No hills, just a flat and rocky uneven trails. To the right is the pretty blue bay along the entire hike.

Our hike in was about an hour. We stopped at this point to take pictures before turning back.

It was about 2pm and we were all starting to starve. With just a bowl of cereal, grapes, and 1 energy bar to share between 4 people, all we wanted to do was head back to eat a buffet! 

I decided to not wear an ankle brace to see how I'd do. It wasn't good. Glad we found some walking sticks. I started with 1 going in. On my way back, I had to use 2! It really saved me and supported my walk back! I started to limp towards the end and was feeling exhausted. By the time I got back up to the last hill towards the car entrance, I had to take a few sitting breaks. My ankle felt swollen and definitely sore. We finally ended our hike around 4 and was starving. Great hike! But a sore ankle! I had to ice it when we got back to the cabin. Next hike, I'll be sure to wear a brace! Thought about buying a hiking stick. It really helped!