Timothy Lake Camping

Ryan has been asking to go camping for over a year now. We took him once when he was six months old, but we haven't been since. So this year we wanted to make sure and go at least once. I wasn't very confident that he would enjoy it because he is more of a homebody than I am, but the only way to find out was to go. So we made reservations for three nights and four days, and headed to Timothy Lake in the foothills of Mt. Hood.

Overall we had a good time, but there were some rough patches, especially at bedtime. Ryan did ask to go home several times, but then an hour later would say he never wanted to go home. We took a three-mile hike to another part of the lake, and the kids splashed in the water, which was a highlight for them both. Ryan got to watch them put a boat in the water and take one out, which was exciting for him. He got a blister on the hike home (time for new shoes) and was a little grumpy, but for such a long hike, both kids did great! Once we got home, they both forgot how tired they were and began playing around our campsite.

Since we had the entire campground to ourselves, with the exception of the camp hosts, the kids were able to run around and play at the other nearby campsites, climbing on rocks, jumping off of picnic tables and finding hiding places. Except for the rain the first day, we had a near perfect conditions...sunshine though not too hot, and no other people around!

We are already planning at least one more camping trip this summer, so it turned out more positive than negative. We were all tired and worn out (not to mention unbelievably filthy) by the time we piled into the van to leave. Ryan tried to stay awake, but he only lasted about 20 minutes before falling asleep for most of the ride home.