Oh My Stars!

I must admit that I really don't like driving after dark. But then again, Dan does all the driving when we haul the camper anyway, so we left Laurel after work Thursday night like he wanted. As I stepped out of the truck at our campsite, I could only stare up at the sky. A million tiny lights spread themselves across the sky. Once the camper was set up, I thought about grabbing the camera to catch the stars, but we we were tired (it was nearly 2 am), so we retired for the night. 

Our friend Rick joined us to ride Friday morning, and we set off up the mountain. I was hoping for a bear sighting, but the best wildlife we got was two white, flipping mule deer tails disappearing into the pines. Oh well, the weather was perfect - cool, but not cold- and the riding was great. We even found a few roads that we had not traveled before. Rick had to head back to Laurel by late afternoon, so we had an early supper and ventured back out. We started up Bear Canyon, but I was feeling a little saddle-sore, so we took off on foot into the canyon instead. Bunnies, birds, caves, and colorful leaves gave us plenty of photo opportunities. The sunset on our way back to the camper had us reaching for the camera yet again. 








































It wasn't quite dark when we got back to the camper, so I built myself a fire. Dan just doesn't share my fascination with flames, so he left me to enjoy my own efforts. As it grew darker and the stars started to come out, I doused my dying fire. I was determined that this was the trip that I would get star pictures. I set the camera to all the right settings and stepped out into the darkness. Alas, all my efforts were for naught. The camera would not "click" in auto focus, and I could not see clearly enough through the viewfinder to focus manually. Disappointed, I returned to the warmth of the camper and went to bed. 

Ummm... I think the "trail" ends right here!

Saturday morning, we pulled out to ride as a two-some. We didn't mind, though, as we had some areas that we wanted to explore on foot. One of these spots was the head of a canyon. Our first glimpse of this canyon was years ago, when we took our pickup over the mountain. (Poor truck!!) The curve around this canyon is sharp enough that Dan had to stop and back up to make it. Ever since then, we have wondered what's down there. We decided that it was about time we found out. We descended the relatively gentle slope into the canyon for about 200 yards, then we hit a sheer drop-off about 50 above the valley floor. Dan suggested going back for some rope, but I wanted no part of that! 

Might as well head back up to the road. 

As we worked our way back up, we heard another machine on the road above us. That didn't surprise us. What did surprise, and concern, us was when the newcomer stopped where our machines were parked. Our concern was alleviated, however, when a voice called down, "I thought you guys were riding on Friday?" It was our buddy Grif and a cousin of his, out scouting for mule deer. Cool! This party just got a lot more fun! 

The rest of the day flew by, as we alternated riding and times of just talking as friends and enjoying the beauty of the day and of God's handiwork all around us. 

The ledge that stopped us.

Pulling out from our campsite after dinner, Dan summed up how we were both feeling when he sighed, "Another weekend gone." But it's okay ~ we'll be back.