My heart will sing

For 8 months our family has been waiting for this trip. We finally did it, and it was a perfect icing on the cake of our summer. We gathered & borrowed backpacking gear for a hike up Quartz Mountain to a lookout tower we had reserved for the weekend.

We were all in good spirits as we set out for our hike. Out friend, Heather had loaned us a map which turned out to be invaluable as the trails were plentiful & poorly marked. 

Nate & I

When we arrived we were not disappointed with the 360' view. The tower stands 10-15 feet off the peak of the mountain, it was a perfect place to sleep under the stars!

Lookout

Quarts was everywhere. A highlight for three of us who love, love rock.

Sunset on top of the world

Orange light woke me at Sunrise. I was up long enough to take a pic, then hunkered back down for more sleep. 

The moss was decorated by quartz, everywhere.

Eli & his Dad

and there was more exploring, there were more hills to conquer.

Elijah's balancing trick

Nate

Quartz, Indian Paintbrush, & Mica! What a treat to find Mica!

The boys built an incredible fort. 

We played games,

We explored more trails. 

We lined up our treasures.

We got all of our faces in one pic just before we headed out.

One thousand gifts on a weekend from God, one thousand wonderful memories, one thousand more reasons for my heart to sing.