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camping in a tent...

Washington State is amazing to me for one simple fact...The Cascade Mountain Range that divides the western side from the eastern side, it's what gives the western side it's more rain forest like climate and the eastern side is more arid and desert like climate.
I love Eastern Washington.
Simply Love It.
Love it so much I could move to that side of the mountain and be perfectly happy for the rest of my life.
LOVE. IT.
So this past weekend along with some really great friends of ours and their kids, plus one we borrowed, we all headed east on highway 2 early Saturday morning and made our way to Banks Lake .
Kim and Clint brought their boat with them, Jeff and Lisa had made an arrangement to buy a boat from a seller nearby once we arrived, so on Sunday we had two boats for water fun!
Getting up early we had our camp breakfast but even still, this being WA State we didn't have far to go for a lattes, americanos, and fancy hot chocolate for Kyle...Don't shake your head saying 'you weren't really camping if you were able to get an americano' Have you been to the REI camping section? They have a campfire espresso maker among other fancy things...It was real camping, because anytime I'm sleeping in a tent on the ground with a sleeping bag, freaking myself out because of my current obsession with Criminal Minds, it's real camping... but I digress The best way to explain how much fun we had is to show you the pictures, most of them were taken by Kim (thank you) because my stupid arse left my camera's at home. Never again will I make that mistake!
So without further adieu I present to you

Banks Lake - Camping 2011

Our Cove for the day...Not too far from camp that we couldn't make runs back to camp (which we did when we ran out of stuff)


Someone found their Chi in our cove...and unlike what SOME PEOPLE SAID this has nothing to do with the Blair Witch Project or any other scary movie you cared to toss at me...


View of our afternoon from above plus the two boats...



The kids found some rocks they wanted to jump off...there was a lot of contention about doing it since the lake was being drained for damn repairs and the water level was so low...but I think they found a few they could jump safely from.




The Turtle...Kyle's Turtle that Lisa and I both lounged in the water with and fell off of.. a lot



Carter getting fancy on the knee board...Thanks to our friends Roger and Shanna for letting us bring him along!

  

Chopper...I believe he jumped off a cliff himself...waterdog extraordinaire!

 These next 3 shots are of the kids in the Sumo Suit which is pretty much an experience in being water boarded and if you get it going right you spin like a whirligig over the wake of the boat....
First up...Jordan


I believe this is Drew...

and Carter...



D getting ready to ride the knee board...







and Clint....final ride of the night on perfect water...

It was the best weekend with friends! Can't wait to do it again!
xoxox
Carmel

p.s.
Tomorrow is the last Saturday of the Evergreen State Fair, D is racing but we are going early to eat some fair food, and do a couple rides before we get busy with the cars... Stay tuned for a post all about the fair in Monroe and how it wouldn't be fair to compare to the Minnesota State Fair... However in honor of the Minnesota State Fair and all their food on a stick I will be making Cherry Pie on a Stick for the pits tomorrow!

Comments

Unknown said…
You are so LUCKY to be at Banks, we lived in Redmond for 9 years and that was our place to go at least 3 times a year. I miss it so much (in Ca for 13 yrs) that a year ago we went in March for Hubby's birthday and our adult kids joined us. Of course it wasn't warm but extremely windy and we loved it any way. There is something about being there that is so grand.
Hope your shoulder is better?
Carmel said…
Shoulder and elbow are great! I just lazed about on the green turtle and didn't get pulled in the tube or the Water Boarding Sumo suit :)
Banks is a place we are definitely going to we all loved it!!
I grew up in bellevue off of lake sammamish..I am very familiar with Redmond. It's grown a lot in 13 years...

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