Into the Wilderness

So what have I been doing while Jason has been hobbling around in a cast? The complete opposite--hiking and camping in the Idaho wilderness. I've spent the past four days with appropriations staffers and my boss in central Idaho, hiking trails with the Forest Service and camping out in the White Clouds.

At Fourth of July Lake

Morning in the Sawtooths

I don't do a lot of outdoorsy stuff these days, and even back when I did I was definitely the least excited about it of anyone in my family. But I am seriously rethinking that lifestyle. The camping and fishing blood runs deep in my veins, and I sufficiently put up my own tent and assembled my own fly rod. And I only had one small moment of panic that a mountain lion would eat me while I was in my sleeping bag.

Snow in August! Go Gortex hiking shoes!

On Railroad Ridge at 9800 feet

We had a great time. The mountains are amazing, and you wouldn't believe how great the air smells after a good rain. It was especially fun to be there with my colleagues who had never been to Idaho before. After working hard for a couple of days, we enjoyed a fun day of hiking, fly-fishing, hanging out in the hot springs, and eating great camp food yesterday. We sat around the campfire until the moon was high in the sky last night while Mike pulled out his iPod and played deejay for hours. It was great.

East Fork of the Salmon River

Fly Fishing

But it is also great to have clean hair now, and I'm looking forward to seeing Cole and Mason, who were on vacation when I arrived on Saturday evening. This is definitely my favorite part of the summer!