This past weekend, I enjoyed my last bits of Summer in Bend before I fly out this Friday. Last Friday, my dad and I hiked a little over a mile to Lucky Lake – a lake we have never been to before – and set up camp. We had a blast hanging with the dogs, and Apollo even swam for the first time! After they got off work, my mom and sister met up with some friends, and they all joined us for an evening at the lake. Once we had eaten dinner, our friends Matt and Crosby went back to Bend, leaving the four of us to spend the night at Lucky Lake.
The next morning, we woke up later than expected and packed up camp to head off toward Moraine Lake. Our original plan had been that the four of us would hike up to Moraine together, and then my dad and I would drop our stuff there before continuing to the summit of South Sister. Unfortunately, we got a pretty late start and a storm was rolling in that afternoon, so we decided instead to all set up camp at Moraine, and that my dad and I would try to summit Sunday instead. Tired from a poor night of sleep, my sister headed back to Bend while my mom, dad, the dogs and I all waited out the storm in our tents. Thankfully, the storm blew over after a few hours and the sun came out, letting us enjoy the beautiful mountain views around us.
The next morning, my dad and I got up early to begin our ascent. It was cold and cloudy but as the sun got higher, the morning mist slowly burned off as we worked our way up the mountain. Unfortunately, the very peak of the mountain remained shrouded in clouds, and our summit was cold and windy. It was still a difficult but rewarding climb, and after spending an hour at the top hiking around the crater of the volcano and hoping for the clouds to clear, we made our way back down to my mom and the dogs where we packed up camp and began our return to Bend.
It was a lovely send-off from this beautiful place I get to call home, and I will miss these mountains and this landscape deeply while I am away. It was also so nice to have some quality family time before I leave. Now I am just getting all my final things in order before I fly out early Friday morning.
