I really, really wanted to do something fun as family for spring break. We were able to make plans to go to Bass Lake by Yosemite and had a great week. The kids loved the fact that our rental had a hot tub and we were even within walking distance to the lake. The first night we walked down and even saw a bald eagle in the trees! It was wild.
The first day we were there, we drove up to Yosemite to take in the sights.
The day started out sunny and clear. We hiked around the valley and all of us were amazed at the gorgeous views.
Later in the day, we headed up to Bridal Veil falls and it started snowing on us! Combined with the falls running swiftly due to the spring run-off that we all got soaked and were happy to head back to the car afterwards.
Travis had bought the kids gold pans and we found a likely looking creek for the kids to give it a try. Sadly, we found no gold but we did find lots of micah and other shiny treasures.
The next day, we rented a fishing boat and took the kids out on the lake. Benji was a bit uncertain about going fast at first but by the end of the day, he was having a ball too. The kids were really excited to fish, although we spent most of the day untangling fishing lines as all three kids would try to cast at once.
Benji and Peter both would crack us up because we'd cast their lines and then immediately say, "I think I got something!" and would reel it in. They crack us up.
Nora was the first to catch a trout and was so happy. She was not pleased when Travis first pulled it in but after he put it on a line outside the boat to keep it for the rest of the day, she loved it. She watched that fish the entire time and keep telling us, "I think it's still alive!"
And then shortly after, Benjamin caught a fish too! His was a croppie and he was incredibly excited!
The kids were so happy and didn't want to get off the boat. Nora was so happy until Travis took the fish to gut them. She started bawling and cried saying, "But I wanted to take him home with us!" When I asked her where we would have kept him, she just said, 'the bathtub!' Poor kid.
We grilled up the fish once we got home that night and they were delicious!
Our last day at Bass Lake, we went on a couple of short hikes, one to Mono Trail and the other to Angel Falls. That hike was especially fun as we hiked to the falls and then the kids got to play in the water and collect stones and acorns.
We enjoyed the perfect weather and had the best time. It was so nice to spend time together in such a relaxing way but still do so much outside. I love our family.
