Tuesday, July 27, 2010

More Family Memories . . .

Last Thursday, I had another of those “I’ll remember it for a lifetime” days.  Hocking Hills State Park in South Central Ohio has always been special to me – my dad took me camping there shortly after my brother Blake was born in 1966 (one of those “he’s gonna get most of the attention but you’re still special” events) and I still have fond memories.  It’s about two hours from home, and I have gone back for a visit every five or ten years since.  But not like this . . .

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Many of you have seen pictures from the Arizona hikes I have taken with my dad and my brother.  But this time we planned ahead so we could take along our sons as well.  Left to right: me, my son Ryan, Dad, Blake’s son Conner, and Blake.  Blake’s son Tyler was supposed to be there, too – but the band director at Springboro scheduled a freshman orientation at the last minute and Tyler is a section leader.

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We left home at 4:30 in the morning and were there and on the trails by shortly after sunrise.  Made for some really pretty shots as the morning sun came through the trees.

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Hocking Hills is actually a series of six or seven parks within a few miles of each other, so even though we hiked more than ten miles, they were all short hikes and ended up back at the car where the food was!

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Between us, Blake and I probably took nearly 250 pictures.  Some of the best were when one of us got a long distance view of what the other was seeing close up . . .

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Or the view from the bottom of those with the guts to climb the fire tower – and the view from the top of the wimp who didn’t . . .

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We seem to always find a warning sign that is worth a shot or two . . .

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Dad really enjoyed getting to spend quality time with his grandsons doing something he loves.

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Ryan and Conner enjoyed playing with the old pumps.  I can remember when there was one of these at every Ohio rest area – I loved them, too.

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Conner loves the natural “balance beam” – Ryan loves hanging on signs . . .

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Of course, tight spaces are always inviting . . .

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Mostly, we just enjoyed walking, exploring, and spending quality time together.  I could post a hundred more pictures, but you get the idea.  It was a great day . . .

4 comments:

  1. Wow! That's some beautiful scenery! And you guys looked like you had lots of fun, glad you got to spend some time together. Sorry the other grandson had to miss it. But, my son was in band too (section leader too) so I know ALL about how band directors can do all those "last minute" things! I've always said that band directors to be so musically inclined have no concept of time!

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  2. Very nice; almost as good as AZ :)

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  3. Wonderful pictures Greg, thank you for sharing. Looks like all the guys had a great time.

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  4. love the pictures with the sun shining through. The other one with the fire tower is just like one around me. Have to mark that park for places to see!

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