Hiking In Mammoth Mountain

If you follow along on Instagram, you probably know the mountains called and so we went. It was so much fun bringing my family on a trip that I took so many times during my childhood. We went and explored places we've never been before, but that I have always wanted to encounter and it was nothing short of breathtaking. Of course knowing us, we took the trails less traveled and ventured through the rugged mountain terrain...with our four year old. Call us crazy.

This was Lyla's very first hike and she did outstanding. We only had to stop briefly for a breakdown -- we understood. She was tired, hot and just needed a little motivation to keep pushing forward, so we let her carry Daddy's Go-Pro for a bit. There were definitely times during the hike that I thought we ought to turn around because of the terrain, but together we managed to cross tricky waters, fallen trees, and steep inclines. By the time we reached the top our hair was tangled, our feet wet and muddy, and our faces also covered in dirt--it was amazing.

I can't explain how rewarding it felt to do something as a family, especially when we haven't had the opportunity to experience something like this together in such a long time. The hike was totally spontaneous, our plan was to just picnic and fish around the lakes but once we saw this waterfall, we knew we had to get up there. The look in Lyla's eyes was absolutely priceless when she saw the waterfall. We ended up hanging out at the top to rest for about an hour, until we realized Lyla was falling asleep in Alan's arms--there was definitely no way we would've made it back down the mountain carrying her.  To wake her up I had to tell her that we needed to hurry before it got dark and the lions and bears came out-- otherwise the girl was totally okay with sleeping next to a waterfall in her Daddy's arms. Needless to say, once we got back to the car it only took her about twenty seconds to knock out.