Fall Fun: 2016
Somehow today is the first day of fall! It's certainly felt more like fall than summer over the past weeks, but September has been absolutely flying by. Since my lovely vacation at the beginning of the month, I've hardly had time to get outside and appreciate the changing of seasons. After the jam-packed summer I've had, I'm certainly looking forward to a quieter fall. I recently read this lovely post about why Seattle natives welcome fall so enthusiastically, and I couldn't agree with the sentiment more. This summer in particular, any weekend I wasn't out hiking, I felt guilty - as if I were squandering the limited summer days. Now that temperatures are cooler and it's raining more often, I'll be happy to have a little more free time for last minute plans with friends and family, as well as quiet rainy Sundays at home curled up by a fire with a good book. Keep reading for few other things I'm looking forward to doing this fall!
Forage for one of my favorites fall foods: chanterelles, elderberries, or wild blueberries
Try a new soup recipe. Maybe something entirely new, or just a new version of an old favorite!
Get a head start on all my Christmas knitting so I'll have time to make a new sweater for myself! If I can ever manage to choose between this one and this one...
Continue a new favorite tradition by going on another larch hike.
Get outside for lunch or after work at least 3 days a week. As easy as it is to forget about it, I need that time outdoors!
Bake a pie for no particular occasion and invite friends over to help eat it!
Get caught up blogging about all the hiking we did this summer. I've got at least three trips to share!
Take a break from all the tempting new releases, and read one of the books that's been on my to-read list for years. Perhaps this one or this one...
Grilled cheese sandwiches cooked over a campfire were one of my favorite meals all summer
This little tent saw more use this summer than it has in the past 5 years combined!
If you're curious, here's how I fared on my summer list:
Sleep outside at least once a month. Between one car camping trip and three backpacking trips, I definitely had this one covered!
Take a random weekday off work to hike a popular trail I'd never consider visiting on a weekend. Sadly, I never got around to this. There's always next summer though!
Summit a mountain. Thanks to Alpine Trails Book Club, I summited Sauk Mountain this July.
Just like last summer: Spend time adventuring outdoors with both my nieces! No grand adventures, but I was able to get in some quality time outside with both nieces!
Learn a new practical skill: backcountry first aid, avalanche safety and the use of an ice axe, or navigation. I studied up on backcountry navigation. Now I just need to get some practice using that new knowledge!
Go crabbing, and enjoy the fresh caught crab immediately! The boat on Whidbey was not fully operational this summer, so we never got the chance for crabbing.
Try my hand at making my own freeze dried backpacking meals. I made a cous cous dinner and oatmeal packets and they both turned out great!
Eat at least one meal cooked over a campfire. Car camping provided plenty of opportunites for this!