Hiking the volcano

Several weeks ago Brandon and Sharon came down to visit us. We were looking for something fun to do and decided that we would try our luck at the volcano. We have a small vent about 10 miles from our home and Nate has been dying to take the kids to the top. As we got there we noticed another man trying to climb and he was taking the front straight up. We saw him slip a few times and then make a run for it. We thought nothing of it at first and then later found out why. The front of the volcano is pure loose rock. You cannot take a step without slipping because none of the rock is anchored. It is a tough climb because it is also extremely steep. We tried to create our own switch-backs to avoid going straight up.

The kids all did really well considering. It was good that there were four adults to four kids. I front-packed K up the whole way. A was really worried and was holding on to someone else the entire time. B was pretty brave and tried it on her own for a while. P was the best though. When the hike got tough he kept saying, "Dis is not a fun bolcano. Dis is dumb." We couldn't help but laugh. It sounded so cute. After several stops for water we finally made it to the top. The kids loved it up there and the view was amazing.

Needless to say, we found another way down. Unbeknownst to us, there was another way up on a trail around the back side of the mountain. We were glad that we didn't have to slide down the front on our rears. It was a fun hike and the kids were excited to pick out their own lava rocks to take home. (Now where am I going to put three LARGE lava rocks?) Thanks Brandon and Sharon for coming with us and for helping the kids along the way.