Mount Moriah

 After breakfast at Cleve Creek, we packed up our gear, headed across Spring Valley and headed up Fourmile Road to go join friends and family. Desert Boy really wanted to go play with his cousins. I wanted to see some of the beautiful northern Snake Range. We led the way for some friends who hadn't been up the rocky road.

 I had to stop a couple times for photos. Yelland Dry Lake bed wasn't dry--it had some water in it, reflecting the clouds.

 

The rabbitbrush was blooming, along with a few other flowers, but the peak flower season was over by a long ways.  The air was cool, but the aspens still all green.

 

When we got to the camp, we found that most of the adults had left to go hiking, but nearly all the kids (with a few adult supervisors) had decided not to go hiking, but rather hang around camp.

 Sam looks like he's mastered the art of hanging out!

 Desert Boy loved his hot chocolate--one of several that day. Then he disappeared into the woods with his cousins and friends to play shoot the animals and who knows what else.

 

Some of the teenagers emerged from the teenager tent for a short while.

 Desert Girl managed to accumulate an impressive amount of dirt. Finally she conked out and Chandra and I left Brian in charge of all the kids and headed out for a walk.

 Mount Moriah is in the background, and I had never noticed the neat looking ridge leading to a minor peak. I will have to get up there some time to do that hike!

 Chandra and I wandered on all roads, across a meadow, and came across this road. It was so tempting to keep following it. I think it goes down into Negro Canyon and out into Spring Valley. Hmmm, another hike for another day.

 

We took off uphill and found this aspen grove. The medium-sized aspens all looked fine, but the young ones were all dead. We went a little farther and then took a short-cut back to camp, which really was a short-cut. (Some times my short-cuts don't quite work out right, but this one did!)

 The kids were still all being good and Brian didn't even have to get out of his tent. :)

The kids were having a grand old time. They were making up all sorts of games, and Desert Boy came home with some new sayings.

After the hikers got back, we all gathered around the fire and then started cooking dinner. It was a nice, relaxed time, just what I needed!