Let the good times roll!

The 5th Annual J Tree Good Times Havin' Trip lived up to its name! It was stinking fantastic!!!

It got off to a great start when I got to spend time with one of my favorite people, Karen! I am lucky enough to have her for a cousin and I miss hanging out with her more often. But.... we spent lots of time talking until the wee hours of the morning to try and catch up on our lives!!!






The next day, I was off to Joshua Tree National Park. Long drive, but sooo worth it! We pulled in around 5pm and set up camp. That night, I think a tornado was circling the camp. The gale-force winds were enough to blow everything around. It was too dangerous to even get close to the fire to get warm for fear of catching a rogue flame! At a couple points, I swear the tent was about to take flight!
Having survived the windy night, the next morning we went climbing. Super fun, but still cold.
I must admit that at this point, I was worried about the trip fulfilling the "good times" name due to the weather. BUT, by the next morning, the weather turned for the better. Game on!
We took a day off from climbing and went for a hike out to the Lost Horse Mine. We found the mine, and saw beautiful scenery. I think the desert is unique, but until this trip I didn't appreciate its beauty. The trees and wildflowers were in bloom and I loved it! This picture doesn't even do it justice.



We then went outside the park to take showers (gotta love those!) After the shower, I was looking across the dirt road, and I found something the world has been needing... the Worlds Famous Crochet Museum. That's right, you read that right. Its placement in the middle of a dirt road and double-wides made me convinced... NOT!



But, I digress from the climbing....

The next three days were full of climbing, climbing, climbing. Yahoo! I was in heaven. I climbed easy stuff and even a couple of insanely challenging routes (this is a 5.11a, if you know the lingo...Yeah!!).




I came home dirty, scraped up, tired, and happy. There is something so therapeutic for me about nature, a physical challenge and leaving all this technology behind. I returned with a clear head, cramped muscles, an appreciation for my bed, and a need to go climbing again real soon!