Picnic on the Rocks A few weeks ago, we hiked on a beautiful fall day in Squaw Valley. The scenery was spectacular and the picnic sandwiches were extra delicious. The food and hike was an absolute treat! But, the company was the best part! Nothing like hiking and picnicking with 2 little mountain goat, great-nephews!
0 Comments
Tennessee, in the Path of Totality This may go down as the most memorable picnic ever. It was totally worth the 921 mile drive, getting to our picnic spot in Pikeville, Tennessee! On August 20, Don and I left Sugar Land, Texas. We picked up our son in Louisiana, spent the night in Alabama, then headed towards Tennessee in hopes of finding a spot to view the eclipse in the Path of Totality! By late morning, we came upon the small town of Pikeville and found quite a number of folks picnicking in the local cemetery. Perfect! We ate our Swiss cheese sandwiches on Sunshine bread with Sun Chips and Moon Pies. (Saved our Blue Moon Beer for later) The picnic highlight was of course the 2.5 minutes of darkness, when the cemetery suddenly felt cooler and cricket sounds filled the air.
Lookout, Wyoming Don and I had a breakfast picnic (coffee & roll) beside the railroad tracks last June. We found "Lookout" about 2 hours south of Casper. There was no town left, but we found a sign and one wooden building. We had hoped to find more, in the town where some of Don's relatives once worked for the railroad and post office. But we did meet the ranchers who now own the land. They found us on their property and were gracious enough not to kick us off.
West Texas A couple weeks ago, Don and I crossed over the Pecos River on our trip in West Texas. After crossing we headed up to the viewing area and found a couple of picnic shelters. It wasn't a planned picnic, but we had food in the car. We couldn't miss out on an opportunity to picnic above the impressive Pecos River. We ended up having a fun chat with a traveling couple from Georgia. The woman was from Korea originally and she and I had a sort of amusing conversation about foods of Korea. We both misunderstood each other about 10 times, which sent the conversation off on wild tangents. Memorable!
View of Mexico Don and I have entered Mexico through Big Bend Park's legal crossing, twice before. We didn't have time on our recent trip, but we did have a picnic with a view of Mexico. As we ate our sandwiches, we watched 3 men paddle across the Rio Grande towards the US side. They climbed the hill to check on the crafts they had displayed on a large rock. It's illegal to buy "contraband" and we already have walking sticks and wire animals from previous trips across the border. We finished our lunch, then grabbed a bag of 20 candy canes from the car. Don wrote a note in Spanish, (For the children) and left the bag and note near the money can. 20 toothbrushes would have been a better gift.
Quick Reunion! The best thing about this picnic a week ago, was seeing our great nephews and catching up with their parents. The most interesting part of our picnic was observing other picnics in this park, just miles from the headquarters of Apple Inc. In one direction, we watched a family gathering with colorful saris and cricket bats. The patriarch of the group was grilling kabobs nearby. Another gathering had little girls in colorful party dresses, a table of wrapped gifts, a pinata and balloons. The playgrounds were filled with children and parents of all colors!
High Above Lake Tahoe Yesterday Don and I had a pretty special picnic. We drove up to a trail that gave us a wonderful view of Lake Tahoe, without miles of strenuous hiking. It was still tough. I finished my last chemo less than 3 weeks ago, so I had to take it slow. We had ham and turkey sandwiches, chips and lots of water for hydrating. The fresh, cool air smelled of pine and the view couldn't have been more spectacular. Too bad you can't see the lake in this photo, but we were staring right down at it!
Breakfast Picnic with Son & DIL This hardly looks like a picnic, but it was a special one. We were having breakfast burritos and coffee at the National Mall in D.C. Our bench gave us a view of our first stop that morning, The Lincoln Memorial. We started out early on a warm July day. Scott called in our burrito order for pick up. Chali (who took the pic) helped get their puppy to "doggy daycare". We reached the Mall before the crowds and heat became miserable. We carried leftovers in case we found someone hungry, but the crowds seemed to be well fed!
At the Vineyard This picnic took place last month at Paradise Springs Winery in Virginia. It was my son, Scott's 27th birthday and we had to rush to get there after his work, before the winery closed for the day. We purchased a couple bottles and headed out to have our pick of the tables, near the vineyard. Chali and her dad, Fred pulled out the cheese, bread, crackers and pate. Don and I jumped in with some toasts and Lola the pup was on her best behavior. What a beautiful setting for a picnic!
National Park Colorado Here is just one more picnic that looks much less awesome than it was. We were near some of the steepest cliffs, oldest rock and craggiest spires in North America! We had just studied the 2300 foot Painted Wall, which is the highest Cliff in Colorado. Colorado has a lot of cliffs and we were picnicking very close to one. I wish my camera had been up on a ladder for this shot!
Not Happy This was not a happy picnic. Don and I pulled over on a Colorado road and grabbed the bread and peanut butter and moped. We were frustrated. We had reservations at an iconic 4-room hotel in Creede, CO. There was only one road into town and it was shut down due to wild fires. We had just gotten off the phone with our host who said the hotel was fine, but there was no way to reach it. We canceled and ate our sandwiches, trying to figure out which direction to go.
Update: That was 4+ plus years ago and we did make it back to Creede Hotel last fall! Colorado in September Since mesa verde means green table, It seemed fitting that we should have a picnic! (Of course I didn't know that trivia when we were sitting there eating sandwiches.) I do know that I was giddy about heading off to explore. I had always wanted to visit the famous cliff dwellings near Durango. I was eager to learn about the Ancestral Pueblo people who made their home in the area over 700 years ago. Who knows, long ago some of those very people might have shared a bit of food on the very spot where we sat.
Springfield, Missouri My sister took this photo of our picnic last April. It's filled with nostalgia. We were visiting our father, in the town where we tasted our first Steak-n-Shake hamburgers. We spent a glorious afternoon, just relaxing in lawn chairs and wandering the paths. Dad showed us the caves he remembered exploring as a young boy. We watched the kids on the playground and laughed at our own playground memories from childhood. And the pets... well they had a mighty fine time, too!
Mother's Day Magic at Enchanted Rock In 2011, we had a Mother's Day gathering at one of Texas' most intriguing State Parks. You can't see the magical, pink granite dome we hiked, earlier. But you can see 2 mothers and one mother-to-be! I am on the right beside my 2 kids. My sister-in-law, Jane is on the left... beside her son. His smiling wife is in the blue cap. Ginel was expecting their first and today I have 2 adorable nephews, ages 2 and 5! I love Mother's Day and I love picnics!
Treasures on a Picnic This photo doesn't show the food we ate or the lovely riverside park we visited in Llano, TX last month. It doesn't show the bridge or the red swing hanging from a tree. It doesn't show the beautiful sandcastle on display, or the rock stacking creations that were scattered all over the park. It just shows my face as I reacted to the little note found inside the plastic bottle, that was hidden deep in the hole of a tree, underneath a rock. Geochaching! Using GPS on a cell phone to find treasures anywhere in the world. Picnics just got more exciting!
Another Lake LBJ Picnic Love a family picnic in April! We had a great set up under the picnic shelter, but we moved chairs into the sun. We had the park (and practically the lake) to ourselves. Just enough boats motoring by to make it entertaining. We had some dice and cards, but opted to play Kadima! Running around and hitting the rubber ball with paddles was the fastest way to warm up!
Chappell Hill, Texas A few days ago, I drove to the Houston airport to pick up my good buddy Milissa and her equally awesome daughter Nathalie. We wanted to waste no time getting to Austin where we were meeting up with my daughter, Heidi. The 4 of us have been gabbing and giggling together for nearly 25 years. We just needed a place to pull over for a quick picnic of crackers, meat and cheese and found the perfect spot near a tiny white church in small town, Chappell Hill. We tossed a quilt over the concrete table, beside a blooming redbud tree and the warm sun made the Chicago girls giddy. (They left snow behind that morning) I will always remember this picnic as the beginning of a perfect 4 day reunion! Our quick little feast would have been a Perfect Picnic... except we didn't have Heidi with us yet!
Playing and Picnicking! It's been a long time since I've been on a picnic with a child! Our picnic yesterday reminded me of the picnics of my childhood, when the table part of the picnic was very short. Don and I had fun with our Great-Nephew, Colden during a recent visit. When we first sat down, Colden clung to his ball, frowning at the aggressive looking ducks as they approached the table. After a little fried chicken and cheese, we did the playground thing... reminding the ducks now and then, "Playgrounds are for kids, not for ducks." Sadly a few hours later, Colden came down with a fever and now these photos seem all the sweeter.
Sharing with Seagulls! I guess the characters in The Birds never had giddy expressions like this! Maybe they just needed to smile more when the birds invaded their world. We found the whole bird bombardment pretty funny at our picnic near Flagler, Florida. I love picnics with as much laughing as eating!
|
Mom's Picnic List
In honor of my mother on the first Mother's Day since she has passed, I dedicate a new list... Mom's Picnic List!
Mom loved picnics and she raised her kids to appreciate the simple pleasures of food, family and friends in the great out of doors. My Plan I will spend a year reflecting on as many past picnics as I can remember. But, I'll also appreciate the here and now by creating new picnic experiences. My goal is to share at least 60 picnic memories, since that's how many years Mom was a mom! Let the picnics begin! Archives
May 2023
Categories
All
|