The Day We Learned About Rattlesnakes

During our Utah visit we had a chance to go play up in the mountains with some of our relatives.  We met at the Storm Mountain campground to enjoy a beautiful summer afternoon together.  While we were getting the food ready, the little cousins headed out to explore.  Fortunately, Gram went with them, because just as they came up to a bridge, several of the kids said, “Hey!  There’s a snake!”  Gram looked to see what they were looking at and sure enough a snake was slithering up the hill onto the bridge they were about to cross.  That’s when Lexi noticed something else.  She said “Look Katelyn!  There’s a caterpillar too!”  Unfortunately, the caterpillar was the snake’s tail.  Just as the snake crossed the bridge, he identified himself proudly by rattling his tail at them and then made his dramatic exit down the other side of the hill. 

The kids were all so excited to tell us about their adventure when they came running back to our picnic site.  After all the excitement was over, it was time to roast some hot dogs.

 

Emily enjoyed meeting more family members and was happy to give her great-aunt Jana a snuggle.  The girls ate super fast and were ready to head off for more adventures and the guys were happy visiting around the campfire.

The kids stuck around long enough to enjoy some s’mores and then it was time for a hike.

All they needed was a trail and they were off… the grown-ups managed to keep up with them and everyone made it safely and snake-free to the top.

The hike wore Emily right out and she slept almost the whole ride down.  Her cheeks made perfect pillows for her little siesta.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

At the bottom of the trail we found a cool bridge and playground that the kids loved.  So many of my favorite childhood memories involved spending time with my cousins.  So I LOVE seeing our kids have such a good time together too.

 

Next, we made our way down to the river and the girls skipped stones and threw rocks into the water. 

Soon the girls discovered a fly fisherman.  They were fascinated and loved sitting and watching him.

It was such a memorable day with everyone and we were so glad that Mr. Rattlesnake only made one appearance that day.  I hope he won’t bring his family along with him next year because we will definitely be back.