Cooling Off

We were getting tired of the heat, so we thought a trip up to the mountains would be a nice change. After a bit of house cleaning and a leisurely breakfast, we packed some lunch, and headed for the hills.We road up to Julian Price Park, off the Parkway. There was a fair amount of people up there, but there was still plenty of room left, and we found a nice table back in the woods near the creek. Young Daughter played around a bit in the creek with some other kids, and then, we had a bite to eat.
This picnicking was all well and good, but, what we really wanted was a swim in that cool water. At this time of year, and with the heat-wave and all, our river is actually warm, almost hot. And not very deep. There is a trail from this picnic area that follows the creek. This trail is like a 5 mi loop. But it is not that far to a good swimming hole. I would like to mention that this place is the home of the Hebron Rock Colony.
This is more of a place to hang out than a "colony". A lot of the students from ASU in Boone come here and perch on the rocks doing what young folks do. Our goal was actually just upstream from there, where there is a nice swimming hole. We had to hike a little more than a mile. These are some pictures along the trail.
Here is a Beaver Dam. Young Daughter claimed she saw the beaver, but I never did.
But There was evidence of beaver type activities in the area.
Apparantly, their teeth are in better shape than mine. As we approached the swim spot, it began to cloud up and we could hear thunder. There were people heading back up the trail. We hadn't come all that way just to turn around, and so, we had a refreshing swim any way. Even the pooch went in (with a little assistance). The rain pretty much passed over. Finally it was time to head back to the car, and home. We took an alternate route home, and saw a deer along the Parkway.
When we got off the mountain, it was hot again, but we were glad for the cool respite.