Swallow Falls

While visiting in Pa. Jennifer Narlee and I decided that a camping trip together was a must do! So after a month of planning we finally met up at Swallow Falls State Park in Western Maryland. It was exactly the same distance between us both so it worked out great!

We had such fun hiking the falls trails! This place has some of the oldest trees in Maryland and with the moss, tree roots, caves and natural beauty; it truly resembles something out of The Hobbit. Perfect for the kids to climb and imagine!
Here Aliza, Kaleb and Zakeshia tried to catch a few minos that were left in the pool after the water receded. They spent alot of time examining the mushrooms and small trickles of water that were here and there. It's really bliss for the senses!
Here Zakeshia and Aliza check out some big fat snails! Kids, woods, and flashlights...there may not be a better combination in the whole world!
Izaak had a fun time listening to the sounds of the rushing water and was in awe of all the nooks and crannys of the wood. Kaleb and Aliza went straight into mountain goat mode and climbed everything they could find, with Zakeshia only a step behind them, a little more safety cautious!

All the kids helped at camp too! They washed dishes, helped to tend the fires and at this point Izaak is fully self sufficient in the way of the tent! I'm a very proud camp-momma! Matilda was raccoon patrol this trip, as we were visited in the night both nights there. She gave just enough "woof" to scare away the masked bandits without waking the whole camp! Good girl Tildy! Zakeshia was very pleased with her first Scavenger Hunt and was happy to have the responsibility of reading the goods to be collected! They came back with everything but a feather, seems the birds there keep there feathers to themselves! In the evenings the girls ad a really good time playing in the tent and Zakeshia helped Ali with some of her workbooks to prepare her for Kindergarten. I think these two have quite the bond!

As always Kaleb had a few encounters of the insect kind! He had something Jen called a Cadidid land right on his face while we were watching the fire! Instead of shrieking and running like the rest of us would have done, he calmly took it off his face and placed it in the dirt for inspection! So brave!

Jen and I had plenty of laughs around the campfire and at the beach! It was really a great place to camp, it is rated #1 in Maryland, and now we can see why! The woods are pristine and the area extremely well kept, even the bathrooms were virtually spider free (Aliza is very appreciative of this!). We are now looking into another trip, maybe this time just for the adults!

Get out and find some nature to explore!