Lake Tahoe

Ya know how I'm always lamenting that my family is not part of my adventures with Cody? Well, this time, they were!- at least my mom and my cousin, Shandell.  Cody and I were planning a trip to Lake Tahoe for some outdoor time and climbing. Last minute, I asked if anyone wanted to go and my mom and Shandell expressed interest. So early the next morning we all set out for Lake Tahoe. My mom came well prepared with food and snacks, even a whole watermelon!  She also brought her puppy with us.  I guess love of animals runs in the family.


And while Cody and I climbed, they explored the area and/or slept. But it's a really different dynamic when you're hiking with a big group as opposed to with just one other person. For one, you just have to pick the perfect spot to picnic in order to cut the watermelon, otherwise, you'll have to lug the whole thing everywhere you go.  Second, you must absolutely get lost and wander aimlessly, only to realize hours later that you were just a few feet off the trail.

But in all seriousness, it was sooo much fun!  Despite being lost and not being able to find The Brain, which was a particular rock that Cody really wanted to climb, we all had a good time.  After the morning climb, we were walking back to the car and passed a lake that was begging us to swim in it.  Well, i got right down to my undergarments, in front of my mom and cousin, and went in.  All I have to say, is that the lake was a cold-hearted liar! It was not as warm as the shallow water said it was :/  But hey, you only live  once, right? I think my mom took that as final confirmation of having a wild child for a daughter- more so because she said there were construction workers nearby and "how dare[I]? People [would] see me". Baloney! I didn't see anyone except for us four (five if you count the dog).  Of course, I have gotten in colder waters, so we shall forgive the little lake. Or was it a pond?  Geez, my memory of this is a bit sketchy; it was, after all, 2 months ago.

The second climbing part of the day was suppose to be near Lake Tahoe's shore, but it wasn't.  This is the part where we got lost and I hiked for hours and hours with a whole watermelon in my bag.  At one point, Cody and I separated to go look for The Brain, but it only resulted in us chasing each other in circles. Note to anyone lost- never separate from the group. We've all seen it in scary movies, so I don't know why I did it.  Nothing scary happened to us though, we just got kinda frustrated at each other.  I think Cody was a little bit more frustrated with me than I was :/

But all was well in the end. We stopped for lunch and a quick rest. (No, we still did not cut the watermelon!) Even Canela enjoyed romping about. Afterwards, Mom and Shandell took a nap on a slab that we all nicknamed The Sacrificial Rock, while Cody and I continued looking for The Brain. We finally found it, but I didn't climb as much. Cody did pretty well though, but outside bouldering is always tougher than gym bouldering. When we were done, we returned to The Sacrificial Rock to get my mom and cousin and then back to the car we went! 

This time, we were on our way to Lake Tahoe, but we saw a man coming out of an ice cream shop with a HUGE ice cream cone; we obviously, had to stop for our own cone. There was also a cute wooden bear, so it was only fitting that Codybear and I would take a picture with our fellow brother.



Near sunset, we finally reached the shores of Lake Tahoe. The air was cold and the water was even colder, but I had never been in Lake Tahoe, so you'd be crazy if I was going to pass up the opportunity to go in :D  And Cody, following my lead, went in too!  Ok, so we're not all crazy up in those bear heads of ours- we only went in up to our knees.  Afterwards, we all had dinner and YES! We finally cut that darn watermelon!  All in all, it was an awesome day and I was happy to share it both with Cody and my family.  And I know Cody liked it too because he really likes taking people to new places and even Shandell fell in love with the area; she would like to live there someday.  I, on the other hand, want to live everywhere with Cody.