Even though I should have been studying for my Canadian History final, I took off to Waterton for a day with Cat and her kids Olive (4) & Kevin (1.5). It was overcast in the prairies so I brought several changes of clothes because you never know what to expect in Waterton and yesterday it was windy- surprise! surprise!
Cat promised Olive a big ice cream cone from Big Scoop if she made it up Bear’s Hump on her own and wouldn’t you know it she made it! Hiking Bears Hump with little guys is so much different than with adults. When I went with Jo last month we booked it up and I was huffing and puffing and sweating but with kids you stop at every rock to climb it and sit and rest and have a snack every 10 minutes or so. It was actually really relaxing. Then again, I wasn’t packing a 35 pound baby on my back like Cat was! Ha ha!
When we finally made it to the top it was so windy that we took a couple of photos and then headed back down.
We went to big scoop with plans to eat it by the lake and throw rocks but it was so cold Olive wanted to eat her ice cream in the car and I was grateful to sit in the warm car myself.
After the kids ate their ice cream we headed to Wieners of Waterton for sweet potatoe fries for a snack (oops- that was not on my meal plan). I said hi to Jon from Wieners and ran into Michael from Four Oceans Paddle Boards/Blakiston & Company. This is what I love most about Waterton- the small town feel and chatting with the folks who are as passionate about the area and outdoor adventure as I am. I talked about this when I did the Waterton Food Festival last month, but the business owners in Waterton aren’t just people out to make money, they’re super creative and passionate people who love the area. Blakiston & Co. has a lot of plans in the works and I can’t wait to get my paddle on this summer!
We headed to the park to eat our fries and watch the kids play and boy the wind was cold and howling. Cat and I were so inspired by Michael’s plans for his company we started chatting about what we could do, a passion project we could throw ourselves into. We have some ideas in the works and hopefully we can make them a reality.
For about five minutes the sun burst through the clouds and the water park must be solar powered because suddenly the water came on and that wild child Olive ran through it fully clothed and all. As soon as the clouds covered the sun Olive got cold and we headed back to the car.
Cat said going to Waterton for day trips like this is part of her attempt to have an unplugged summer for her kids which I think is such a great idea! And you can have a lot of fun in that town even if you aren’t climbing mountains.
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