so backpacking was kind of awesome. i went with my good friend danya and three boys from our church group. we started at bald mountain trailhead and hiked down about 2 miles to notch lake. we had the most perfect little campsite at the base of a mountain, next to a tiny stream, 3o feet from the lake, and with a well built fire pit.

the second day we hiked around the mountain to ibantik lake and then decided to continue on and hike completely around the mountain. that's right. we hiked around an entire mountain. kind of crazy. the estimate is we hiked around 6 to 7 miles. very tiring. but the sight as we reached the top was stunning. oh and we saw bright white mountain goats.

the lake we camped at had cliffs along one edge. there was a perfect spot for diving into the lake and a perfect spot for the boys to act like boys. throwing rocks and trees off of the cliffs along with other activities.

danya and i also decided to swim. we didn't bring suits which made it a little awkward. jason asked where my camera was as we were about to get in...i conveniently left it in my backpack :)