Kickin' it in SA: Enchanted Rock

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Since we're getting ready to move, we spent last weekend checking things off of our bucket list.  One of those items we wanted to check off was hiking Enchanted Rock.  Enchanted Rock is a giant batholith  (which is essentially the top part of a giant rock, the rest of which is buried in the earth) that is located north of Fredericksburg, about an hour and a half from San Antonio.  We'd heard great things about Enchanted Rock since we moved here, but between Peter's residency and being pregnant, having a newborn, etc., we hadn't had a chance to get out there to hike it until this last weekend.  But I'm definitely glad we made the time to do so before we left!  It's a fairly short hike; the Summit Trail, which goes straight up the to the top is .6 miles.  This is the easiest of the trails and very doable for kids.  However, don't be fooled!  It's still quite steep and will get your heart pumping!  Will, my 4 year old, though, is apparently in stellar condition and he pretty much ran straight up to the top.  He kept telling me I was walking too slow :)  Clara (2 years old) probably would've been able to make it, but we put her in a hiking backpack which I'm sure saved us about an hour of time that we would've spent waiting for her and chasing her from taking off down the side of the rock.  Plus, it can get a little slippery walking back down the steep slopes, so she was much better off being carried.  And then, little Benny was of course happily strapped in the Baby Bjorn.

The top of the rock is incredible.  The views are beautiful, there are unique plants growing out of the rock, and there's plenty of room for kids to run around and explore.  There were also a bunch of small craters in the surface of the rock that were full of water.  Clara and Will had a heyday jumping over these puddles everywhere.  There are also some caves on the backside that are supposedly really cool, but we didn't have time to go down and explore them.  All in all, if you're in the area, make sure you take a day to drive up and hike Enchanted Rock!

Kickin' it in SA: Hiking and Geocaching in Government Canyon

Today we went hiking in Government Canyon, and the entire time we were there, I just kept wondering why it has taken us so long to explore such a beautiful place that is literally only minutes from our home!  Since we had our kids in tow, we decided to hike the Savannah Loop, which is a really easy 2.5 mile loop.  We had Clara in our hiking backpack, but not because it was too difficult, just because we knew she wouldn't last if she had to walk 2.5 miles on her own!  And, we pushed Bennett in our BOB jogging stroller and it worked great!  I definitely recommend this hike to anyone with young kids or if you're just looking for a nice, flat trail to go walking/trail running.  It's really pretty, and a lot of it is shaded by all of the trees which was really nice.  But, if you're in the mood for a tougher hike, Government Canyon has plenty to choose from.  They also have campsites, of which we are hoping to take advantage before we move in a couple of months!

While I was initially looking online at the Government Canyon website, I clicked on the Activities link at the top of the page and I noticed a link to Geocaching.  This term was knew to me, so I clicked on it find out what it was all about.  And I'm glad I did!  Many of you probably already know what geocaching is, but for those of you who are like me and had no idea, it's where people leave small items in nature for others to find.  Usually, once you find the box with the hidden treasures inside, you sign your name, take a little treasure, leave something in return, and then put the box back where you found it.  There are apps and maps to use to find geocaches all over the world.  We downloaded the app Geocaching Intro onto our iPhones, which was super easy to use and it led us to two different geocaches near our trail!

Here's a picture of where William found the hidden geocache.  Inside we found a little notebook and pen (where we signed our names) and some stickers and other little toys.  

Will and Clara decided that they wanted to keep the small, plastic watering can toy, so we took that and left a little blue, plastic, ninja figurine.  We hope that whoever visits that geocache next likes what we left!  After we made the switch, Will went and put the can back where we had found it.  It was all very exciting for William; I think that he's going to be wanting to go geocaching a lot more in the future :)

It ended up being a really fun morning, complete with a little exercise, quality family time, geocaching success, and even some tree-climbing!