Lair O' the Bear

This last Saturday, we decided to go on a hike. We couldn't have asked for better weather as it was in the low to mid 70's with a light breeze. We chose a trail called Lair O' the Bear Trail. It is a popular mountain biking/hiking trail. Which was the only downside: watching out for bikers. Here's the kids at the start:

Jack is a hand holder. He will hold my hand everywhere we go and throws fits if I am carrying too much and can't at the moment. Sometimes, he prefers to hold Tessa's hand, and she lovingly obliges. (Don't you know we were holding our breath waiting for her to refuse.)
In fact, this whole day was one of those rare brother/sister days where they really played well together and Tessa watched out for Jack in a sweet protective-motherly way.

"Being pretty on the inside means you don't hit your brother and you eat all your peas--that's what my grandma taught me." Lord Chesterfield

Here is my 5-going-on-15 year old daughter giving me the "Mom, could you BE more lame right now?" face.

There are lots of fun big rocks to climb on as you walk along:

And there are frequent points where the path allows access to Bear Creek. Which, by the way, is a great place to get rock throwing out of your system (unless you are Jack and that "system" is a black hole).

At the beginning of the hike there are tons of shaded picnic tables and restrooms. We were able to score one right under a huge tree and right next to the water. It was also just a hop and a skip from the restrooms. We had a peaceful lunch and then drove home. If you are looking for somewhere simple and entertaining to hike with your kids, I highly recommend trying out Lair O' the Bear. And to make it really fun, Morrison is just down the road and you can have lunch there at Beso (my favorite place to eat in Morrison).