What is it this time?” When we arrive at a new campsite, we never know what surprises await us. After over three-and-a-half years of traveling, we still have not encountered all the surprises one might consider. A few weeks ago, the surprise was a major invasion of caddisflies. They were everywhere. Apparently they had just emerged from the nearby Snake River in their adult form, and now they were coating the outside walls of our trailer and doing everything they could to get

Have you ever taken the time to notice the treasures under your feet? Whether you’re walking on the beach, along a trail, or in a gravel parking lot, there are interesting and sometimes spectacular rocks you can find—if you’re looking for them. The sun smiled down on the glassy surface of a lake high in the mountains. Jagged spires ringed the sapphire pool, reflecting their massive outlines into its dark depths. At odd intervals, a chunk of rock came loose on one of the pinna

Chapter 4: The secret to courage; the story of Fenton Frog Fenton Frog is a mailman – or a mail-frog I should say. His job every day is to sort out all the letters and packages and things that come to the Cranberry Village and deliver them to the right houses. Fenton loves his job. He enjoys pedaling his bike down all the shady dirt paths of the village with his mail bag slung over his shoulder. He enjoys the singing of the birds and the breeze on his face. Fenton lives on a

Want to Read? Snow. Many people, even those living in warmer areas, have seen it at least once in their lifetime. While few of us enjoy...

In I Corinthians 15:4, Paul lists the Resurrection as a necessary aspect of the Gospel. So far, we have studied Jesus’ death and all it...

Dense forest thins. Views of jagged peaks become unobstructed. A glassy lake appears over a rise, reflecting each patch of snow that...

It is inevitable. The slog, that is. We can’t avoid it. It is part of every hike, every backpacking trip, every climb, and even every paddle. If we want to go on expeditions – if we want to experience all of the summits and sunsets – we must endure the slog. One of our most memorable slogs happened months ago, in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. We wanted to complete the Presidential Traverse, which is a challenging twenty-some-mile hike that climbs up and down thirteen

The hot spring in this area was part of Sawtooth National Recreation Area, outside of these beautiful Sawtooth mountains. As usual, we...

Chapter 3: The fisherman's secret; the story of Paul the mole There is a pond on the Cranberry Island. It is in a remote, quiet place...

In my last series , we took a long, glorious look at the sacrificial death of Christ and all it means for believers. Yet as you may...

By now we are certain that things will be uncertain. By now we know that something will happen to turn our special day into a harrowing scramble for survival. By now we just go ahead and call it the “date of uncertainty.” Because somehow, the combination of Joe and I going out together is a recipe for some kind of disaster. Every Mother’s Day and birthday since Joe learned to drive, his gift to me has been a day out for just the two of us. His intentions are simple: Buy a sna

This year, it seems like we have found ourselves in slippery situations more often than we’d like. The reason for this boils down to a...

High in the mountains, hidden in small pockets and nooks in the rocks and grass, there are puddles of water. At first glance, these...

“Wait! Sorry guys – here’s another one!” “Okay, I’m coming – oh! Another! And another!” The boys stood patiently as our short afternoon hike was again interrupted. By Kelly and me. We just couldn’t help it. It started with a small patch of mountain bluebells. We were all trekking along at a brisk pace, the way we like to hike, when I stopped dead in my tracks. The flowers, some of them so blue they seemed to glow, were too stunning to pass by. But when I got out my camera to

It was our third backpacking trip in the Wind River Mountains. When we started out from the trailhead, with breakfast in our stomachs and...

Chapter 2: The most important thing; the story of Whisk the squirrel In the little village of Cranberry by the sparkling Cranberry bog,...

There is little need for talking about it; there is just doing it. One of the things we learned in our backpacking adventures is the need...

In the dark of night, in the cold of a deep pool in a rushing stream, a mayfly is hatching. This mayfly does not look like a typical fly....

“Just make sure you are having fun . . . you are having fun, right?” - man to us when we were NOT having fun   Mount Sneffels. Sounds like a wimpy, pathetic mountain with a runny nose. But with its spiny, jagged ridges, steep couloirs, and an altitude of 14,155 feet, this mountain is no wimp. In fact, it is more of a bully. We should know. We have been on it three times. The first time, two years ago, we knew nothing. We set out with our brand new snowshoes and slogged our wa

It was some of the roughest terrain we have ever encountered. Nothing could have prepared us for it. As we hoisted our heavy backpacks...

Part 3: The Sacrifice of Christ Introduction The more you mature as a Christian, the more interested and awed you should be at what Jesus...

Chapter 1: The Cranberry Island; the story of how things began The Cranberry Island, as it is called, is not really an island. There is...

“A moose that walks slowly toward you may be attacking.” - sign              We were getting impatient. It seemed like we had been stalking this moose for hours. All so we could get a good picture without getting attacked. Because that is what moose do. A moose may decide he wants to attack, and there is nothing you can do about it. There are no tricks to deter him. If he is in a bad mood and you are in the way, then you may be the victim of his fury. I understand that. And I

It’s easy to say that we are relying on God to supply our needs and give us success in our endeavors. But how often do we show actual...