camping at Alice Lake

We reserved a campsite at Alice Lake, just north of Squamish, for Thursday through Saturday. So after leaving the museum, we had a picnic overlooking the bay and then drove north through downtown Vancouver and up the gorgeous Sea-to-Sky highway. Squamish is a sweet little town with good food options; the Alice Lake campground has big sites, huge trees, a playground, mini mountain bike course, and the lovely lake. There were kids biking everywhere and ours joined in, gleefully biking anytime they needed to get anywehre. We arrived mid-afternoon and the children jumped into the lake immediately, as soon as they could get swimsuits on.

A picture of my cold little bean lying on a rock to warm up. The water was not actually that cold, but there was a breeze blowing that made swimming and water play pretty chilly.

But then of course, there's Anne, out in the middle of the lake, swimming like a mama otter.

Sebastian decided to build a fort and recruited some more-or-less willing helpers. There were tons of good logs and branches for fort-building, and a good solid base of an upturned tree to provide a mossy backdrop. He was really proud of his structure and built a neat stone pathway up to it.

In the evening we walked and biked around Alice Lake, discovering that the other side had docks perfectly situated for cannon-ball jumping... we dissuaded the girls from going in with promises of next day swimming.

On Friday morning, the kids biked over to the playground and made some friends, who were quickly recruited into the fort-building chain gang.

And then we rented watercraft - a canoe, a kayak, and a stand-up paddleboard for me, fulfilling a curiosity I'd had for a few years about the sport. I was so excited to finally try it out after having heard friends rave about it and seen many people paddle by.

I started off on my knees and then cautiously stood up, wibble-wobbling a little and hoping not to fall in. (I didn't.) It was fun - in the end, I decided it was not terribly useful as a means of transportation, but it was good fun to paddle around on a still pond or lake. I liked that I stayed more dry than in a kayak and it was nice to see all around you.

I love seeing Sebastian confidently paddling around in a kayak - this was his first extended solo run. Last August - in the Olympics - was his first time in any sort of small boat and he loved it. I really wanted to get him out there again this summer to nurture that enthusiasm. He did great at keeping up and at steering, braking, and turning - he is not usually a water enthusiast, so I like that there's at least one watersport that he does get excited about doing.

After lunch, the kids wanted to jump in the lake from the dock, and so I headed out for a solitary hike up DeBeck's Hill - a short but steep hike that started from the campground. I wanted to get a peek at our surroundings, which was hard to manage from within the forest and in the bowl of the lake.

It was pretty at the top - I could see the river and the mountain peaks across the way. The hike was a steep one - straight up an old logging road.

Our next stop was the Sea-to-Sky gondola in Squamish. It's a beautiful ride up the side of a steep mountain, with views of the town, valley, and ocean at the top. It was amazing - fun to be traveling through the air, and breathtaking views from the summit. After some initial trepidation, all three kids ended up loving it.

At the top, there was a new lodge with a gift shop and cafe, various trails, and a suspension bridge. I honestly wasn't sure what Seb and Liesl would think of a swaying, swinging bridge, but they were unafraid and gleefully walked out onto it.

The view!!!!  Ahhhh!!! It was so amazing to see the sea below you and mountains beyond.

We rode down on the gondola, drove to Squamish, and enjoyed a delicious dinner at Howe Sound Brewery. Such a good vacation day!!