Lost My Marbles, Found My Peace

Each summer, usually in celebration of my birthday, mom and I go on a girls trip. Just the two of us. We look forward to and plan these trips months in advance, and share a boundless sense of adventure, ensuring there is never a dull moment. The criteria for our trips has evolved, but usually include a new country or city, beautiful beaches, and lots of nearby activities to adventure to. Oh, and margaritas. Lots of those, please. And preferably a cute cabana boy, although, somehow we usually end up with a surly ol’ gal… I love sharing these memories with my mom, and return feeling recharged, refreshed, and energized (plus sunburned, hungover, and with deeper laugh lines).

Following our trip last year, I told mom I wanted to try a different kind of trip this year. Something rooted in nature, more authentic, and soul-enriching. Okay, maybe not in those words exactly, but along those lines. I wanted a trip that would relax my emotional, mental, and social self. Something that I didn’t feel pressure to make Instagram-worthy (why is this even a thing?) or that I needed to dress up for. Something that would allow me to fully check out and relearn how to live in the moment.

It is a good thing this is the direction I wanted to take our trip, as look at the state of the country, world, and travel options this year… Is it cliche to say, “everything happens for a reason”? Or what about, “everything works out the way it should”? Anyway, we snuck off to Vichy Springs for a girls weekend on my actual birthday, then headed to the Marble Mountains for five days in the middle of July. Vichy was beautiful and relaxing, but it was our trip to the Marble Mountains that had me really excited.

While I was giddy with anticipation, and a touch of nervousness (a couple of my mom’s gal pals were also going, and those broads party much harder than I do), I knew I was in capable, albeit a little tipsy, hands. My mom is a seasoned vet when it comes to these wilderness trips, and the general debauchery that goes along with them. For as long as I can remember, she would take off for a week or two into the mountains each summer. She would take her horse, camp in her trailer, and go for long, beautiful rides. I was always a bit envious of the places she saw and fun she had. I always wanted to go, but unfortunately the timing never worked. Except this year. My time had come. Alas, the world is in an uproar, I am mentally fried, and nature is still open for business.

The five days we spent in the Marble Mountains were like no other. We laughed, we rode, we swam and fished, we relaxed, had no cell service, and lived in the moment. The pictures and descriptions don’t do justice to the raw beauty of the mountains, but nonetheless, keep reading for a breakdown of our trip and some snapshots I took!

Schedule of Events:

Day 1, Thursday: This was our travel day! And boy what a day it was. I was busy that morning finishing up errands and getting everything loaded in the car (naturally I was in charge of the groceries). Around lunchtime I met up with mom, Shelly, and Stasha in Weaverville. They had the trailers and horses, so we made quick getting out of Weaver Town. From there it turned out to be much farther than any of us thought. Most of us had been led to believe we were going to the Trinity Alps. Wrong. As we were driving through Etna, we discovered it was the Marble Mountains we were in fact going to… This is about the time we all started second-guessed Patty’s instructions. She does not have the greatest track record…

Finally we hit a dirt road. And lost mother. Well, not lost, but she kept going and we didn’t see her until we made it to the campground. It is a good thing we have some faith because the map lied, there was nothing “improved” about this dirt road, and those cliffs were a little too close for comfort. But, once I saw a Refreshe can nailed to a post, I knew it was a sign from Patty that we were headed the right way.

I can’t make this up. Cryptic and sporadic text directions and Refreshe-can signs.

Around the bend from our can-sign, we we laid eyes on our dirt haven, er… home the next few days.

Day 2, Friday: We decided that we didn’t want to stress about a timeline too much, so we took our time and relaxed in the morning. We had a tasty breakfast, then Charlotte and I made our way across the creek to do some morning yoga.

Gulp.

I cringed a bit as I wrote that.

WHAT KIND OF YUPPIE HIPPY HAVE I BECOME?! YOGA ON A HORSE CAMPING TRIP IN THE MOUNTAINS??

It is quite comical the changes I have made in my journey to peace and happiness. I am just a lil old hillbilly, looking for some G.D. namaste. And quite frankly, my little yoga sesh could not have been more peaceful – the river drowned out all other noises, the sun was out, and the fresh air filled my lungs.

After doing some stretching, focusing, and balancing, it was time to get ready to ride! We started organizing our tack, packs, and lunches for the day. But before we could get too far, we volunteered/got roped into helping load a blind calf.

Yes, you read that right.

I know they say “your vibe attracts your tribe”, but I kind of hope not. Because my life is sequence of random clustery.

Anyway, the rancher who runs cows on the Forest Service ground in the Marbles ended up with a blind calf. Or rather, discovered the blind calf when it was 4-500 pounds. So when we arrived at the campground and took over the place, including the corrals where our little friend was penned, we sort of obligated ourselves to help. One cowboy, five women, a good dog, a stretched rope, and 30 minutes later, we finally got the booger loaded. There were only a few (a lot) of cringe-worthy moments.

We sent them on their way with a smile and some head shaking (I am sure he was wondering what rock these crazy broads crawled out from under), and proceeded to load up for the day. As with the start of any weekend when horses are involved, everyone had to get their wiggles and prances worked out, and get the pecking order established.

Our plan was to head to Campbell Lake the first day. We decided to do the loop and cut left at the fork, which, holy wow. That was some steep, rocky ground. My mare is an arena pony, so this might have been a little on the strong side for Day 1 Learning Curves. But, we made it, and Baby learned how to climb through rock and up stairs, and, I learned how to clench every muscle in my body. If nothing else came from the weekend I should have a JLo rock-hard a$$.

The lake was gorgeous, and shocking to find in the middle of the mountains. It was full of people (and loud kids), who had backpacked in and were camping. We found an open spot to tie the horses, eat lunch, swim, and while the rest of the gals went fishing and exploring, I soaked up some sun and read. Minus the (very) loud children (no, I don’t have children and I drove/rode 10 hours into the wilderness for some peace and quiet so I am going to bitch a little, okay?) it was beautiful and relaxing.

The trail home was not as nerve-wracking as the jaunt in (thank goodness), and once back to camp we wound down for the night.

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Day 3, Saturday: We decided would get a little more pep in our step this day (riding in the heat of the day is no fun for anyone). We got up, had a nice breakfast, and loaded up our horses. Patty wasn’t able to make this ride, so the mother-daughter duos hit the trail. We decided that we liked the easier climb better than going straight up the mountain (the trail we took to Campbell Lake), so we stuck to that path. We skirted Campbell Lake and kept on going to Cliff Lake. Which, the last little stretch of trail to this lake made it clear where it got its name from.

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This lake was much quieter, and even more beautiful, than Campbell. We timed it perfectly, and took over a nice spot as a family was leaving. Before lunch we unsaddled the ponies and took them out into the lake to swim and play. There is truly nothing more magnificent that seeing an animal that large splashing and playing in the water. My Baby mare loves water, and if I would let her, she probably wouldn’t get out. After letting the horses swim, getting them settled in and tied up, we had lunch, swam, and for most of the afternoon fished. Shelly and I both caught fish (ironic since we are also the two that know the least about fishing and have to have Stasha untangle our line at least a few times each day). The four of us laughed until we peed, soaked in the sun, relaxed, and enjoyed a perfect day together.

Day 4, Sunday: A sad day for mom and I – everyone was packing up and leaving us. Mom and I had planned to stay at least one more day, so we stuck around camp to send everyone off. With great intentions of going for another ride, we ended up lounging around camp and having a lazy day. Which ended up being truly glorious. I made some serious progress on my book (In the Flo – a must for all women and mothers), napped a lot, snacked a lot, and swung in the hammock. It was nice to have a low key day to do nothing, but enjoy time with mom and our pups.

That evening we decided we should probably do something, so we hopped on our horses and took our fishing poles to a few spots on the creek. Didn’t see much and didn’t get a bite, but got to move around a little and feel like we accomplished something.

Day 5, Monday: Okay, this was the saddest day. We slept in (no surprise here), and took our time packing things up. We left camp at 10, both of us sad and not wanting to leave. Not only because it was beautiful, but neither of us wanted to be back in the real world with other people or cell service. Unfortunately, life called and we had to answer.

Although far too short, these five days were a dream.

It doesn’t sound like we did a whole lot, and you’re probably right. We threw the schedule to the wayside, and let the days take us.

It also may not sound like an all-that-exciting weekend to you. Maybe there weren’t lavish surprises at every corner. But sometimes that is exactly what you need. Some days you need life to give more energy than it takes. To check out of the negativity, spend time with people who love you and make you laugh, and feed your soul. I laugh because we probably gave these mountains some of our marbles, but in turn I left with a hell of a lot more peace.

I love any opportunity to spend quality time with my mom and family friends. They teach me so much about life, how to flourish, and act as my own kind of therapy. With them I am able to ride my horse, forget my obligations on the other end of the phone, and relearn what it means to enjoy what is right in front of me. Re-calibrating does wonders for the heart and soul.

While escaping to the mountains isn’t for everyone, I think there are some lessons to be had. No matter where we are, we can all take a day or two to unplug, to check out of the world, to remove ourselves from the demands of everyday life. Remind yourself how to live in the moment and focus on those in your presence. Get out, move your body, see what beauty is around you. It is a weird time and world we are living in, we have to nourish our mental and emotional selves.

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Tips and Notes:

Now, a quick not on some logistics! The trip was awesome, and I loved sharing how we spent our days, but I also wanted to add a few notes on what made the trip easier, and would recommend for all like trips in the future:

• Pack light – easier said than done (I am a chronic over-packer.), but this is a must on the most rudimentary level. There is limited space when camping (of any sort, even when you have a full blown horse trailer and living quarters), and let’s be honest, no one is going to notice if you wear the same pair of shorts to the creek twice (although the resident frog will probably take notice). You aren’t Beyonce, boo.
• Pack a hamper – yes, a hamper. As you dirty laundry put it in the hamper, so you don’t mix clothes, and when you get home you can get a jump on laundry. I do a version of this for all trips I take (when I’m flying I usually put them in a separate bag within my suitcase), and it makes unpacking and getting organized after a trip, a breeze.
• Plan your menu and snacks – so, so helpful. Sounds intuitive, but I’m saying, get down to the nitty gritty. We split up dinners and breakfasts (lunches were on your own, as we would pack our own lunches and eat at whatever lake we rode to), and laid the menu out very clearly. It helped to eliminate confusion, make the cooking schedule fair, ensure you don’t pack too much food (space, again), but confirm you have all the ingredients you need. There is nothing worse than being hours from anywhere and needing a god dang spice or condiment.
• Bring a good book – no phones, no distractions, a perfect opportunity to get your read on!
• Don’t forget to take pictures – I am usually the first one snapping shots, but I must have been lost in the moment the first day, and skipped taking many photos on the trail. I regret this, mostly because I would love to share some of the cheek-clenching cliffs we rode up.
• Condition yourself to ice-cold, creek baths. Get yourself acclimated to piercing, err, invigorating and refreshing, mountain-chilled water, as this will be your bathtub for the next few days. We never laughed so hard as our first dunk in the creek. You did come out feeling fresh, but boy was it an adjustment.
• Buy a local plants book – this is in here as sort of a reminder for me, I need one! One of my very favorite things to do while hiking and adventuring in the woods, is to find wildflowers (cue gallery above), and I love being able to identify what each flower is. Fortunately Shelly, mom, and Patty are pretty knowledgeable, but it would be nice to fill in the blanks on ones that stump them, too! Plus we have horses, so identifying poisonous plants is a good tool to have.
• Slow down and enjoy the moment – this is a hard one for me. But, being as there was no cell service and no one around but the the four gals I was with, I didn’t have many options. Thank goodness. It felt wonderful to unplug and check out of the media and negativity.

Well that’s all the advice and insight I have. A little sad, huh? (Maybe I left too many marbles up on that mountain – Ha!) I hope you enjoyed this blog and our little slice of adventure. I hope it inspired you to take a short exit from the normal hustle and bustle of life to enjoy your family and all the beauty around you. Please tag me in your posts, and share with me all of the summer adventures you find yourself on!

John Muir’s words always ring true – “the mountains are calling, and I must go”. Especially when they wrap you in a tight hug. I guess that’s why mom and I already have another horsey-wilderness adventure booked… stay tuned…