Start of Summer-ish

Warning: Yes, I'm going to talk about the weather again. 

Memorial Day weekend is typically the start of summer in  many parts of the US.  Not exactly the truth when you're this far north.  First, the kids don't get out of school for another couple of weeks, but that's to be expected when you don't start until after Labor Day.  Second, we're still wearing pants and coats.  Granted we're wearing light coats and don't need them in the afternoon, it still seems wrong that we're wearing coats in May. 

But it's Memorial Day, so we decided to get out and explore a bit. 

 

First up on our holiday weekend: the Northwest Trek.  The Trek is part of the Point Defiance Zoo, but is dedicated to preserving wildlife found in the PNW.  We had a wonderful day - the animals were out, the sun was out, and we had a nice walk through the rugged park.  And the visit isn't complete unless you take the tram through the free-range area. 

Sunday brought us some more nice weather.  After church, we decided to blow the dust off our bikes and head for the Chehalis-Western Trail.  The trail is actually an old lumber rail line that leads through Lacey and on to the Sound.  The entire trail is 22 miles and links up with some other rail lines.  A few years ago, Thurston County acquired the remainder of the line from about the middle of town to the Sound -- this is what we rode.  Again, it was a lovely day: not too hot or cold and just peaceful.  The girls did really well on the 7-ish mile ride -- they only stopped because one of my pegs broke (odd, but whatever...). 

Of course, when we got back we tended to the garden...  Hoping something starts popping up soon!!!  With the weather we've been having, it won't be long now.