Grafton Lakes State Park

I have never thought of myself as a great outdoors type of gal. But, over the last couple of years, I have really taken to it. I find myself craving nature. I don't think this will graduate to any type of extreme sport. I don't see myself as a future rock climber or anything hardcore. I don't even think I could handle camping for more than a couple of nights. I like showers and beds. Give me a pleasant nature walk, any day. 

Last Saturday, I was itching to get outside. I had been wanting to check out another state park, so we decided to head over to Grafton Lakes State Park. It's about a 30 minute drive from Albany, located on a forested mountain ridge between the Taconic and Hudson valleys. There are 5 ponds and 25 miles of trails to explore. It was a really cold day, particularly with the windchill. Fortunately, there was some elevation-which means evergreen trees, to block the wind. It actually started to snow a little while we were out. 

Gavin is getting a little better about keeping up with us. He gets sidetracked easily so we didn't put much of a dent into those 25 miles of trails! Honestly, it's just nice to see him enjoy being outside. He loves to pick up things along the way, rocks and pinecones. He'll find branches to pick up and throw into the water. I can't wait until Olivia is able to run along with him. For now, she rides along in the baby carrier, tucked into Daddy's coat. We all had a fun time and look forward to visiting again with our snowshoes!

Long Pond, Grafton Lakes State Park

Walking along, singing Christmas carols

Olivia is in there somewhere, snug as a bug

Negotiating how many rocks can be thrown into the pond, before we get going on our hike

By the end, Gavin needed to be carried out. I am pretty sure he's going to be bigger than me by the time he's 5!