Acadia National Park, ME

July 1-3

Went camping with friends from Tzu Chi. It's been a while since I last participated in this asian family style camping (ie. food preparation and eating all day, punctuated by chaning of eating locations). Cheng asked if I pitched the tent like a pro. Of course. I've grown so accustomed to the no-nonsense 4K style of camping that this past weekend I found myself impatient most of the time and had to mentally remind myself to relax (esp. when they were packing vans). Well well well, I think the more you go out, the less stuff you bring... but of course efficiency is virtually impossible when you go camping with toddlers.

This was my second time at Acadia. I went there last year with Dad, Cathy and Sean as part of our New England roadtrip. This inevitably led to more comparing in my head, which is never helpful when you're trying to have fun. I did realize how much I miss hanging out with family and being able to say whatever silly things that come to mind out loud all the time. There are only a handful of friends with whom I feel comfortable enough to do that.

The highlight of the trip was our short hike up Beehive on Monday morning. I'm glad that the weather finally stopped being icky... otherwise it whould have made the trail very slippery and climbing wouldn't have been possible. The ascend was a lot of fun - it definitely required being on all fours - and the scenery was spectacular. Something about being high up gives me a rush.... maybe it has something to do with being able to see far, far away and knowing that I've worked myself up there.

I miss those family hiking trips that we used to do in Taiwan. I wonder if it was back then that the restless outdoorsy seed was planted in me?