A Million Miles from Nowhere

Danny and I shared a fabulous weekend together, and I feel it supercedes the sad blog I have been procrastinating on posting about losing my Little Bo, my six-year old cat, on St. Patrick's Day. The wound is still too fresh to write about without stirring emotion.

While the weather is still chilly and blustery on days, we are finally thawing out and transitioning into warmer weather. We decided to go camping on Saturday to our favorite spot on Elk River, the "Splashdowns". Saturday marked the one-year anniversary of when our dear friend Worth passed away. We can't believe we've lived one year without him by our side. The Splashdowns was one of his favorite spots as well, so we felt it was the right place to celebrate his life and rejuvenate our own. The weather on Saturday was picture perfect, a blinding Carolina blue sky during the day with an almost full, very bright moon during the night. The horses were very well-behaved and a pleasure to ride. The campsite was vacant and we had this little piece of heaven all to ourselves.

After a restful night under our canopy of stars, we awoke to a clear morning, full of fresh air and the smell of spring...which is almost intoxicating. Each time I smell the fragrance that comes with this time of year, I am taken back to the times when I would come to visit and try to breathe in as much of this mountain air that my lungs could hold. After getting the fire going again, Danny and I walked out onto the big rock that overlooks the waterfall and the river full of huge boulders and prime fishing waters. The dogs, who actually slept all around us in our tarp keeping watchful eyes and providing more warmth, had a blast following their noses and tracing hints of wildlife. While sitting on the rock and listening to our bloodhound on the trail, I was mesmerized at the solitude with which Danny and I were blessed.

We can travel just a couple miles from our home and end up a million miles from nowhere, and everyone! While many people know about this haven beyond the Elk River Falls, I felt like we were in our own secret, special world, away from reality, away from problems. It was just us...and the dogs and horses, of course...but what a wonderful addition to our sweet time together. To sit out in this realm of nature with the love of my life by my side is almost indescribable, but worth the effort of trying to put it into words. I am so thankful for the opportunity to have such an experience and the chance to create so many awesome memories. Sometimes when I see elderly people, I wonder what stories they have to tell, and if they had times like this in their youth. If that little old lady behind her walker used to love to ride her horse and sit by a campfire. If that little old man shuffling with his steps used to wade in the river catching "the big one". I hope Danny and I can live to tell of all the wonderful memories we share!

On a final note of this amazing weekend, our ride home was another piece of the trip to share. We decided to take the long way home to ensure the horses don't automatically think they get to go straight home. Since we did so, we gave time for rain to set in on us on the ride. Danny kept apologizing for us getting wet, although with our dusters on we didn't feel much rain. I felt it was the perfect ending to the perfect trip. I LOVED watching my cowboy ahead of me on his beautiful horse walking in the rain. It was so peaceful, and another image I tried to memorize and store into my photographic memory. Thank you Lord for such a wonderful time!