Summer

In the hot desert months of Summer, traveling is limited. I remember living on the coast of California and being in love with Summer. The warm sun was welcomed on cool days and swimming was wonderful. Spending these months in better temperatures is ideal especially if it is by a lake! The mornings here in Nevada are 80 to 90 degrees at 4 am. Getting up and out to a trail super early is a must or the dog will be wrecked due to his fur coat. Severe heat warnings are in place and multiple water bottles are a necessity even driving around just in case the car were to break down. Being out in nature and finding a cool spot among the rocks is a must! Usually, our desert family likes to take off and explore over the hotter months and it helps that teachers get so much time off. We love traveling across the United States and visiting loved ones.

While traveling in the hot part of the year we tend to try and find water sources. We love kayaking or canoeing down rivers or around lakes. Wakeboarding is also great fun when we get the opportunity. Chris and I took a trip around Lake Superior once and that was one of the best times we have ever had. This will definitely be a new series of work coming soon. For now, enjoy some of these pictures. The Circle Tour was amazing through Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Canada. We drove by ourselves with our dog for about 10 days just camping in the wilderness. The whole experience was wonderful. Jumping and wading in Lake Superior, then Lake Huron, and Lake Michigan was worth it. Minnesota has the nicest people and Canada does as well. Michigan had beautiful waterfalls and every place had awesome breweries. The people were nice everywhere, just especially nice in Minnesota and Canada.

While in Canada our favorite spot was Pancake Bay. This was a quiet cove where we were able to camp right on the beach. We ended up staying for 2 nights because it was so beautiful and relaxing for the dog. I will definitely be writing a blog about this place because there is so much to share, but for now enjoy these photos of the best days with my pup. The water was so flat and clear that the pebbles in the sand were very defined. The sand itself was beautiful to photograph. If you ever get the opportunity to visit any of the Great Lakes, DO IT!!! There is something magical about each one. I just want to take a moment to say Thank You to the Canadians on this trip. They were truly wonderful and hospitable. The girl at the desk got us to take this amazing spot right on the beach, again, I will write more about it in a future blog. Stay tuned for Fall….one of my most favorite times of the year. Thank you for reading!

-Karen Hilliard