Today the fam and I took a day-long road trip, with more time on dirt roads than pavement.

We visited two lakes, one of which has water that looks tropical blue, so let me take you along for the ride in this post!

Yes, every day is #haturday in my world. Thanks for the fabulous tag, @saffisara!

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The bumpiest road to the most beautiful spot.

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We packed the 4Runner with beach-gear and headed out this morning for a two-lake, one-day road trip. The first stop was almost two hours from home, so the kids took naps in the back on the way. They woke up when we turned off the main road onto dirt.

Bump. Bump bump. Bumpbumpbumpbumpbump.

And so it went.

I kinda like off-roading, the way my body sways side to side. The way it’s easier to go over the bumps if I put my hands in the air and go, “whoop!”

At one point, we passed this waterfall, and I had to jump out and get a picture.

Such clear water!

Onward we went through rutted backroads. Slowly.

But finally we got to the lake (which I’ll keep secret because it’s pristine and gorgeous, and yes, this is in BC, Canada, not some tropical island.)

I think there’s limestone under the water. It’s crystal clear, and we’re going to come back with boats one day.

It was COLD though! I stood on a rock much of the time to keep warm and hide from the mosquitoes.

After a while we packed up, and headed on the road to the next lake. This stretch was steep, going down the mountain to one of the bigger lakes in southern BC.

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Another phenomenal lake!

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Here’s a view of our second destination, from the road coming down. Breathtaking, being that far up the mountain and looking down to the water below.

The water at this lake isn’t tropical green, but I love the deep blue of big lakes. The mountains here are amazing as well.

Our expedition was a special trip for Father’s Day, and it’s nice that the boys’ dad could be here this time. (I think he’s had to work the last two years.) Here are the boys hanging out with their daddy, who is teaching them how to skip stones.

The day got even better, because I brought my guitar!

This is the first time I’ve brought an instrument along in I don’t even know how many years. It was so nice to sit on the beach and strum, singing along to the lap of tiny waves.

I gathered some rocks and made a little circle of them. This is a great beach for rocks! So many beautiful stones.

And then, and then! I was going through my backpack, and I discovered I still hadn’t unpacked my pouch of crystals from my Tennessee trip, so I realized I had my citrine with me!

And of course it made me think of all of you, my Steem family. You were there with me today, in thought.

For those of you who don’t know why this crystal is special, I carried it around for most of the meetup in Tennessee, which was a month ago this weekend. I had a blast there, met wonderful people and laughed a ton. But the crystal represented all the friends who weren’t able to be there in person, and now the connection is amplified again. 💖

Much love to you all!

Thanks for reading!

Peace. @katrina-ariel

All photos mine unless otherwise credited.

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Author bio: Katrina Ariel is an old-soul rebel, musician, tree-hugging yogini, and mama bear to twins. Author of Yoga for Dragon Riders (non-fiction) and Wild Horse Heart (romance), she's another free-spirit swimming in the ocean of Steemit.

dragon art: Liiga Smilshkalne

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