Yesterday I put up a photo of my son, Nathan, and me at the beginning of our first backpacking trip together. I believe that picture was taken in the summer of 2000. Here’s another look at that photo.
We were at the trailhead for the Sherman Lakes trail out of Mammoth Lakes in California. It was a steep hike, quite dusty. Poor Nathan had a bad cough. Not only that, he was also struggling with childhood asthma, though we didn’t know it at the time. Nevertheless, we had a fantastic trip, a marvelous father-son outing. I still have many precious memories of that time with Nathan.

Earlier this week Nathan and I took another hike, along with some friends. This time we were in Montana, hiking to Pioneer Falls. We hiked south along Spanish Creek, then took a right fork on a trail that paralleled Falls Creek. The meadows along the way were stunning. If you’re ever in the Bozeman area, I highly recommend this hike. It’s about six miles long and not too steep. The drive to the trailhead is worth the trip. You pass through a gorgeous section of Ted Turner’s Flying D Ranch, where you see lots of bison enjoying their lunch. At any rate, here’s a photo of Nathan and me on our recent hike.
As I said, “How things change . . . .”