Herrontown Woods

Herrontown Woods

Two days ago I was outside shoveling. I was happy about it, too. Although most people I know are crying out for Spring to begin, I actually love the winter and am always a little sad to see it end. I was secretly wishing for just one more snow and I got it. But today the temperature was in the high 50's. Waking up to see a bright and beautiful sky and to sense the warm air outside got me excited to go out to play. I love the winter but there is something about Spring that fills me with joy and hopefulness. I was very happy to have had that one last snow but feeling like Spring was truly beginning today made feel excited and full of energy.... and there was no way we were sitting inside all day. 

The husband and I drove our mob of little ones over to a park we have hiked before in Princeton, NJ called Herrontown Woods. Little Sister went into the carrier and I hoisted her up onto my back. Big Sister and Brother were quick to run over to the trailhead. It was obvious to the Husband and I pretty quickly that the olders needed to switch from sneakers to rain boots. The trail was very muddy from all of the melting snow. The kids loved it though. Splashing and sloshing through the mud was very fun to them.

Brother was charged with holding the map and leading the way. It is a job he treasures and does it with a lot of pride. He points our every trail blaze he sees. We followed the red trail and the little man was able to do a great job of keeping us on point. The trails at Herronton Woods are all really well marked. They are well enough marked that I would call this a good beginner trail to venture out on. 

The kids love having fallen trees and other obstacles to climb over along the trail. Between that and the couple of times we need to cross a running stream, the hike really holds their attention and is a lot of fun. 

Here Brother and the Husband are calculating the next move to make it across the stream. Big Sister is watching and waiting for her turn. 

Apparently Brother is quite at home in the woods. Here he is stopping (and relaxing) so he can check his map. 

Big Sis is at home on the trail as well. This trail had a lot of big rocks and she was so happy to climb them all. Here she is striking a pose before jumping back down. 

There is only one cache in this park and we made sure to hunt it down. We haven't been geocaching in a few weeks and the kiddies were excited to make the find. 

With stops to climb over rocks and fallen trees, get out a snack and heading off the trail to hunt down a cache, we took about 2 casual hours to complete the 2 mile hike. It was awesome to be out and to be convinced that Spring was definitely on the horizon. This is our idea of quality family time. Getting in a good hike is always where I would like to be and there is nobody else I would rather do that with than this happy little mob. xoxoxo

Happy Spring everyone! Wishing you lots of opportunities to do some of your favorite outdoor things with some of your favorite people!  :)