Tumalo Falls - Bend 2012

Another fan favorite of our Bend excursions has become Tumalo Falls. About a 30-45 minute drive from the farm this is one of my favorites. The road gets a little bumpy near the end but it's well worth it. The hike to the lookouts below, at and above the falls are very manageable and the kids get the joy of throwing sticks in the river and watching them flow towards their doom!

It has one unfortunate side effect, I am terrified any time Val or the kids get anywhere near the railing or stand on the lookout perch. I get the most uneasy feeling in my stomach that I almost can't handle it. I know they are safe but you see on the news all the time 'kid falls into river and goes over falls' right? I think those things are only possible when their is no father present to inform his family of his irrational fears that the wind may pick them up and launch them over the railings. Dad's understand, it's in our DNA (I think).

After the falls we began heading back but stopped by our little nook in the river we found last year where the kids could play in ankle deep water protected by large logs to keep them from the current. Man is that water cold! The kids hunt for special rocks and eventually got brave enough to strip their shirts (nice tan line/sunburn on Haze!) and dunk their heads in the water. Its such a simple little thing and is definitely one of the kids favorites.

This is a good life!