Soaking up the Last Days of Summer

With mornings getting colder, maple leaves beginning to turn golden, and school
starting back up this week, we decided summer was fleeting and set out for an evening visit to a nearby swimming hole to soak it up.

We followed Blue River up above the reservoir until we came to some very well-worn pullouts, and picked one that looked like it ought to have a swimming hole down below.

Sure enough, the well-worn pullout and path led to a beautiful stretch of river with pools, rock waterslides and ledges above deep channels for jumping in.

Although I’m sure this place sees a lot of swimmers on summer afternoons, we had it entirely to ourselves, and enjoyed the quiet of evening settling over the sound of flowing water.

For some of us, it was enough just to be out in nature, reading a good book on a warm rock.

For others, full immersion was the only way to soak in the experience.

We fortified ourselves with water, warmth, silence and sunshine for a while before heading home to settle into our evening routine of the school year. It was a fine feeling, being saturated with summer and river water. At some point in their lives, when my kids are recalling summers of their youth, I hope this swimming hole memory comes readily to mind.