Chi-Ka-Walk, Talk-Talk

The Chi-Ka-Walks were a heard of chickens that used to roam in the needles below the Giant Redwoods and Pines of Castle Crags. But the Redwoods couldn't stand them. Years of peaceful bliss, broken only by the sounds of creeks, wind through the trees, animals, and even native people were now drowned out by these obnoxious chickens. They would chicken walk and talk talk incessantly. Until finally without warning the redwoods transformed the Chi-Ka-Walks to lizards. And now you can barely here them as they scamper for cover whenever you walk by. That was my story for marker 10 on an easy hiking trail loop in 100 degree heat. But it was far from a make believe weekend.

The day before my family completed the 8 mile dirt trail around Siskiyou Lake. They rode their bicycles across aluminum plank bridges crossing the outer edges of the lake. They plowed through deep gravel and sand covered paths that even the heartiest of cyclists would struggle through. We stopped and took photos with snow covered Mt. Shasta smiling in the background as the sun blazed it's reflection upon our skins. We downed our ice cold bottles of water at every mile, ignoring the temps that were sure to reach 100 degrees. And when we completed the route we were still thirsty for more.

Swimming and playing in the water park for hours we raced our mom across the water. She and a friend on paddle boards as we glistened in style on our blue metallic covered pedal boat. Racing across the lake to catch them I was suffering. It was similar to sitting on a tricycle with 3 sometimes 4 kids on your shoulders shouting," go Mo go!" Or comparable to squishing on the Peter Pan ride at Disneyland and then being asked to pedal as fast as you can without hitting your knees. Pain aside we sliced around wakes and bobbed in between kayaks when I realized I should have tracked this water route on strava. Oh well, not to be.

We took everything the lake threw at us and we continued back asking for more. A nine hour day at the lake full of fun and surprises, it's only too bad we couldn't stay for more. From the forest floor, across to Siskiyou Lake, to the peaks of Castle Crags this was a trip to remember.