Adventuretime: Mt. Rainier National Park

Yesterday my family and I took a trip to Mt. Rainier National Park on a whim. We packed up a nice little lunch of wraps, crisps, and pasta salad and went on our way. I don't know why, but on long car trips I tend to fall asleep reading. Slaughterhouse Five was my book of choice - partially because it follows two challenges on The List and partially because it's hard to put down!

Nothing like a good old-fashioned picnic!
Well, sort of...

We realized once we arrived, that many others had the same idea we did about visiting the park on such a lovely day. There was a long car queue visible even as we drove up to the entrance. Unfortunately we weren't able to picnic at my parent's favorite spot, Paradise, but we ended up at a nice picnic area with three other families. After we had enjoyed our lunch, we took a walk around to admire Mother Nature.
The picnic area had a few trails leading around the creek area, which was reduced to a stream around twenty feet wide. We walked down to the rocky terrain and found a wooden bridge over the stream. It was a hot day and the water looked so cool and swift... I was completely fascinated by it and the rocky area surrounding it. Although it is obviously a man-made bridge, it intrigued me.
The entire time I was reminded of my love for nature and wandering. I enjoyed having family time, but I could have stayed there for hours! We did, however, promise my brother that we could stop at the Elbe train station to look at the old train. I'm glad we stopped -  not only did we make my brother happy to see the train, we also picked up a basket of Rainier cherries and a mango smoothie! YUMM.