Banner Elk post #4

Sorry for missing a day. I was gallivanting around being sprayed by a fire truck instead of doing a blog post.
So Friday was the last day and we all decided that we had to live it to its fullest.
Unfortunately, my camera batteries were dead, so I don't have pictures. :(
We went on a hike around the lake again, but we took a different trail this time. We decided to skip the Christmas tree farm and take the...um, Vanilla Trail. This trail goes right along the lake, it's kind of a scenic view, actually, and you're surrounded by trees. And then I think we lost the trail because we were right by the water and we had to hop tree branches and it was all getting quite life-threatening. Then some of my cousins started turning off up the hill to get up to higher ground. David, the one I decided never to doubt again, was forging ahead on our current path. Little did I know that we had actually left the trail and the other cousins were going back up to get on the trail. So I faithfully followed David until we came to this ridiculously thick patch of trees and I knew there was no way that we were getting through there, so I sheepishly turned back and joined the others on the trail. After we completed the Vanilla Trail, we had to hop down into the spillway of the dam (I think that's what it's called, that's what Cameron told me) and then climb up the other side. It was SOOO much fun! And then we got to go back to the swings! It was all quite enjoyable, and then we got to hike back around the lake again. So in all I ended up doing two full circuits around Wildcat Lake!
After that we spent a good bit of the rest of the day out on the lake! I'm going to keep the commentary to a minimum cuz otherwise I'll get all wishy washy and sad. :'(

 Betsy and Ben were chasing each other around. It was really fun to watch and listen to them! :)

 PJ had dropped his goggles somewhere off the shore and Uncle Paul was going to go try to get them, and he figured it would be easier to do so if he was swimming and not in a boat. Unfortunately, the water was kind of cold and Uncle Paul was a little hesitant to take the plunge. Finally he jumped in and after some whooping and hollering he swam over to look for the goggles. PJ definitely didn't just stumble upon the drama queen thing randomly; I'd say it's genetic.

 I was in a very depressed mood.

 Uncle Paul and PJ drew quite a crowd while trying to retrieve the goggles!

 The last day, PJ and the others finally started to be able to catch some fish! They got like five in one swipe one time!

 We were all starting to think that Shadow had died because we hadn't seen her at all all week and then in the middle of our baseball game on the last day, she showed up and made Jacob's day! She kind of messed up the baseball game though...

 Josiah, the latest cousin! :) (at least, I think he is, it might be Emily...)

 John David got to take out his own kayak! :)

 The view from one of my hideouts on the hill under the wooden cross. I was lying there reminiscing. And then I got up, and that was a big mistake. I'll tell you why in a bit.

 So I took this picture and then Aunt Rebecca caught me and she saw that I hadn't gone out in a boat at all yet that afternoon, and PJ was just bringing in a canoe and so she told him and me to go out, and I was cool with that! So I grabbed a couple life jackets and me and PJ started out.
And then came the fun, also known as Anna and Jacob in the paddleboat.
At first I thought they were just coming over to say hi or something, and then I saw the terrible, maniacal look on Jacob's face and I knew they were up to something much more malicious. I wasn't sure what to do and I thought my life was over right then and there. I was going to drown in four foot deep water because I freaked out. I gripped the sides of the canoe and started to hyperventilate. Jacob and Anna rammed us full on and I was like, "AAAAH!!!!!" until I realized that nothing had happened. They had pretty much just made our canoe wobble a lot! So we spent the next half hour being chased by Jacob and Anna, usually escaping because of our mad back-paddling skills and occasionally being broadsided. But that's cool, I was ready to get wet! Then it was time to go in and we hadn't tipped, which was kind of a bummer because after all that, PJ and I were SURE that we would end up in the water! So before we went in, we decided that we were going to tip the canoe. So we paddled out deep enough that we wouldn't hit our heads on the bottom (because we're obviously so very safety conscious) and then rocked back and forth, back and forth until that canoe tipped right over! It was super fun and I got super wet! :)

 PJ left his mark on the camp. :P

One of our traditions is that on the last night, the kids play with all these glow sticks. I've outgrown it by now, but I couldn't resist taking some pictures and sitting out there watching them for a while.
After we finished the cleaning part, me and some of my other cousins stayed up until like one o'clock just being crazy, and let me tell you, we got really crazy. We made total fools of ourselves and got it on video. Sooo...good memories. For sure. I just wish that I could take all of you there with me in person and show you everything, but hopefully you've gotten a little taste of Banner Elk!
Thus concludes my posts on BE. Now I have to actually seek out blogging material!