Holly Days: Tackling the Bucket List

The dream is over, our time on Guam has come to an end. No more 80 degrees year round and living on the beach. Now that we are back in the Northwest enduring the gray of winter, those balmy sunny days are something we all miss. We've been back for six months now. Our tans have faded and our highlights are gone, but we are so thankful for the memories and friendships from our days on Guam which will always be a part of our lives. Once we knew we were moving back to the mainland and our days on Guam were numbered we wanted to make the most of our time there. Our last few weeks on island we jammed in as much as we could, crossing items off the bucket list daily while trying to pack and sell all that we had acquired in our year there. Needless to say, I had no time to blog, but I did want to write about our last few weeks there while I can still kind of remember all that we did.

Tarzan Falls

This hike was just a mile up the road from our house. We drove past the trail head numerous times, always promising to go. Finally, with our days numbered, we headed out to the trail. To enjoy the full splendor the of the waterfalls on Guam, the wet season is the best time to go hiking. It also means mud and lots of it. Since we were still in dry season, the mud wasn't too bad, but the falls weren't at their best either.

David is ready to go. Tradition says you leave your shoes at your last hike on island hence all the shoes on the wire.

Good thing this is the dry season right?

Suzy scrambled her way to the top.

Everyone enjoying a refreshing dip.


What a way to cool-off.

Double Reef

This hike is one we has heard people talk about for a while and we were really looking forward to. Since much of the footing is very uneven and over jagged limestone, it isn't very kid friendly. The "trails" in Guam are not well established. It often feels like you are bush-whacking through the jungle. The locals call it "boonie stomping." Luckily, some of them have ties to mark the way. As soon as a tie has been reached, it is a game looking for the next one and then trying to get there. The highlight of this hike was the awesome snorkeling found there in the two reefs. It was as good as we were lead to believe. The brightest colors of coral I have ever seen were all around, it was amazing. Also, many fish- some I am sure I have never seen before. Sierra, with Paij's help, really gained some confidence and was able to thoroughly enjoy her surroundings. We snorkeled out quite a distance, there was so much to see. Trying to capture some of it with Sierra's underwater camera was fun too.

The views and the ocean life were stunning, throw in time with good friends, some warm tropical sunshine and that, my friend, amounts to a perfect day.

Me and my girls- Jennifer, Mandi, Raelene and Paij. Love 'em all!

The view from the beach.

Addie got buried in the sand.

Enjoying the company and shade on the beach.

Southern Views Hike

Abe had planned this one. He is not a fan of jungle hikes. This guy is all about the views, wide open vistas call to him. Since most of Guam is fairly dense jungle, these are harder to come by. He scouted around and said this was to be the premier Guam hike. Sadly, most of the kids got a flu bug (maybe something we ate) so Bugs was the only one who could join us. A new family had arrived on Guam and envisioning this to be a great hike, we invited them along. This was the most brutal hike ever! The first half hour was through dense saw grass or razor grass. Know how it got it's name? We endured oh so many cuts!!! Imagine getting 100 paper cuts spread over all exposed skin. Abe had one right across his neck, looked like he slit his throat. Bugs said, "Dad, I don't like this hike." I felt terrible knowing we had drug this family along. All of us were bleeding from several areas and we knew we had to go back through it to return to the cars. I spent the whole time profusely apologizing, it really was that bad. The shower afterward-OUCH!!! If one wants to attempt this hike, bring a few mechates or hire a mowing crew.