All the Springs

Over the weekend we went on a little vacation to Lava Hot Springs with Scotty's family.

This I know for sure: I am addicted to mini vacations. I love heading out for a quick 1-2 night stay. This is our fourth mini vacation in six weeks. In that time we've been to Park City & Vernal. We went camping, and now we've been to Lava Hot Springs.

We began our journey early Friday morning. We took a longer route and went through Logan and stopped at Willow Park Zoo. I usually take my kids there every summer, but Scotty has never been, so it was fun to go with him. 

The zoo is tiny and mostly has birds, but it's cute, affordable, and has a petting zoo and some unique animals like this white porcupine:

We bought the kids some duck food, and they had a great time feeding the "teenager" ducks. There were also a few young babies around.

Baby ducks are one of the best things on earth.

Another one of the best things on earth? Goats. Oh my gosh, I love them.

One of the funniest moments at the zoo was when Nicky was trying to get close to a goat so I could take a picture, and the goat was totally annoyed with him and head butted him to the ground. Nicky laid there in the goat poop trying to process what just happened. There was no success with Nicky and the goats. The goats were not impressed by him, and they let him know. He had more than one failed attempt to get a photo. 

Scotty, on the other hand, was buddy-buddy with this sheep that kept untying his shoes.

During our zoo visit, I learned something new about myself. The long necks of swans freak me out.

    

When they are fully extended, it makes me very uncomfortable. But not as uncomfortable as star fish.
After the zoo, we played at the nearby park for a while. Then we went to Gossner's and bought some cheese curds. The kids and I ate lunch at the Crepery. Scotty held out for Big J's/Tacomaker because he wanted to relive his childhood with a plate of Tacomaker's nachos. It's the last Tacomaker in the state, but there used to be one right by one of Scotty's grandpa's produce stands. 

Big J's was featured in Napoleon Dynamite, so they have a big Napoleon Dynamite display on their wall. We just watched Napoleon Dynamite a few weeks ago (after a very long break from it). We passed through Preston, Idaho so we decided to drive by Napoleon Dynamite's house. Sadly, the road was all torn up and inaccessible, so we couldn't get very close, but it was fun to see - ever from afar.

In Preston we stopped at Niter Ice Cave. The cave is really big which means this non-adventurous, claustrophobic mama was willing to go inside. The problem was, it was very muddy, and I didn't wear good shoes, so I was slipping and sliding all over the place. It was really, cool, though (figuratively and literally).

From there we headed to Soda Springs where we stopped at Formation Springs Cave. This cave had a small opening, which made me nervous, but once I looked down inside, I felt a lot better. It opened up at the bottom, so I went in. There were spots where we had to duck down, but overall, it was pretty spacious and had some holes in the top to let in light and air. The best part? No mud!

We also stopped at some springs near the cave. This little stream was pretty neat. The bed is rock.

After our cave visit, we went to Hooper Springs Park to check out the soda pool. 

We sampled the soda water, and it was just as gross as we assumed it would be. Some of our family made the observation that it tastes like blood. Heavy on the iron, I guess.

The playground at Hooper Springs Park was a lot of fun. It's rare to find a good teeter totter these days. Unfortunately, the mosquitos were very thick and apparently seeking some sort of revenge on mankind. Even after we sprayed ourselves, they were biting us like crazy. We have two kids that are allergic, so we had to bail. 

From there we went to see the Soda Springs Geyser and Octagon Springs (which our kids lovingly named "the toilet seat" because it is shaped like a toilet seat).

In the evening, we arrived at our destination: The School House Inn. It's an old school that has been converted into a rental. It has several bedrooms, a large kitchen, and a gym. It's old, but it was pretty cool... and I didn't take a single picture there!

We stayed at the school with Scotty's dad and step-mom and some of his siblings. That night we just hung out and had a campfire. 

On Saturday we went into town and spent most of the day at the Lava Hot Springs Pool. The kids loved it. We also stopped by the hot pools and walked through the Sunken Garden. 

Back at the school, we had a BBQ and then stayed up late playing games. A good chunk of the family left Saturday night, but we stayed until Sunday. 

On Sunday we went back to Hooper Springs Park and then we drove home through Bear Lake. 

It was a fun trip, and our kids are already asking when we can go back.