Summer Trips!

We just finished the second of our two planned summer trips. Our two vacations did NOT disappoint. We were blessed to have enjoyed so many beautiful places. The older I get, the more I appreciate the beauty of all that God has made. First up, are pictures from our beach trip. We adventured to an unknown (to us) coast this year. We went to the Florida panhandle, and stayed in Inlet Beach (right at the beginning of 30a). It was a great spot, complete with gorgeous water and not too many people. One day we rented a pontoon and toured a nearby island (shell island). It was fun to spend an entire week at the beach with extended family. It rained a good bit, but thankfully we had our fair share of sunshine too! I really loved this beach spot, and I would be more than happy to vacation here again in the future.

Our next trip (the one we just returned from) was another first for us. We went camping! This was actually our 3rd time doing a vacation with the Deal family. Our previous vacations with them were at Dewees Island, but this year we did something different. We headed up to Lake Jocassee in Oconee county South Carolina. Can I just say, this lake is a hidden gem?! I have visited the lake multiple times before, but have never had a boat on the lake. The lake is gorgeous, but being able to explore the lake by boat was amazing! There is a panoramic view of the mountains all around the lake, and the water is the prettiest lake water I have ever seen. It is bluish green and super clear. You can perfectly see 6-10 feet below you when you are in the water. We saw fish swimming all around. They actually train scuba divers in this lake because of the water clarity. Perhaps the most amazing thing about Jocassee is that with a boat (and a good map), you can explore and find about 6 different waterfalls spilling into the lake from the mountains above. It was so fun for us to discover a waterfall and then anchor the boat while we swam around it. It felt magical! There were even a couple of smaller waterfalls that we hung out at all by ourselves for a couple of hours. I love beautiful, remote (uncrowded) places!