Well here we are September 16, 2014 already and guess what? It’s still 25 degrees out and I’m still able to sit on the deck in enjoying a beer in the hot sun. I can’t believe how fast summer has gone. I guess that’s what happens when your having an amazing summer. We have only had a couple cold days other then that I know it should be fall but it still feels like summer to me.

This summer I have managed to work 7 days a week sometimes 2 shifts in one day. Even with how much I have worked, I still can say I’ve probably had one of the best summer’s of my life. I have enjoyed every minute of being in the mountains and don’t want it to end. The conversations I have had with the young and elderly, new and old friends, family or just complete strangers have made the summer. I finally feel like I’m doing what I should have done years ago. Obviously there was some hard days at work here and there but finally a job where the good days are way higher then the bad. Each and every person I have met either from serving them, campground people or new friends has put an extra smile on my face in some way or another. I am going to miss this place but I really am hoping to be back for next summer. Can’t go wrong out here.

My summer has been filled with so much work but yet I still managed to make sure I found time to experience the beauty of this place. I’ve taken on plenty more golf games this year then I have in the years before. Between golf clinics and a lot of practice I’ve managed to bring my score down way more then it used to be. Before It was more just for the fun, now it’s for the fun and a little fun competition. A lot of my days were a golf game in the mornings and work afterwards. With that said this year is the first year in 22 years that I haven’t even picked up and took a swing with a baseball bat. I was so addicted to softball/slopitch where I was playing almost every day all summer. Can’t believe I have made it a whole summer without even a single game. All in all there’s more to life then baseball. My summer has been drama free which I didn’t realize how much ball played a part in that. Don’t get me wrong I still miss playing but happy I took the chance to try new things and give it a break for a year. The new sport I took up this year seemed like a better choice out here. I got out paddle boarding a few times. It’s so peaceful to be paddling across the lake or through the marshes. Listening to the sound of nature the whole way (well with a few laughs and giggles with a few people falling here and there). Now that I’ve experienced it here I’m so excited to be able to try it all over the world wherever I go. I even got a few nights of ultimate frisbee in and hopefully one more for everything before I leave. Even without playing sports everyday I still had so much other things to do. Between bottling my own 68 bottles of beer, some mini golf, the hot springs, a few little hikes, lots of company and of course the best staff part ever. Bush party by the river with an outdoor movie and beers.

My only time off this summer was for 2 amazing beautiful weddings. I got to be a part of my sisters special day and welcome a new family member in. Also seeing my good friend get married and bringing back tons of old memories. Even though those 2 events were pretty much my only days off they were for sure worth every minute.

All in all this summer soon has to come to an end. 2 more weeks is all I have left out here but really that’s not the end of my journey that I decided to start back in January. It still continues as I’ve been planning a few more trips already. Soon I’ll be back in Edmonton for a quick visit with a few people I’ve stayed in touch with. Then it’s going to be on a plane to Vancouver to see my lifelong friend and a few others I’ve met over the year. Plus a little side trip to Whistler and Seattle from there. I’ve also decided to be a kid and booked with some family for Disneyworld in November. The best for last a big plan again for January still in the works.

For now thanks to everyone I’ve met all summer and for all of my family support. Wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing without you guys. It’s now time to enjoy a little more sun before work. Journey just keeps getting better and better as the days go by.