#1 of the 40 for 40 (29. Watch the sun set)

For the first adventure from my list, I watched several days of stunning sunsets in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. The pink light fades to orange and then deepens as the sun sinks out past the edge of the lake. I added watching a sunset to the list because we live a few miles from the ocean and I should be watching these all the time but rarely do. There's something so magical about the transition from day to night so I'll be keeping track of all the sunsets I witness this year. One wasn't enough! 

The campgrounds were almost completely empty which gave us several days of the lake all to ourselves. The area has no cell coverage so everyone was off devices and spending time with each other. Being that we are raising kids in the city, getting them out and into the mountains for at least one week a year is one of our traditions and (fingers crossed) will help them be well rounded people. I know a lot of people don't like the dirt and roughing it of camping but I would trade my soft bed and house for a sleeping pad in a tent any day to experience the awesome beauty of the trees and animals. 

In other news of the 40 for 40 list, I attempted to cross off catching a fish but unfortunately couldn't make that happen- it's way harder than it looks but did get pretty good at untying knots on fishing line. 

On my initial list I didn't leave space for unknown things so I've started collecting them, here's the adventures I didn't anticipate from the last week. 

41. See a bear in the wild 

42. Have overheated brakes in a mountain gorge

43. Jump into cold water