Enjoying time off

I am changing jobs, which I'm both excited about and anxious about at the same time.  I am starting the new job Monday, and I've taken this week off in between.

It has been wonderful!  Chris and I spent a day-and-a-half hiking and camping on Isle Royale, the park across from Grand Portage (near the Canadian border) which is technically part of Michigan.  You have to take a ferry to get to the park and there are no motorized vehicles.  I was somewhat mentally prepared for lots of mosquitoes and deer flies, but we lucked out because the mosquitoes were manageable and there were no deer flies. 

On our way in, it was pouring rain and it stopped as soon as we were done with the orientation from the Park Service.  Another lucky break.  Our first day, we hiked in mostly forest to a campground around a cove.  Turns out we had the cove to ourselves and a strong wind that kept most of the mosquitoes away.  We swam for a bit, filtered water from Lake Superior, ate, read, and by then, we assumed it was starting to get close to bedtime.  Not even close: it was 6:30!  We had a pretty good laugh about that.  Needless to say, I got a lot of reading done!

The next day was good temps and mostly sunny skies.  We got to the dock to wait for the boat about 2 hours early.  Perfect time to go for another dip, and this time, I was cursing under my breath as I slowly lowered myself into the cold water.  In the cove, it was a combination of warm and cold water, which made it enjoyable for a while.  At the dock, it was frickin' cold.  I read the rest of the time waiting for the ferry, and ended up reading on the back deck of the boat all the way back to Grand Portage. 

It was a fun trip and even though it was short, it was much needed.  We sandwiched the Isle Royale trip with time at my parents.  Banjo got to stay with them for a couple of nights, which he seemed quite happy with. 

I've greatly been enjoying this time because I didn't realize just how hard it would be to leave the people at my job.  My head felt like it was swimming and I felt a little overwhelmed emotionally.  It all turned out well and I have a good group of people I'll be staying in touch with.