[lake como]

If you hear anyone in this area say "we went to the beach!", it probably means they went to the sand-covered shores of Lake Como :) Although it is a stark contrast to the beaches I grew up with in the Gulf, this area is probably my favorite spot in Montana. The past few years, we have gone to the lake ("beach"), camped on the grounds, and done some short out-and-back hikes. But hiking the 8.5-mile circumference of the lake has been on our bucket list for a while. Saturday, we finally did it.

On our way to Hamilton. Sadly, Dipper can't go on hikes. She gets way too excited and literally screams. So she got to spend a day with her canine aunts and cousins at our in-laws house :)

These were taken at the "back" of the loop around the lake. I have heard the falls before, but never made it all the way out! 

We had fun until about mile 5. But, of course, we were too far in to quit, our only option was to keep going. There wasn't any elevation gain on this trail, but something about it just wasn't working for us. (Could have been not having water, blisters forming, the sunburn, or the fact that I had bitten it earlier and was hurtin' pretty bad. Who knows ;-))

 This is a pretty good description of how we felt.

 Just keep going .Just keep going.

We eventually made it, which was a good feeling. I will never underestimate an 8-mile hike again. It was worth the views and the accomplishment, but probably not worth the blisters and sunburn.

So, that's our story. Wanna hear Lake Como's? It is the "Sister lake" to the original Lago de Como in Italy. An Italian hiker came across the lake in Montana while hiking, and it reminded him so much of Italy, that it was named Lake Como. (Can you tell that I only kind of know this story??) Anyways, after a quick Google search, I can see why!