We were with friends at their place near the south end of Lake George in upstate New York. The neighbors have a boathouse whose roof is the perfect launchpad for leaps into the lake — with adult supervision, of course.
And we had a platoon of kids.
In the end, I think every one of them jumped, even the L.A. city kids who have spent their young lives being warned against horseplay near deep water.
Some of the kids launched at first opportunity. Others had to fidget and pause and be cajoled and reassured, and then they’d fidget and pause some more. Were they more scared, or did they just like the extra attention? Both? Hard to be sure. But the second time around was a lot easier.
There’s no better way to pass a summer afternoon.
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Guide Raymond Chee stands at Upper Antelope Canyon, Ariz., on a cloudy day. Photo taken in 2013.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times) 2/23
Because pandas have unusually inefficient digestive systems, they eat enormous amounts of bamboo, and eliminate enormous amounts, too. Photo shot in 2013.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times) 3/23
Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, Yellowstone National Park. Photo taken in July 2015.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times) 4/23
Faneuil Hall, Boston. Photo shot in July 2015.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times) 5/23
Lake George, N.Y. Photo taken in July 2015.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times) 6/23
Old Faithful Inn, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming. Photo shot in July 2015.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times) 7/23
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times) 8/23
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times) 9/23
Somewhere over Arizona. Photo shot in July 2015.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times) 10/23
Yellowstone National Park. Photo shot in July 2015.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times) 11/23
Providence, R.I. Photo shot in July 2015.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times) 12/23
Mesquite Dunes, Death Valley National Park.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times) 13/23
Wizard Island, Crater Lake, Oregon. Photo shot in May 2015.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times) 14/23
A lone biker pedals up Avenue of the Giants, Humboldt Redwoods State Park, near Myers Flat.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times) 15/23
Late-afternoon sunbeams on San Francisco Street highlight the texture of downtown Santa Fe’s adobe-style architecture.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times) 16/23
Surfboard House, a B&B in Hanalei, Kauai.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times) 17/23
This is the ceiling of the 16th century Museo Ex Convento and Parroquia Nuestra Senora de la Natividad, Tepoztlan, Mexico.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times) 18/23
You can tell the locals in Monument Valley -- they’re the ones hauling hay and water for their animals.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times) 19/23
This is Mt. Rundle, as seen from Vermilion Lakes, Banff National Park. The photo was shot early on Nov. 18, 2014.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times) 20/23
Low tide, San Felipe, Baja California.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times) 21/23
Flamingo, San Diego Zoo.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times) 22/23
The view from the Encore Hotel, 2008, in Las Vegas.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times) 23/23
Portland’s Ace Hotel, shown here in 2013, opened in 2007.
(Christopher Reynolds / Los Angeles Times) You can always count on travel to teach you something — but what? Travel is the substitute teacher who didn’t get the lesson plan, the adjunct lecturer who goes off on Pinochet, the grad assistant who trashes your poetry, then hands out cupcakes. If only you’d had a clue what was coming, right?
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I’m building a gallery of guidance from new and old adventures in the West (and the rest of the world). The photos are mine. As for the attempted wit and wisdom, it’s dead serious, except for when it isn’t.
Twitter: @mrcsreynolds
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