I'll be the first to admit that I have quite an uneventful life. As much as I crave adventure, travel, and fun, most of my summer is spent relaxing at home or not venturing past my own city. However, with one of my best friends leaving for school across the country in only a few weeks, we vowed to make the most of the season and do as many things as possible. We'd been itching to travel down past the border into the Adirondacks for some spectacular mountain views, and when we both had this Saturday off work and the forecast called for warmth and mostly sun, we took the opportunity. I woke up just before the sun at 4:30 am, and we left at 6 to get an early head-start. The drive from Quebec into the States is quite boring, but it was at least sunny and it didn't take too long before we got a beautiful view of the mountain backdrop in the distance. We made it to Whiteface Mountain just in time for when they start allowing cars to drive up, 8:45, and we began our incline. After an increasingly nervous and terrifying drive, we made it up. An elevator brought us to the very top (we could've taken the stairs, but I mean, we're definitely not hikers), and the views were just breathtaking. I've never been on a mountain that high before. The highest point is nearly 4.9 thousand feet high. The views were absolutely incredible. As a person who's terrified of heights, I really didn't feel scared of nervous at all. It was so peaceful and serene up there at that time of the morning. Before other hikers made it to the top, the silence was so comforting. You felt invincible. After we said goodbye to Whiteface, we took an even more nerve-wracking trek downhill. We travelled a little ways over to visit High Falls Gorge, a small nature park with stunning waterfall views. The trail is only about 30-40 minutes, but I got some incredible photos. We drove into Lake Placid for lunch, and it was the cutest little town. It was buzzing with lots of people on that Saturday afternoon, and the mountains in the distance over Lake Mirror were beautiful. Of course, I managed to find a small quaint vegan/vegetarian friendly cafe, and had a Tofurkey sandwich with veggies and vegan cheese. It was delicious, and after we ate, we headed back towards Ausable Chasm for our last little adventure. This chasm is said to be the "Grand Canyon of the Adirondacks". I don't have any photos from here, since my silly self didn't know it would be such a long trail and that you could bring your phone along on the rafting rides. This trail certainly tested my fear of heights much more than the mountain. You look down, and you see a straight drop down into rushing water over a hundred feet down. It was scary, but incredible. We took a raft tour down the river, which was beautiful. I'm so in love with nature, but don't take nearly enough time to really appreciate it. I really tried to take it all this day. After another short sleep that night, I woke up nice and early to head down to Osheaga, Montreal's own music festival, with the same friend. There was about 30 or so people waiting in line ahead of us to get in, so we got a good feeling we'd be getting a good spot near the stage. Both me and my friend came to see one of our favourite artists, BØRNS. It was also my first experience at Osheaga, which I knew was going to a stressful one for me. After a chaotic entrance into the festival and bag check, we speed walked toward the stage as security yelled for no one to run behind us. We got barricade! I was so incredibly excited. We watched Melanie Martinez perform first, and my energy began to rise. As expected, Garrett's set was absolutely incredible, and it was such an amazing experience to finally watch him perform live as I didn't think I'd have the chance anytime soon. His effortless high notes and sweet voice were like listening to an angel. We left the crowd after his performance, as there wasn't any other artists we were dying to see. We walked around a bit, refilled our water, and tried to escape the blazing hot sun for awhile. We ended up meeting with a girl who was also a fan of Garrett, and was also dying to meet him. After scoping out the area, we virtually had no idea how we'd be able to know where he was and where he would exit from backstage. I didn't have much hope, since meeting celebrities at a music festival is such a game of luck, something I usually don't have much of. However, later on in the day, we heard news that he was in the crowd watching Grimes performing, so we rushed over and were able to say hello and speak for a few minutes. He was honestly the kindest and most gentle person I've ever met, which was incredibly reassuring since I had felt like such a nuisance coming up to him at a festival where he was trying to have a good time. We took some photos and thanked each other before he left to go backstage. It was so nice and just the cherry on top of such a great weekend. Although, I have to say, I don't know if I would ever go back to a music festival unless there was an artist I loved that much, as the giant crowds of people gave me a lot of anxiety and the heat and my own impatience made me quite cranky. It was all worth it in the end, though, and I'm so grateful I got to go. And that was my eventful weekend! I guess now I'm back to normal life, as I'll be leaving for work in 2 hours. I wanted to document these experiences, though, because I know for sure they will be memories I look back on for years to come. If you can, set aside a weekend to do something you've been wanting to do but have never made the full commitment. It's so rewarding and you will feel rejuvenated! Sometimes all we need is a good getaway from our regular routines. C
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Authoradmirer of beautiful things, amateur artist, perpetually confused. Archives
June 2017
Categories
All
|