Whitewater Rafting & Washington

I had yet another adventurous day yesterday, Kimball River Sports was doing staff rides so I went white water rafting with some of my coworkers. It was such a blast! The river was gorgeous and we passed through cliffs, saw human remains (a graveyard had eroded away and bones are literally sticking out of the ground), and a haunted house. There weren't as many rapids as I would have liked, but we did go body surfing through one. Man! It was so cold my nipples ached for a good 15 minutes when I got out of the water. It took my breathe away! But it was good time and I plan on going at least twice more this summer. I will wait until the end of August though when the water is warmer and the weather is so hot that I WANT to fall into the water.

I leave for Washington tomorrow to see my family and I am so excited! I haven't seen them in almost four months. And while that doesn't seem long to most people, my family and I are unnaturally close and it feels more like four years. The best part is that I am surprising everyone in one way or another.Only one brother and my sisters know that I am coming, so my mum, grandma and littlest brother will be surprised ot see me. And no one knows that I am bringing my five year old nephew D. So it will be a double surprise. I just want this day to be over so it can be tomorrow!

Horseback Riding, Paddling & Kate Middleton

I got to go horseback riding with Mountain Meadow Trails Rides today for work. They offer staff rides so we can become familiar with the trails and company to talk to guests about. It was a blast and it made me so homesick for my grandpa’s old ranch it’s not even funny. I am now trying to find a way in my budget to buy a horse this summer instead of next as planned because riding is the best therapy.

Tonight I have my first practice with my new crew training for the dragon boat races for the Lethbridge Dragon Boat Festival. I am such a joiner and when I saw this I HAD to do it. Not just because I have never done crew of any sort, but because dragon boat is how I was first introduced to one of my style icons, Kate Middleton.

I first paid attention to Kate when I saw a photo of her training with her crew for a similar race on Perez Hilton. I thought it was a cool race and decided to look into her and it went from there. I think she is incredible. She comes from a middle class family that made their own fortune. She has handled herself unbelievably during her courtship with Prince William and her style is fantastic.

Intro to Chinook Country Chick

My name is Rachel and I am a recent transplant to Southern Alberta. I was born and raised in Fort McMurray, Alberta and moved to Seattle when I was 15 (my mum met a man over the internet and married him). I went to university in Washington and worked doing corporate public relations in the city and I hated every minute I was there. I always talked about when I was going to move back to Alberta and at long last, after an October lay off I am home!

I decided to start this blog because I have been following Vancity Allie for a couple years now. Her blog was so interesting to me because she does what I love, snowboard and surf. And I figured, working in Waterton Park and living in Southern Alberta that I would have a lot of adventures that would be nice to record and share with my friends. This is a lot easier than a journal and more in depth than Facebook status updates. So here it is!

I plan to do a lot this summer, hike, compete in a triathlon & a half marathon, paddle board, camp, bike, buy a horse, and Buddha permitting, find a man! Lol. So this blog is a record of my life here in Southern Alberta, an amazing place to be!

Thoughts

They glamorize the lives of the upper class- the fundraisers, their fancy homes, the clothes, careers and parties. But what about the other side? What about the country folk? What about those of us who look forward to the annual county fair, who watch UFC religiously and who know what’s going on in the lives of everyone in town? Our homes aren’t as nice and our bank accounts not as fat but we live just as fulfilling lives. Maybe more so, because we are real. We don’t act a certain way or attempt to climb the social ladder. We are who we are and we are fine with that.

--Written after a few beers while watching UFC 114.