pathfinder reservoir

My nephew, Chris Killinger is the office and purchasing manager for Atlas Aero Service, located at the Casper-Natrona County International Airport, which means that he gets to see all to planes that come and go from the airport, some are military, some are private jets (often from celebrities), some cargo planes, and others are commercial liners. A lot of these planes land for fuel, but a large number also land to go through customs, because the process is faster in a small airport, and with the international status of this airport, comes that coveted ease of the customs process. That doesn’t mean that they don’t get a thorough inspection coming through, but rather that the lines are shorter.

Chris and my niece, Lacey Stevens, who are engaged to be married in the fall, took his kids, Brooklyn and Jaxon Killinger camping at Pathfinder Reservoir over the 4Th of July with the Stevens family. Chris and their brother-in-law, Matt Miller taught the kids how to drive the Rangers, and of course, that set off a whole new experience for the kids. And they loved it. They wanted to be on the Rangers the whole time they were there. The whole family was there and they got a kick out of the kids’ new-found love of “driving!!”

Earlier in the summer, they took the kids to Denver for a Memorial Day/birthday trip for Brooklyn. They went to the Denver Zoo and did so many other fun things. Chris is a great dad, and his family is very blessed to have him in their lives. He has also been a great blessing for my sister, Alena Stevens’ whole family too. They all really love Chris, with his kind and his gentle ways. He is a perfect match for Lacey and that makes the whole family very happy.

Chris has been so supportive to Lacey as she embarked on a new endeavor…her own hair salon. He often posts little “ads” to let people know that Lacey is out there and encouraging people to give her a call. He is without doubt, her biggest fan, well, maybe it’s a tie between him and her parents. Starting a new business is never easy, and it’s so nice to have the full support and even free advertising from the love of your life. That’s what Lacey had, and the whole venture has been a great one. Today is Chris’ birthday. Happy birthday Chris!! Have a great day!! We love you!!

These days, my brother-in-law, Chris Hadlock has much in life to love. He and my sister, Allyn now own the property east of Casper by the Platte River that had belonged to his parents Chris has always loved that place, and when his mother passed away, and the property was offered to them to buy, they jumped at the chance. Chris loves taking care of the place, and can often be found mowing, snow removing, or some other form of improvement on the place. The love he has for the place is very obvious in all the wonderful care he gives it. He is often out in the garage fixing things too. Chris loves his job too. He is a retired Casper Police Officer. His new job for Motorola is going well and he is relaxed and happy in it. Police work can be challenging, and although he loved it, it takes its toll.

They went fishing out at Pathfinder Reservoir on Father’s day. It was a perfect day. They took the 4 wheeler out and just rode far back off the beaten path and he fished all afternoon. It was super nice and relaxing.

Recently, they went fishing in the Big Horn Mountains, something they haven’t done for a couple of years. From there they headed to Laramie, where their daughter, Lindsay Moore and her family live to spend Independence Day with them; daughter Jessi Sawdon and family; son, Ryan Hadlock and family; and daughter, Kellie. Chris was like a kid in a candy store about the fireworks. The guys went and bought a bunch of them and Chris couldn’t wait to set them off! Sparklers, those black snakes that you light and they grow out of a small pellet, smoke bombs, fountains. He kept things going all evening!

Chris loves being a grandpa. He recently got to watch as his grandson, Ethan Hadlock caught his very first fish that is such a big moment in the life of a kid. His granddaughters, Aurora Hadlock, Adelaide Sawdon, and Mackenzie Moore, as well as Kellie’s boyfriend’s daughter, Jolene, have him wrap ones around their little fingers, and he doesn’t mind it a bit He really enjoys his sons-in-law, Jason Sawdon, Shannon Moore, and Kellie’s boyfriend, Tim Williams, as well as daughter-in-law, Chelsea Hadlock. Everyone in his family is a perfect fit in the family.

Chris plays the guitar, and is always composing beautiful new songs on his on it. Chris us quite talented in the area of music, and his family loves listening to him play. He loves his guitar so much, he sleeps with it!! Hahahaha!! Today is Chris’ birthday. Happy Chris!! Have a great day!! We love you!!

imageimageFor most of her life, my granddaughter, Shai Royce made it very clear that she was not into exercise, and most definitely not into outdoor exercise. As she grew up, she would consider going to the gym…but only if there was no other way to stay in shape. Then, she got into Zumba, and going to the gym started to be fun, instead of a lot of work. Still, outdoor sports were just not it for her…even though I tried to get her to join her grandpa and me on the walking path we often walk on.

One day, when the water at Pathfinder Reservoir was so high that it was overflowing the dam, we invited her to go out with us to see it. There was a bit of a walk to get imagethere, but that wasn’t what affected my granddaughter. It was what was at the end of that walk that grabbed her attention. The falls were stunning, no doubt about that. Shai and several friends made repeated trips back out to Pathfinder Reservoir and the falls.

Then, we told her we were going to hike the Bridle Trail on Casper Mountain. Shai decided that she wanted to go along, but I was skeptical. I remembered her telling me that she didn’t like this sort of thing. I told her I wasn’t sure she was up for it…even thought she had walked the Platte River Trail with us a week before. I’m not sure if Shai was offended or determined, but she informed me that she could do it. So, we made the hike. Shai did amazing…better than I did actually. She liked it so much that she and I went again, two days later. She wanted to go again, but time didn’t imageimageallow it. Before I knew it, Shai was moving to Washington to join the rest of her family, but she left here a different girl…an outdoorsy girl, in fact.

Shai has been in Washington just a little more than a month now. She and her brother, Caalab met a girl named Heidi, and Heidi likes to hike. She took them on what Shai deemed the hardest hike she had ever been on, last week. The hike took them to Winchester Mountain. She texted me pictures, and I must say that I need to hike it too. What a magnificent place it is. Shai has come a long way over this past year, and finally my girly girl, who hated the outdoors, has become an outdoorsy girl!! Who would have thought that would happen?

imageWe all get frustrated at times, thinking that things will never go our way. We have tried and tried, and nothing seems to fix the current situation. At some point we start thinking we might as well give up, but in reality, the only sure way to fail is to quit. That is exactly what my first cousin twice removed, Nicholas Young, who is my first cousin once removed, Jim Young, and his wife, Alina’s youngest child, found out over the weekend, when he was about to give up fishing for the day. He stuck it out a little longer, and was rewarded with this nice catch which someone managed to get a great shot of. He was pretty excited, and I can relate to that, because one of the reasons I don’t like to go fishing, is those long waits in between the time you drop your line in imagethe water and the time some fish decides to finally bite!! I know that my pro-fishing friends and family probably think I’m crazy on that point, but I get way too bored.

Nick, who just turned 9 years old on June 8th, is used to going fishing though. His family goes to Alcova Lake and Pathfinder Reservoir quite a bit in the summer. So he knows what fishing is all about, but sometimes even seasoned fishermen get frustrated. When it’s a good day to fish, a guy should be catch some fish. Still, as every fisherman knows, the fish don’t always agree with this kind of thinking, and so they sometimes just refuse to bite for a while. Finally, if you wait long enough, some unsuspecting fish comes along, and voilà…you have a bite. In my opinion, all we need now is a stupid fish finder, so we don’t waste so much time fishing among the smart fish.

imageIn reality though, the best thing we can do when we are trying to accomplish something, is to never give up. Oh, I know that sometimes, the day ends, and you still may not have accomplished your goal, but there is always tomorrow…as long as you never give up. As for Nick, I’m really glad that he didn’t have to wait for another day to catch a fish, because when you are 9 years old, waiting until next weekend can seem like waiting until next summer…and with the summer break from school, you always know that your fishing time is short anyway. So congratulations on your catch Nick!! I hope the rest of the summer finds you catching a lot more fish, and having a great time doing it.

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