The four of us dragged ourselves out of bed this morning, ate breakfast in a fog. Got into our warm clothes and hiking boots and set out to find a waterfall.

High above JPL, on the edge of the Angeles National Forest and butting right up against civilization in the name of Alta Dena is Millard Campground.

The parking area is much bigger than the campground can accommodate (which is 7 tent spots, I believe). We parked and right away the sound of rushing water made us believe we were far away from the city, instead of a mile and a half up a twisting road. We walked through the campground, me astonished and pleased and ready to camp *right then* but of course we couldn't as we didn't have our stuff and, like, the kids have school tomorrow. Sigh.

The trek to the falls is listed as a #2 hike - pretty easy, in other words - but we found it challenging and rocky and oh, so beautiful as we followed the creek upstream. During rainier seasons I imagine we would have gotten plenty wet, but today we were able to navigate the creek crossings with little difficulty.

The falls is only a mile in, perhaps less than that (though it certainly felt like a mile!), and the journey took us at least forty minutes. The sound of the river, the scents, the greenery that surrounded us was the very best that Mother Nature had to offer. The air chilled our cheeks and clouds hung low, filled with moisture but not yet spilling over into rain.

Moss clung to the sheer rock walls as we traveled closer to the trail's end. Tree trunks and boulders littering our path were also shined with a bright green.

A couple more yards, a bend in the trail, a heave up a rock and oh my!

Not tall, perhaps only 60 feet - a boulder stuck in the mouth of the falls parted it so the water ran down in two fountains. The left fountain slicked down the side of solid rock, while the right-most fountain spewed out into the air, creating bubbles of water that exploded halfway down. The force of the water created its own wind, and had it not been so cold I would have stripped and showered in the falls for the pure joy of it.

None of us wanted to leave. We took our time breathing the moisture-laden air, staring up at the falling water and wishing we'd brought coffee and sandwiches and a blanket to sit on and watch nature.

But others followed the path and were on our heels, shattering the relative peace. The walk back took no time at all, bringing an all-too-fast end to a magical morning.

So, how did YOU spend Easter?