Paddles Over Pedicures

By Elena Pressprich

For my friend Alex's bachelorette party we had some pretty wild ideas, as bachelorette parties do. Alex’s idea of wild, however, does not include bars, frills or sashes. Alex’s dream celebration involved us getting outside and being as dusty, muddy, and happy as possible.

It was a quick weekend trip up to Leavenworth, Washington. For the one full day that everyone was around, we decided on a hike up to Colchuck Lake in the Enchantment area. The hike to Colchuck Lake is 8 miles round trip with about 2300 feet of gain. Not a terrible day hike by any means. We had to make it harder for ourselves though, of course! So, we decided to hike up two Oru Kayaks.

It was a haul so we shared and took turns carrying the kayaks up and down. Alex was the rockstar, though, hiking the entire thing in Chacos while carrying one kayak most of the way up and the entire way down. In true Alex style, she opted for beers over water. Raddest bride-to-be of all time. She could have chosen to go to nail salons, get massages and drink wine spritzers on a beach but instead she wanted to get dirty, take ice cold lake dives and enjoy brews in the outdoors.

It was a simple day filled with simple pleasures. New friends, plenty of beer, real mochi, sweating, lake dips, long conversations and sunshine. All in the honor of our good friend Alex. We made sure to take plenty of time to breath in all the fresh Evergreen air and enjoy the calmness of Colchuck Lake from the kayaks. I really enjoy the fact that the Oru kayaks are able to take us to places where no one else has been or been able to enjoy. Four miles up into the Washington high alpine, the Orus made Alex’s celebration unforgettable.