Valley and Vacations

The small mountain valley where I grew up, just about everyone knew everyone else, or at least someone in the family.   There was one school district with an elementary school housing grades K-6 and one high school for grades 7-12.  Many people are related, with grandparents and aunts and uncles and cousins living close by.  My grandparents lived next door to us on the family farm, and my Aunt and her family lived nearby in town when I was very young, but moved to another area of the state when my Uncle was transferred while I was in elementary school.  These cousins are all quite a bit older than I am, but we still visited with them quite often, mostly when they came to visit our grandparents.

The predominant religion in the area is The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, with 6 different wards or congregations in the valley when I was young, and one Community Christian Church.  We all went to the same schools, and attended many of the same church activities and community events.  There was one small movie theater that showed a different second run movie every Friday and Saturday night for a very low admissions price, and of course there were always the high school football and basketball games, school plays and concerts for Friday night entertainment too.  There was an annual Fiesta Days celebration with parades, a livestock show, rodeos, a beauty queen pageant, and even a demolition derby.  Everyone pretty much knew everyone else, and 

There are several small towns with farms scattered about between the towns.   The growing season is quite short, so the main crops are meadow hay and alfalfa, and most of the farms raise either beef or dairy cattle.  Goats and sheep and chickens, and of course dogs and horses are also common.  Apples and plums grow quite well, peaches and pears do not. Potatoes and carrots and radishes and peas and cabbage and green beans usually grow quite well, but tomatoes and corn and peppers usually don't have time to mature before the first frosts hit. 

Because dairy cattle require daily care with feeding and milking, we didn't take very many family vacations.   The hay usually wasn't ready for cutting until July and August, so June was usually the best time for us to get away for a few days.  Grandpa and a cousin or local young man would take over the milking and other chores and we would all load up in the current family car with our parents -- four of us in the front seat and  four of us in the back, and  we would head out of state for a few days to see new places, historical sites and national parks, and usually to visit with extended family members.  During my high school years we visited Spokane and Seattle Washington one year, and San Francisco, the costal highway, and Los Angeles another year.   Some years we packed up our tent and sleeping bags and drove a few miles further up the mountains to camp and hike and maybe even fish for a  few days .  Another year saw us visiting Yellowstone National Park and relatives in Montana, with the adults traveling on to Alberta Canada and leaving us young ones in the care of our young adult cousins on their family farm.  We also visited Zions and Brice Canyons in Utah another year.   Some nights we would rent a motel room or a cabin and cook our own dinners and breakfasts, and other times we would stay with the relatives in their homes.  After a few days of such wonderful togetherness, we were usually quite content to arrive back to our own home to the mountain valley, ready to face the busy/lazy summer months of work and play before school began again.

What was the community like where you grew up?  Did you take family vacations as a child or teenager?  Did you go camping and hiking?  What are some of your favorite memories?