Gigantic lessons learned on our trip to Rialto Beach. There is a hike out to the "Hole in the Wall", an arch. We weren't going to do it because we were visiting Rialto later in the day than planned and after low tide. Then when we were playing around, I suggested that Max and Ryan jog out and just see if they could see the Hole in the Wall. Max had the car keys and we didn't have any reception. After awhile, Jason, Evelyn and I started walking along the beach to meet up with the boys. We kept going and going and did not meet up with the boys. Because of the cold and because it was getting dark, I was worried. Jason and Evelyn were worried too. I was hoping there was an inland trail that the boys could have found and that's why we weren't seeing them on the beach. I was calm for my kids but inside I was so worried. What if they had slipped off wet rocks. They are smart and have a lot of experience with hiking and outdoor safety with scouts, but I hated that we couldn't call them and check in. We decided to turn around and walk back, hoping that they were back at the parking lot after finding a faster inland trail. We prayed and went back. When we got to the parking lot, t was dark and the boys weren't there. Some men in the parking lot were fixing their truck. They didn't have a phone with reception but they said they would stay until we found the boys. We started walking to the ranger station (which was quite a ways, but then we saw the other parking lot and there were two men who were there. They had a phone with reception and I called the police. One of the men also took off to find the boys on the beach. He said he knew the area like the back of his hand.
