The campsite was on the shores of a lake in the high peaks of the Adirondacks, at the end of a trail just outside a small hamlet. The area around the lake was thickly wooded, with a series of small campsite landings spaced just far enough apart to give one the impression there was nobody nearby for miles. It was secluded and intimate. Will and Rachel loved going there.
It was early in the afternoon when they got off the train. It was a short walk through the town from the train station to the head of the trail. Will carried their tent and supplies in a large backpack. Rachel carried some necessities in a much smaller backpack. And her belly. Although she moved a bit slow, weighed down by the gravity of her twin bump, she was feeling energized by the smell of mountain air, crisp on her face, a refreshing change from the humidity of their home in the city.
"I'm ready for that trail," she said to Will, excitedly wrapping her arms around his neck.
"Wanna run it like we used to?" Will said, laughing.
Rachel slapped his arm. "Funny man," she said. "You're going to pay for that crack when we get to the campsite..."
She grasped her belly with both hands, holding it as though it were a boulder.
"I'm gonna take this belly and give you a great, big mush!" she said, bumping herself against him.
Will looked down at her belly, then up at her before chuckling. "That's not really much of a threat, you know."
Rachel shook her head. "Yeah. I know. You enjoy that too much."
There was a general store and a camper check-in at the beginning of the trail, where campers could pick up supplies or whatever else they might need. There was also a small lunch counter. Rachel mentioned she was feeling a little hungry, so they stopped there to eat and, more importantly, sit for a few minutes before they got to hiking down the trail. The waitress, an older woman with a kind face, looked at Rachel with a furrowed brow as she took their order.
"We don't get too many pregnant moms going to hike the trail here," she said. "Usually women tend to get pregnant when they come up here."
Rachel laughed and put her hands on her belly as it bounced. "We were thinking the same thing when we planned this trip," she said. "We've been coming here for a while now, but instead of getting pregnant here, I've shown up ready to pop!"
"Ya sure look like it," the waitress said. "You sure you're gonna be OK?"
"I am...I'm not due for another six weeks," Rachel said, smiling. "I'm having twins so, I know, I'm huge, but I haven't shown any signs of giving birth early. I saw my OB yesterday and she told me I was A-OK to go away for a weekend!"
"Well, enjoy yourselves!" the waitress said. "The trail might wear you out but the lake is nice and warm if you want a swim."
"A swim sounds heavenly," Rachel replied. "I've got plenty of energy for a hike but I'm sure I'll want a soak afterward..."
Rachel slid her foot up Will's leg as she talked to the waitress. Throughout lunch they exchanged looks and played footsy with each other, looking forward to the moment they would be alone in the silence of the wilderness.
They finished lunch, and Rachel stepped outside to stretch her legs while Will picked up a few extra camping supplies in the general store. He exited to find Rachel with her hands on a tree, stretching out her calves and feet in preparation for the hike ahead. Will slipped up behind her and put his hand in the middle of her back.
"Ready?" he asked.
Rachel stood upright and shook out her arms and legs, then put her hands on her back and leaned backward, pushing her belly out even farther than it was already sticking out on its own. She shook her head, her red hair flailing in every direction before she ran her hands through it, brushing it out.
"Let's do this!" she said, clapping her hands.
The trail was about two miles long. It began with a paved path leading away from the general store, into the woods and past a clearing where there were generally a group of geese congregating. The paved path ended as the trail weaved back into the woods, snaking its way gently downhill towards the lake. Rachel and Will knew the trail well, but, on the other hand, Rachel had never hiked a trail while pregnant.
The path was smooth enough for them at first. Rachel set the pace, with Will a step or two behind, watching her. Most pregnant women of Rachel's size tended to walk with a well-defined waddle. That's not to say that Rachel wasn't waddling, but she walked with a much more gentle stride. She moved well, in spite of her largeness. Her belly shifted gently from side to side as she stepped. Her hips, normally thin, had spread wider and wider as she'd grown through her pregnancy, and swayed from side to side as she moved in a slight sashay. Her back had a pronounced inward bow, running down to her butt, which was big and heart-shaped. Will couldn't help but watch her as she walked, mesmerized by the sight of his sexy wife, her body swollen to its limits by the twins he'd put in her.
They reached the clearing and Rachel turned to him, holding out her hand.
"I know you can't get enough of my big, pregnant butt," she said, grinning, "but I'd love it even more if you walked next to me."
"Sorry," he said, taking her hand. "I couldn't resist."
She giggled and they continued on, back into the woods.
The trail dissolved into a mixture of soft dirt and mulch, mostly shaded from the sun, rising and dipping unevenly through the woods toward the lake. This was where the journey began to get a bit challenging for Rachel. At one point, the trail dipped downward, then turned and immediately went back up a hill. As she reached the bottom of the dip, she paused, put one leg upward on the hill and leaned forward, putting one hand awkwardly on her knees and rubbing her belly with her other hand. Will put his hand on her lower back and handed her a thermos of water. She took a big gulp.
"Thank you...this is...much more challenging than I anticipated..." she said, breathlessly.
"I know," he replied. "Walking on mud doesn't really help either."
She craned her neck forward to look down at her feet and leggings. "How dirty am I? I can't see."
He looked at her feet. "You may want to change when we get to the campsite."
She rolled her eyes and stood up straight.
"Well, let's get on with it." She said. "sooner we get going, sooner we get there, sooner I can get off my feet..."
She dug her foot into the path and grunted as she took that first step up the hill, slowly planting her heels into the dirt of the trail until she reached the top.
"This trail is no fun when you're the pregnantest woman ever," she sighed. "Next time, don't listen to me. We're staying home."
"Next time you're pregnant with twins?" Will chuckled.
"Next time I'm pregnant at all," she replied, slapping his arm again.