And other things were done on this, my first ever camping trip, about which you will also read. Starting now.
As some of you know, my one time Lovely Traveling Companion has retired herself from active duty, and thus on this trip I was accompanied by my Red Bearded Co-traveler, who learned that he truly does enjoy looking at the large body of water that lies along the Pacific Coast, and also that he is still quite prone to migraines, which can and did cause him to spend most of his time in his tent. This development was met with disappointment by the group we met at the site, which included a large amount of my family, among whom there are many smallish children.
I am somewhat convinced that my Red Bearded Co-traveler blames his migraines on that final detail. And perhaps the wine.
Fortunately for him, the first day we arrived he was relatively well, and we spent a good deal of time walking around and marveling at the ocean and the rocky shore. Many pictures were taken on many phones, and I admit that even I snapped a few, a true rarity indeed. The camp site itself was a rather large field surrounded by woods, and could easily have hosted another two hundred people, if not for the fact that we as a family enjoy our space, and thus we spread our tents out generously over the area.
The next part is the part where I drank too much wine (and beer), and had many wonderful and fun conversations that I don’t remember as well as I would like. Apparently I was very excited about inflating and using an inflatable kayak, which was never inflated and used. The following morning I remember with a more painful clarity, especially when I was woken up by a pair of rovers who were loudly threatening to send each other back to prison for theft, until they were directed to take their issues down the road. Part of me wanted very much to get up and watch this performance, but that part lost out to the part that was having trouble opening my eyes at all.
Eventually, with the help of my highly valued friends and family, I recovered enough to lumber over to the community gathering side of the field before slouching into a chair, where I remained for most of the evening, along with another plastic cup that somehow filled itself with more wine. This is when I managed to focus in on the aforementioned card game. I vaguely remembered dipping my toes into “Magic: the Gathering” as a youngster, before deciding I would rather spend my allowance on other nerdy pursuits. As it happens, it is an incredibly complex game with far too many moving parts for a sane person. It does however contain representations of fascinating fantastical beasts, many of which have highly entertaining names. Look them up if you get a minute.
The next morning I felt much better, and woke to the sound of rain drops popping on my tent, and the discovery that after 25 years and a fair number of music festivals, my cheap little tent was finally beginning to leak. I briefly considered this a sign from the universe, as before this moment I’d been thinking I might actually enjoy camping. Upon further reflection, however, I decided maybe the leaks just meant I should upgrade to a better tent, perhaps one of those fancy looking truck bed tents, or at least one that costs more than $20.
Dotted in throughout my stay were indulgences in unhealthy foods, emotional conversations with family members, naps, more unhealthy foods, small spats between children, dogs barking at random passersby despite repeated instructions not to, the smallest of those dogs causing no small amount of concern whenever the shadow of a large bird of prey traversed the ground, and the longest amount of time I’ve ever gone without a shower.
That last part was a little gross, but overall, it was a pretty good trip. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go shower again, and then spend a week eating fresh green things that have nothing in common with hot dogs.
-John
