Camping- it's in tents!

[Puddleglum]

Four more days before heading out for the last encampment of the year.
Have to figure out my list of everything to bring, and what not, since each time I need something different.
The Mrs. (What would I do without her?! ) has suggested that I put everything on a file on the computer. That way I can revise, and download for every event.
For this one we will be having a lot of school children coming through, so there will be plenty of educational opportunities, and since the attention span of the average child is roughly, lets see five minutes for each year , Not real long!
But it is still fun at times when they "get it". If they can make a string with their hands, and show their parents, it's worth it.
Just praying that the weather forecast is wrong again. They predict rain from Friday, through Saturday.
If only I could convince someone that there were space heaters back in the 1800's.

[stargazer]

Stay warm and dry, Puddleglum! Maybe it won't rain this weekend after all, even though the models are predicting it.

I've enjoyed two camping trips in the past two weeks, and despite the short time between them, the difference in weather was more like 5 months' worth.

Labor Day weekend was warm and humid - almost hot hiking out in the sun. Plenty of mosquitoes. Saturday night the overcast broke and we enjoyed a spectacular view of the Milky Way overhead, a river of light almost from horizon to horizon. I woke up a few hours later to bright flashes outside, almost like a strobe light, to find lots of lightning flashing to the south and west. Despite this show, we didn't get rain from that storm. The weekend felt very summer-like.

This past weekend was a sort of make-up trip for the rainout we had in June. The high Friday was 52F/11C if we were lucky, and the next morning we woke to frost on the cars. It was a bit nippy, but the sky highlights there were Orion and Jupiter blazing in the predawn sky.

The rest of the weekend was partly cloudy and breezy and cool, with only a few mosquitoes. It definitely didn't feel like summer but more like late October - wonderful weather for a polar bear.

Still have a trip or two in the works, along with as many day trips to look at colors as I can get in before the white stuff arrives in earnest.

[Puddleglum]

Frost is always a damper on any campout stargazer. I also hope for a couple day trips to see the fall colors. The red is already showing in the maple alongside the Wig-wam.
The rendezvous went fairly well this year, with only about an hour of wet, and windy on Saturday. Otherwise we had only to deal with some gusts that required tightening some ropes, and pounding some stakes down. It was followed by a rainbow that was near complete.
Friday was busy with over 7 hundred public walking through. Needless to say those of us demonstrating were kept hopping.
Take down on Sunday is always a chore. But it was compounded by the lack of wind. Not that I would complain usually, but the frustrations with said weather mentioned above are as nothing compared to the little flying leeches that it kept at bay. Once it died down to a slight breeze I lost more blood in two hours than lost throughout Thursday to Sunday morning.
But now it is done. Time to clean, and put away cloths, patch holes in canvas, start making more lucets for trade next year, and scratch itches from this one.
Enjoy you next outing everyone. May the Lord of all Creation find you a level place to pitch your tent, a clear view of the heavens, and a clean get away before the mosquitos know you were ever there.

[stargazer]

Sounds like fun Puddleglum! I agree that the mosquitoes remain ferocious even after the frost.

Monday was such a glorious first day of autumn I packed up the tent and gear and went to a state park about an hour away. The fall colors are advancing rapidly and there was a lot to look at. The day was clear and crisp but the flying vampires were out enjoying the day too.

The night was clear and despite the glow from the Twin Cities I could still see the Milky Way and Andromeda Galaxy. I woke up in the wee hours to enjoy the view of Jupiter near the Beehive star cluster (M44).

Tuesday was variably cloudy but a nice day to hike along the St. Croix River to take in more colors. The trip ended with an evening campfire.

I hope to have at least one more trip this year - maybe more - along with some day trips for orchard visits.

[Pattertwigs Pal]

I went on my first camping trip in a long time last weekend. Of course the weather wasn't the best. (And the weekend before and after were nice ) We had to switch from tents to cabins because it was raining and there was the threat of snow on Friday. It sprinkled a little bit on Saturday but we saw the sun occasionally. It was a bit of a challenge because we had planned on cooking over a fire but we couldn't because the wood was wet so we had to figure out how to do it inside. We also forgot some necessary food items but luckily people were arriving the next day so they brought the stuff we forgot. We did get some hiking / walking in but spent much of the time inside talking. The board games were also forgotten. I'm sad we didn't get to have s'mores (minus the chocolate for me). However, despite the last minute changes of plans and the weather the weekend was very enjoyable. We will try next camping season sometime to actually do tent camping.

Most of my camping experience was through girl scouts out in PA and some in IL. I think the PA camping most influenced my camping food vocabulary. I would mention foods we had at camp and get blank stares from my companions until I explained what they were. Here is a sample:
Foil Babies
Mountain Pie Pizza
Mountain Pie
Doughboys

Anyone else use those names?

[Puddleglum]

Pattertwig's Pal.
Too bad about your last experience. I do hope you get a chance to get out tenting next time.
As for forgetting things, well, you can count on one thing. You will always forget something. It is the unwritten law of camping, and thus cannot be changed, nor abridged.
Anyway. In looking at the list of meals I can only give a name to two. The first being a foil meal, or Hobo.
Second might be a flatbread with pizza toppings, with
third being strictly flatbread sandwich, that is hand made dough with meat cooked in the middle.
Forth, being handmade dough fried in a pan, preferrably with a cinnimon, and sugar, or honey coating on it.
A question for you.
Did the Girl Scouts teach you any Dutch oven cooking?

[Pattertwigs Pal]

I think we made Pizza fondue in a dutch oven.

Foil Babies - food wrapped in foil and then put in the fire to cook
Mountain Pie Pizza - basically it is the same idea as a grilled cheese sandwich but with pizza sauce and pizza toppings inside
Mountain Pie -same idea as above except with pie filling inside
Doughboys - canned biscuits cooked on a stick and then filled with cinnamon sugar

[Puddleglum]

The foil Babies are the same from what you are saying. Only we make sure to wait for a bed of coals, lest the food gets burned.
As for the Pie Pizza using the grilled cheese method, I am guessing that you use two irons that hold the slices together, then held over the fire.

[stargazer]

I was one of those people who gave Twig's a blank stare at these terms. )

I also thought you used a pie iron for things like grilled cheese sandwiches or pies. It's one of the camping utensils I use most often.

Hopefully you'll get a chance to tent camp next summer.

I'd planned to camp this past weekend but the campground was full. I could have chosen a different location but I was set on my choice of destination due to the scenic views of Lake Pepin and the nearby apple orchards. I didn't camp but it was a nice day trip capped with a fire and stargazing session.

[aileth]

On Saturday we were out in the woods getting our yearly supply of firewood. There were lots of people camping, but mainly in RVs and campers. There were almost more people out than in the summer; I guess they were taking advantage of the combination of good weather and a long weekend.
Every little pullout along the river had someone parked, some in the provincial camp sites, but mostly anywhere there was enough space to pull a vehicle off the road.

[Pattertwigs Pal]

Yes pie irons are used for the mountain pie pizzas and mountain pies. I wasn't sure what the utensil was called.

[Puddleglum]

Yes, I know I just finished posting about how snow is on the ground here. BUT, Spring is in the air somewhere, and I am packing my gear for a trip down south, ( Iowa that is ). It should be a little warmer there, and though I will not be "camping" as it were because of the building I will be in, I will be outside most of the time with other men, shooting guns, bows, and doing other outdoors kind of things. There will also be a fair amount of bellowing to be heard over the other loud noises, (such as belches after much feasting).
So. are there any others who are looking for the weather to give way to outside activities? Hike, bike, or long treks into the not-yet-bug-infested-wild anyone?

[stargazer]

Last weekend was so pleasant here that I enjoyed a couple fires with friends, including the cooking of some bratwurst. Yum! Quite different from this weekend, which was capped with about 6 inches of snow here and double that just down the road a bit.

I'm eager to get out too, before the bugs and the tree pollen make their annual appearance. No official camping trips are on the docket yet (other than a return to Lake Superior's North Shore this coming Labor Day) but plans continue.

[Puddleglum]

Had my bit of fun with the fellows in Iowa. It included my holding a class in making cordage ( string ) out of natural fibers. It's always enjoyable seeing adults, and kids twist their faces up concentrating as they learn a new skill.
But, now that that's all over, I get to start packing for another trip with some actual camping involved. This time the Boy Scouts are treating the Weblos, ( just one rank before graduating from Cub Scouts ) to a weekend. Hope the weather is good. Not holding my breath, but that's part of the fun of camping isn't it? Not the holding your breath. But I could see the kids being amused for a few minutes.

[coracle]

It's nice reading about camping, when our weather is really packing in for the cold months. I've just got my back garden redone, and now I have to do indoor tasks, but there are certain cupboards in the garage that have camping gear in them, so I can be reminded of summer every time I open those doors!

[Puddleglum]

North Shore on Labor Day? Looks like you will beat me there stargazer. The Mrs., and I will probably have to wait until the bugs are in full gear.
Some of the funnest camping trips are the ones that are spur-of-the-moment ones coracle. Just be sure to pack the bug spray, and some T.P.