Experimental Trip #2
Friday, January 15, 2015
Our first camping adventure went more smoothly than we had expected but we needed to get more kinks worked out with this whole “glamping” thing. So it was back at Ft Yargo for us, prepared to learn even more. The rain came down pretty hard as we got the trailer hooked up to the truck & hit the road. After the long, arduous 15 mile ride, we pulled back into Campground #1, hoping to snag the same spot as the previous weekend. Unfortunately, someone had already laid claim to that spot so we settled for one just a few spaces over. It turned out to be an even prettier spot, overlooking the lake, & in closer proximity to the bathhouse! WIN! I stood out in the cold rain & directed Perry into place – sort of. It’s a stretch to say I was directing when he won’t listen & does it his way. But, he did good after a few backwards & forwards. One of the other campers who patiently waited to get by even rolled down his window to say Perry did better than most. I kind of wondered if that meant another trailer had ended up in the lake earlier. Let’s hope not!
After getting the trailer in, disconnected from the truck & leveled, we headed back out to buy the groceries, have a LATE lunch & then went home. I had a few more tasks to complete for my Sweet Tea’s Soaps & Stuff business, the dogs needed baths & I needed to make sure I had brought everything I had collected to complete our setup – the plan is to be able to grab a few clothes & what groceries we need for a spontaneous trip in the future so everything else has to be on board as if it’s “home.” We loaded up the pups & drove back over to the campground just as the sun was setting so the outside “set-up” was put off until the morning. As we were backing in to our spot, the woman in the next trailer over was walking her dog. The pooch just happened to be dumping a load. His owner didn’t have any poopy bags & I suspect was intending to leave the pile where it landed. But she did eventually come back around, sans dog, & scoop it up. Thankfully. All was stowed away in our humble home on wheels. The campsite wasn’t as quiet as it was the previous weekend – more campers & kids – but the sounds were happy. We had not figured out the TV reception or internet & I’m not a fan of doing FaceBook on my phone so I was happy curling up with my Nook, soon to be absorbed in a good “Who Done It” novel. Life is good!
Saturday, January 16, 2016
We had a wonderfully peaceful night & a tasty breakfast of bacon & eggs. The fire alarm didn’t even go off! Of course, I had already taken the battery out so it wouldn’t have the opportunity to scream, “You are a ditz in the kitchen,” as it did the previous weekend. Perry walked the dogs around the loop & came upon a woman doing her laundry at the bath house – she was dressed in a negligee. Oh my! Since we were so close to Statham, we decided to go home for showers instead of using the bathhouse in the park. They are clean but home is always better. I had made a list of a few items that would be helpful so we packed those up & returned to camp. Perry made the most awesome lamp out of an old minnow bucket art piece we picked up some time ago. He made a hole in the back & put Christmas lights in it – just perfect as a nightlight right outside the door! And the bent handle by the door from the “opps” the previous weekend makes hanging that light even easier. No need to “repair” our “custom” handle!
We got the dog stroller out & took the pups for a ride on the trails & then allowed them to walk on their leases back to camp. They LOVE sniffing! AND we set up a wonderful doggy playpen with fencing I ordered on Amazone all around our “front yard”. The girls loved being out there, unrestrained, so they could talk to the neighbors & dogs.
Our good friends, Chris & Suzy Humble, came out to have dinner with us. Perry & Chris grilled steaks outside while Suzy & I made baked potatoes, corn & salad inside. I swear, nothing tastes as good at home, even made the same way, as it does while camping. It must have been the lake fumes that added to the flavor! We ended the evening sitting around the campfire just chatting about life. Thanks to the firewood Chris brought we had a beautiful fire & made precious memory with two very special friends!
Sunday, January 17, 2016
There was apparently a little rain during the night but it sure didn’t wake us up. We slept like logs! I vaguely remember hearing the train whistle from downtown Winder – amazing how it feels as if we are far from civilization yet there is a small city so close. Since our real house is just a block from the train tracks in Statham, I’m pretty used to the whistle during the night & it was more of a comfort than a disturbance to us.
The sun was just peaking out when the dogs decided we needed to get up. Perry took them for a walk while I made coffee & got much of the bedding put away. The Murphy bed is easy to lift into place but it sure is hard to make up as you have to be crawling around ON the bed to pull the sheets & blanket smooth (a necessity to make sure there are no bulky areas that would prevent it from fitting flat against the wall). You can’t come at it from the sides as there are storage cabinets there so I consider it my morning workout. After breakfast we took the dogs for a car ride all over the park. The big picnic pavilion had a huge tree fall right through the middle of the roof some weeks prior causing a lot of damage. The tree had been removed & repairs, I’m sure, were scheduled to begin soon. This & all of the structures in the park were absolutely amazing!
Perry watched a movie when we got back to the trailer (it came with a TV & DVD player) & then we began dismantling the campsite. The new dog run panels folded flat & have proved to be perfect! It was super easy to get the trailer ready to go on the inside & all the equipment stowed in the outside compartments. It didn’t even take 30 minutes. Our trip to the dump station went MUCH better than the first time. I even had a small squirt bottle of bleach to disinfect the part that we stow in the side compartment. The only “hitch” is the hitch itself. Perry bought a specialty tow kit that keeps the trailer from swaying & we didn’t have it completely figured out because it squealed awful when we were turning corners. That MUST be figured out QUICK or I will have a nervous breakdown thinking the trailer is going to be spinning off into the sunset when we get on the open road!
Once home, I had my requisite soak in the jets. I didn’t feel as dirty as I did after our first adventure & we both felt more relaxed than exhausted this time. Until our next go around … All who wander are not lost!
