Camping II

Later in the summer we met friends in the Sierras for another camping trip.  It felt quite remote, an hour off the freeway.  It was actually right next to the Boy Scout camp where Dad worked for a couple of summers in college.  It is on the banks of a beautiful mountain lake, Lake Sterling.  It was a spectacular location at the end of a rather sketchy road.  We should have known when we passed the sign that said, "4 wheel drive only" in our mini-van with a canoe on top.

We got there late in the afternoon.  There had been a thunderstorm just before, but there wasn't another drop of rain.  The severe drought continues.

The lake was quite low.  There were rocks and tree stumps showing that are normally under water.  This lake is actually a reservoir so we saw stumps of the trees that have been underwater for a long time.

We spent a lot of time out on the water in the raft and canoes.  It was fun to cruise around and land and explore.  There were lots of rocks to scramble around on.  We even went to the far side of the lake to collect firewood.  Our side of the lake had been pretty well picked over after a summer of campers and Boy Scouts.

The kids, the girls especially, spent a lot of time on top of this rock next to where our tents were pitched.  They ate their meals up there and had story time there as well.  It was great to hear the older girl telling the little ones stories during and after lunch.

Dad and I walked up to the spot where he called me 13 years ago during the summer he worked at scout camp.  It is the only place where you can get cell service.  We weren't even dating at that point, but he called anyway.  I'm glad he did.

The littler kids spent a lot of time digging holes in one of the best tent spots.  This wasn't just random digging.  They were building a stage for a performance later in the day.

There was singing in solo and duets.  The girls were really sweet.

After the singing we couldn't pass up the chance for toasted marshmallows.  We also toasted the shoes that had gotten soaked during the day.  That's the way it goes when you camp next to a lake.

There was time for whittling...

 

and fishing.  The fish were quite safe since there were no hooks, line, or bait.

There were also experiments in physics.

The kids loved "mermaid rocks"  These were huge rocks with just the tips exposed.  You could walk from the bank to the rocks, but it was more fun to arrive by canoe.  The other side had a shallow spot then dropped off into the deep cold water.  It was fun to find the warm currents where the water flowed through the cracks in the warm rocks.  The water was cold so they would swim and freeze and then warm themselves up on the rocks until they were just too cold and it was time to get dry.

 

 

On our way down we passed quite a few people out on dirt bikes and ATVs and huge 4 wheel drive trucks on their way up.  I think it might have taken a bit of wind out of their sails to see a canoe-topped-minivan coming down their adventurous road. 

It was a fantastic trip.   I'd like to do it again next year.