The week-end after BOW, I was full of motivation and eagerness to see how long I could continue camping/sleeping outdoors, as the cold weather moved in. I headed to Elk Neck SP, as I had a lot to do over the week-end and that park is close.
On the way in, I stopped in the tiny little town of North East to browse through antique stores, bought a beautiful hand-embellished bedspread, and fueled up with fresh coffee and homemade chocolate. Yes, this camping business is not exactly roughing it.
Early Saturday afternoon, the weather was delightful! Sunny. A bit cool, but warm enough if you stayed active. And breezy. The forest floor was carpeted with colorful autumn leaves. Very few folks at the campground (yaay!). They seemed to be more experienced and more mindful of the whole get-back-to-nature concept, and therefore, more quiet. (double yaay!)
My site was one of the few that aren't on the water, yet has a good deal of privacy. There are no sites on either side, and the back faces the woods -- with no site behind me. So, sitting at my tent, in the shelter of the vestibule, I see nothing but autumn woods. Very nice. (triple yaay!)
Some Good Learning Experiences
1) Lousy Packing
As the afternoon drew on, and it got chillier & windier, I realized a packing list is only as good as what you have on it. I learned that I've left a few essentials off, such as: Water. A coat. Towel for the shower. Luckily, none of this caused an emergency situation, because ... my car is right there. I can always Get.In.My.Car. And in worst case scenarios, I can always Just.Go.Home. :)
2) Finally - Night Time Noises
This was the first time I heard an abundance of nature noises during the night. Kept me awake, both from the amount of noise as well as the nervousness over it. [More about this in later posts.] But, likely it was only the wind rustling the leaves, twigs falling, and dead leaves skittering across the gravel tent pad.
3) Camp Fire
Someone had been at the site the day I arrived. They had not completely doused their campfire. When I arrived, there were some tendrils of smoke, and glimpses of red embers. I was able to get a fire going just from that !! I was pretty pleased with myself - lol!
4) Powers of Observation
Every outing I realize how lousy my powers of observation are. I just don't notice the details. On Sunday, while packing up, I noticed these tidbits. What are they?? How long were they there?? Where they there Saturday when I set up?? It's a shame that I don't really know - they could've been. And if they weren't there when I set up, how and when did they get there?
What I Did While I Was There
Ha! Practically nothing. I succumbed to the draw of R&R that comes over me each visit to this park. I did try working on some BOW skills, like tree identification. [More on that in a later post.] But the cold and wind, coupled with my lack of success, ended that idea.
Looks a lot like dog food!
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