One Last Hurrah
Due to a number of circumstances outside of our control, my wife and I took our last camping trip a couple of weeks ago. Fall is actually one of our favorite times to camp. Many of the parks throughout the state are basically dead once the kids head back to school, and the cool days and cooler nights are the perfect recipe for sitting around the campfire. It's not uncommon for @mrsbozz and I to camp well into the middle of October most years.
Unfortunately, due to some medical issues with one of her family members, we have found ourselves spending more time focusing on that. I mean obviously, that's the most important thing right now, but as we were talking about it the other day, we decided it wasn't going to be worth it to try and squeeze in another camping trip. I'm honestly surprised we went on this last once since the day before we left we spent most of the evening in the hospital.
The family member was adamant that we not change our plans simply because of them, so with a bit of hesitation, we headed up to Otsego (ott-see-go) Lake State Park just south of Gaylord, MI. Actually, the hesitation in leaving wasn't just because of the family member. As we were getting ready to pack up and leave, I discovered the trailer slide was not working properly. If you can't get the slide in the right way, you really shouldn't be towing the trailer, so I knew it had to get fixed.
I crawled underneath the trailer and realized the lag screws had rusted out from one of the slide arms. When I was pulling in the slide, only one side was coming in which made the whole thing crooked. I quickly ran down to the hardware store and got what I needed to temporarily fix the slide. Then we were off.
As we were driving down the road, @mrsbozz said something to the effect of:
"What do people do who aren't able to fix things themselves?"
I said, if that were us, we probably would have had to scrap the trip and try to take the trailer in to the repair place. Either that, or have someone come to our house to look at it. I'm sure it would have cost a pretty penny. I'm glad I was raised to know how to be a bit dangerous with tools and fix a lot of things myself. It's sad that a lot of those skills are fading away.
Due to our late start, we arrived at the campground later than we usually do, so we decided to get some take out for dinner instead of making our own. We ended up going to a local BBQ place that I don't think either of us was overly impressed with. In fact, I can't even remember the name of it and I wouldn't even waste your time with it. The pulled chicken tacos my wife got were okay she said, but the BBQ platter I got was pretty unimpressive. The brisket was more like pot roast, the pulled chicken was pretty dry, and the ribs were just kind of meh.
I'm glad we tried it, but I wouldn't be going there again. At least not by choice.
Believe it or not, it's not always easy to find a camping site that has trees which are conducive to putting up my hammock. I got lucky on this trip however, and I was able to bust it out for the first time in quite a while. I spent the majority of Friday afternoon laying in the hammock reading one of my latests books. It was wonderful!
We had a site right near the water, so we were able to walk down and see the sunset the first two nights we were there. On Saturday night the clouds moved in and we actually spent part of the night inside the trailer because it started to rain. This was the weekend that the big lunar eclipse happened, but we didn't get any good photos because there were too many trees in the direction of the moon. Plus, I didn't really feel like staying up until 1 in the morning. I'm getting old!
It's always a bit bittersweet when we close out another season of camping. It feels like we just started the other day, but here we are getting ready to winterize the trailer before the snow starts to fly. We had some really great memories this Summer and I know I will find myself going back through my photos and remembering them fondly. I can't wait to make more memories next summer. Hopefully I find some better BBQ too!
My Sports Account - @bozz.sports
Come hang out in The Pub
do you have no children? if have then give them a trip also.
Only about 1100 of them.
Congratulations on your successful vacation.
I hope to be traveling for vacations like you soon
Thank you! If you can dream it, you can achieve it!
Certainly, you are right.
Keep the good work up
Thank you!
It's good to be dangerous with tools lol sadly fixing things ourselves is a dying skill. Eventually there will be no one that can even change a tyre. 🤔👍
That is very true!
What a lovely post, even with that bittersweet feeling of it being the last camping trip of the season. I'm glad you were able to enjoy it despite the family circumstances and the trailer issues. What a scare with the slide-out! Good thing you were able to fix it and save the trip. You're absolutely right about those hands-on skills: nowadays many people wouldn't even know where to start, and yet they save you money and headaches.
The hammock sounds like heaven. There's nothing like reading outdoors with the sound of the water in the background. What a shame about the barbecue, those food disappointments hurt even more when you're camping and expecting something special. I hope next summer you find a much better one!
The spot by the water and those sunsets surely made up for everything else. And yes, the lunar eclipse with the trees and staying up late... I totally get it, haha. Sometimes the body just isn't up for those shenanigans anymore.
Thanks for sharing the experience!!
Thanks! It was a really great trip! This is one of our favorite parks in the state and we have been here several times.
That's wonderful to hear! It makes total sense that it's one of your favorites if you've been there several times. There's something special about returning to a place you know and love. Glad this trip turned out so well despite the rough start—that hammock time by the water was well deserved. Here's to many more trips there!
Qué bonita publicación, aunque tenga ese toque agridulce de ser el último campamento de la temporada. Me alegra que hayan podido disfrutarlo a pesar de las circunstancias familiares y de los problemas con el remolque. ¡Menudo susto lo de la extensión! Menos mal que pudiste arreglarla y salvar el viaje. Tienes toda la razón en lo de las habilidades manuales: hoy en día mucha gente no sabría ni por dónde empezar, y eso que ahorra dinero y disgustos.
Lo de la hamaca suena a gloria. No hay nada como leer al aire libre con el sonido del agua de fondo. Una lástima lo de la barbacoa, esas decepciones gastronómicas duelen más cuando estás de camping y esperas algo especial. ¡Espero que el próximo verano encuentren una mucho mejor!
El sitio junto al agua y esas puestas de sol seguro que compensaron todo lo demás. Y sí, lo del eclipse lunar con los árboles y el madrugón... le entiendo perfectamente, jaja. A veces el cuerpo ya no está para esos trotes.
Gracias por compartir la experiencia!!.