Our trial run with the camper was a huge success! It started off kind of shaky, but only improved. We drove through Jamaica State Park and had plenty of spots to pick from. We all weighed in on the options and all agreed on our choice: private, but not too far from the bathroom.
Then it was time to erect the camper for the first time of the season. It’s a fairly complicated process and I could tell from Andy’s face that it would be better if Emma, Henry and I all went AWAY instead of “helping”. So we biked off and had a great time. There was a beautiful shady path along a river. Every so often was an informational sign telling us about the history of the area (we were biking on a former train track) and the native animals and plants. The kids seemed to enjoy stopping to read the information and then enjoyed playing in the playground. After what seemed like plenty of time to get the camper all set up and the campfire going for dinner, we headed back to the site. The camper looked fine, but there was no fire and it was definitely dinner time. As we approached I could see Andy inside the camper reading. Hmm. Then came the hilarious discovery that poor Andy will not live down, that he was locked in the camper! He insists that he was not “locked in”. He could get out if he wanted to. It was just a “procedural error”. What was funny was it appeared that someone had locked him in; the latch is on the outside of the door up high. Apparently it comes into play when the camper is collapsed; it holds things in place. But otherwise, it looks ridiculous because it’s only purpose would be to lock someone inside the camper.
So we let Andy out and started dinner. Dinner was a success: grilled lemon chicken, guacamole, beans, etc. that we rolled into tortillas. Of course this was followed by s’mores. Clean up was interesting. I think the few times we camped last year, I brought the dirty dishes home and threw them in the dishwasher. I was tempted to do the same, but thought we should practice what it will really be like. Emma and Henry made multiple trips to get water, which we heated on the fire. We took turns washing and drying. Getting the water the right temperature was tricky. As I was rinsing some sloshed on Henry and it was quite hot.
Breakfast also went well: bacon, pancakes, coffee. We forgot maple syrup, so Andy made a trip to the general store. We took a nice bike ride together along the same path I took with the kids the day before. Breaking down the camper seemed to go well.
The one night in the camper made me consider a number of things we will face this summer:
-Being really clean with food. How clean do we need to be? I’m sure we left crumbs etc. The end of the dishwashing was in the dark. Will our messiness attract unwanted critters? Pre-kids, Andy and I once left Montana’s dog food out while camping in Maine. We were woken up in the middle of the night by what sounded like a LARGE animal eating her food. We were brave enough to take a peak with a flashlight while trying to keep Montana quiet. It wasn’t a bear as I thought, but a skunk. A skunk that was awfully close to our little tent filled with a growling dog and the two of us. All ended well.
-Dishwashing. I like my dishwasher. Emma and Henry were eager to help for this one night of “Let’s do it the way the Ingalls did” experience. Will their enthusiasm for dishwashing continue?
-Sleeping. I was reminded of what a light sleeper I am. Maybe it’s just my family-but people can be noisy when they sleep. Not to mention all of the potential noises of other campers if the sites are close or wildlife. The kids are sharing a double bed at one end of the camper and Andy and I are in a double bed at the other end. In the middle of the night Henry made it over the table and into our double sleeping bed. I was pinned between Andy and Henry unable to turn. I finally decided to make my way across the camper and sleep in Henry’s empty sleeping bag; his “junior size” sleeping bag. I felt like I was cocooned; not in a good way. The up-side: I think Emma is the quietest sleeper of the group and moves around the least.
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