“It looks like we will finally get a little color after all!”
I stayed an extra night at Beaver Creek State Park so I’d have an uninterrupted stretch of writing time. The other Girl Campers left Sunday, but my friend Gail is the Camp Host for Beaver Creek so she stayed to keep me company. In the past I have dreaded autumn because winter comes right after. But autumn…sweet autumn. The time of harvests and gold, apples and honey. Crispy, crunchy autumn…I’ve come to love it!
“The curtain closes on another successful Fall What-a-Hoot!”
What a FUN event we had this weekend at the Fourth Annual Fall What-a-Hoot at Beaver Creek State Park with the Girl Campers! OMGosh…we ate and laughed and knitted and crafted. We sat around the campfire every night and talked and talked and talked. We toured each other’s campers. We broke in a newbie. We hugged and prayed and praised.
“Even with a compact, kitchen, cooking in the RPod is really easy.”
Saturday is Soup Day at What a Hoot. The Girl Campers gather at Beaver Creek State Park in the spring and fall…both wonderful times to camp and both offering cool nights when a hot mug of soup is most welcome. Yesterday morning it was all of forty-one degrees when I woke up. The perfect day to get out the crockpot and make something yummy.
“Converting the sofa to a spare bed in the RPod 196!”
I’m Back!!! Mr. FixIt and I had a wonderful time camping together and the little break was just what I needed to recharge. There’s nothing like being in the woods in a little camper. Losing Mr. Virgo taught me to really appreciate every moment and this week has been grand!
On Monday, we checked into Tomlinson Run State Park in the tippy top of the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia. The drive up was lovely as we followed the Ohio River on Rt. 7. Mr. FixIt drove separately and followed along behind me. We got to our campsite by mid-afternoon and unhooked. It’s a lovely campground, located on top of a hill and densely wooded. The sites are all nicely spaced apart from each other. We had electric but no water. That’s not a problem, really. You just use the water you carry with you in your fresh water tanks. We rode our bikes around the campground, we cooked outside, and we spent as much time as we could sitting out looking at the stars.
“Pete’s Pizza…best pizza EVER! Located in Mineral Wells, WV on Old Rt. 14.”
When Daughter #1 and her husband lived on Long Island, we visited her as often as we could. We took the train into the city and had great pizza and bagels. When I visited my aunt and uncle in Chicago, we had some really great pizza. We found a place last night that literally blew everything else out of the water.
“The week in review…dressing up the dinner table, camping like a girl in the RPod 196.”
The crisp nights of fall lend themselves to camping in a big way. The days are still plenty warm to enjoy outdoor activities and the nights are cool enough to sleep well. I love to spend the evening around a campfire…to slide the windows in the camper open and pile on the warm blankets. There’s nothing like making memories in the golden light of fall!
“Leaving love notes behind for your spouse to find later…what a gift!”
My friends and I camped at Beaver Creek State Park last night. We so seldom get together, just the three of us and when we do it’s always so special. It’s always tempting to stay up really late and sleep in the next day, but Janine and I both had long drives home. We called it a night fairly early and were up and ready for coffee by 8:00. We chatted over a leisurely breakfast and prayed for each other before we finally broke camp by 11:00. I pulled in to the Ponderosa around 4:00, dropped off the camper, and turned right around to go back to town for small group. I’m not signed up for this session, but I wanted to visit and share in the fellowship with dear friends from church.
“This barn catches your eye traveling I-80 across Ohio.”
I love to drive. That is probably one of the biggest reasons I love camping…because I have to drive there. Yesterday saw me driving across Ohio on I-80. I’ve never driven this route before. I always travel I-70 when I go to Colorado so I was really looking forward to a change of scenery. Ohio did not disappoint.
The farms of the Buckeye State are beyond beautiful. Looking more like still life paintings by Andrew Wyeth, the farms are pristine and perfect. One barn in particular caught my eye and I had to research it when I got to the campground last night.
“Yummmmm….Mississippi Pot Roast! It’s going to be fall soon and I’m going to cook this when I’m camping with the Girl Campers next month!”
I have heard of this recipe before and have seen it on Pinterest, but I’ve never made it. Our fellow Girl Camper, Lynn Butler came over to the campground Thursday morning toting a crockpot. She set it up in her camper and went off to work for the day. When she came back at supper time and opened the door to her camper, the most wonderful aroma came wafting out over us and we fairly swooned!
“WV Hot Dogs….one of the finest pastries ever to be found in the Mountain State!”
We had a small gathering of Girl Campers who came to see the new R-Pod all dressed up over at Setzer’s on Wednesday. It was a long day and we were all pretty tired by the time we got back to the campground. One of the girls that arrived said she was so excited because she brought WV Hotdogs. I thought to myself…this gal must really like hotdogs. A bit later, someone asked if anyone brought dessert and Deirdre said, “Yep! I brought WV Hotdogs!!!” Everyone was ooooohing and ahhhhhhing. I totally didn’t get it.