Weekend Girls Camping Trip

This past weekend we had a “girls” weekend.  I took my daughter and her 2 friends overnight camping. I learned how to hook up and pull our camp trailer a few summers ago.  It was the summer that my husband chinked our log home.  It was a HUGE process and it literally took him all summer, but there wasn’t anything the rest of us could do to help him once the logs were stripped, so we went camping a couple times on our own.  Yes, I know, trailer camping isn’t REALLY camping, but there are several reasons I like it. One, my back doesn’t love sleeping on the ground, no matter how much of a pad I use, two, we go more often since it’s always set up and ready except for food and clothes, and three it offers protection from the elements, so I’ll be camping in my trailer.

A previous picture of our trailer

What I won’t do is what our lovely campground neighbors did.  We finally got the trailer parked around 2pm, ok so I learned how to pull it, parking it is a whole other ball game, and I’m terrible at it.  I’m worse, when I have 3 tweens, standing in my blind spot, having a conference on when to tell me to turn, rather than actually telling me to turn.  Yep, embarrassing, more embarrassing, when the park ranger stuck behind me while I tried repeatedly to get it backed into the spot, gave me applause when I finally succeeded!  Back to the neighbors, so we get parked, make lunch, then head out exploring, and come back to find the neighbors had parked their trailer, hooked up a large, LOUD, obnoxious generator, and climbed inside!  Now there are only 3 things that my trailer won’t do on the battery power.  It won’t run the air conditioner, the microwave, or the TV (if we had a TV, which we don’t).  It was 88 degrees, so I picture the family of 5, watching movies, popping microwave popcorn, nice and cool with the AC running.

  The girls and I headed to the hot springs, yep I know we’re geniuses going to the hot springs on the hottest day of the year, but one of the girls only swims where she can see the bottom (ie in actual pools), so we spent 2 hours swimming in water as hot as the outdoors, with everyone else in town, because being a genius as I mentioned, we also managed to be heading out there during the Fairbanks Cycling Club, Chena Hot Springs Bike Classic.  So yes I had to dodge bikes, while pulling a trailer, on a road with no shoulder, and by the time we reached the hot springs, all those bike riders were reaching the hot springs and heading inside.  It was crowded, and always fun to see people you know while in your bathing suit.  The joys of small town living.

Photo Credit

The outdoor "adult only" pool in an earlier picture

 Anyway we actually had a great time, and headed back to a nutritious dinner of hot dogs cooked over a fire and smores.  A lovely dinner while listening to our neighbors, still inside their trailer, with the giant, noisy, obnoxious generator still running.  It ran until 8 when we complained a little, and was off for approximately 1 hour until a thunder storm came in.  We headed inside, because that’s the awesomeness of having the trailer.  So I read my Nook, while the girls played board games, and of course it wasn’t too long before the considerate neighbors started up the beast.  I had a great time listening to the girls play Clue, and for some reason in British accents, while reading my book, and secretly wishing the lightning would strike the ginormous generator dead.  No such luck, but we did have one lightening strike disturbingly close, and at 11 they did observe the quiet time and we had some peace.   

Photo Credit

The next morning we did discover there was a mom and 2 girls in addition to the dad and boy (the only family member who moved from the trailer coming outside to ride his bike occasionally).  Of course a day wouldn’t be complete without the TV and microwave, so the generator was going by 9 am.  We explored again in the morning, in the drizzle, and stuck or feet in the river while being bit by tons of mosquitoes before we headed home.

Of course the generator was still running when we headed out, all members of the family inside.  I have to really wonder why the heck they didn’t just stay home, I just don’t get it.  Despite the rude neighbors who ran the generator 11 of the 21 hours we were there (yep I counted), we did have a great time, and the girls are already planning our next camping trip.  As for the neighbors, I hope they stay home, and that I never have the pleasure of camping with them again.