Last weekend was Rob's first weekend without studying so we went camping with Jason and Diana. We camped at the Starved Rock State Park in Utica, IL. It was only about an hour away and it turned out to be a great place to go. We really enjoyed it.
Friday after work we packed everything into Jason and Diana's jeep and headed out for another adventure. When we arrived to our camp spot it was already dark so we pulled in and the boys started setting up the tent (our new tent). While the boys were setting up the tent D and I had to make a trip down the road to buy some firewood. When we go camping in Wisconsin you have to buy the wood at the campground due to some rule about bringing wood across the state line so we didn't think to buy any before we left this time. We were told we could buy wood at "Jacks camp store" so we headed out to find it. As we left the campground we proceeded to follow hand painted signs directing us to Jacks. We chuckled as we saw each sign because it looked like a kid had painted the words. As we approached Jack’s house there was a big arrow made out of christmas lights to show us where to go.
So D and I had the pleasure of meeting good old Jack and we even heard a few stories in our short time there. We weren’t as pleased with Jack once we got back to our camp site though. You see it's quite hard starting a fire here in Illinois since everything is so moist and the girls were having a particularly hard time getting this fire going. The boys were watching us as they set the tent up and they couldn't figure out why we weren't able to get the darn fire started. So naturally once they were done setting up the tent they came to relieve us of our fire duties. However they couldn't get it started either, the only way they could keep flames going was by using the air mattress blower to keep a constant amount of oxygen on the wood. We discovered Jack had sold us some very green wood. We were able to roast our hot dogs and a few marshmallows but that was about it. We bought some different wood the next day so we would be able to actually enjoy a fire.
Saturday morning we headed out to explore the park and all of its hiking trails. We hiked to the top of Starved Rock and Lovers leap then we walked along the many trails that lead to the canyons and waterfalls. It was so fun to be in the outdoors walking through nature. The weather couldn't have been more perfect for our long hikes. The sun was out which got a little warm at times but luckily we were hidden in the shade of the trees most of the day and there was a nice light breeze that helped keep us cool.
The only accident we had all day was when Rob tried to go mud sliding. I don't know if he thought it would be fun to slide down the muddy hill or if he was trying is "lite on your feet" technique. Whatever it was, he ended up in the mud. We were lucky that it all dried by the time we made it back to the car so he could just brush off the mess and not have to ride in the car in his panties.
Once we made it back to our camp site Saturday afternoon we all plopped our bottoms down in a chair, and just relaxed the rest of the evening. D and I even took a little nap. We made our delicious dutch oven potatoes and hot wings for dinner and even shared with the neighbors. We seem to have really big appetites when we plan how much food to make so we had an abundance of food to share. After we received high praises from the friendly neighbors they were gracious enough to let us try their apple fritters the next morning.
All day Saturday Rob was suffering from a bad allergy attack so we made a trip to the local grocery store to find some drugs to help relieve him of his suffering. The drugs didn't seem to do the trick though. My poor hubby was having a very hard time breathing do to his asthma kicking in from all the commotion with his allergies. The worst part was that we forgot to grab his inhaler. As we went to bed I could hear his lungs tightening up and he was not doing well. Luckily Rob was able to mentally tell himself to relax and not panic so he could try to breathe a little better. We definitely will not forget the inhaler on any of our next adventures.
Early Sunday morning we put the new tent to the test. We had quite the rain storm come through. As we all just lay in bed listening to the rain and wind it crossed our minds a few times to pack up and get out of there. We could here the commotion around us that confirmed we weren't the only ones thinking it. We decided to give the storm a little longer to see if it would ease up at all. By about 8:30-9:00 the storm was over and the sun came out to play. We all climbed out of the tent and took our time to make breakfast and pack up. Since the sun decided to show its lovely face we were able to get the tent, and everything else, all dry before we packed up.
We made it home that afternoon in time to drop everything in the middle of the floor and drop ourselves on the couch. What a great weekend. We sure do love camping, especially with friends.
Friday after work we packed everything into Jason and Diana's jeep and headed out for another adventure. When we arrived to our camp spot it was already dark so we pulled in and the boys started setting up the tent (our new tent). While the boys were setting up the tent D and I had to make a trip down the road to buy some firewood. When we go camping in Wisconsin you have to buy the wood at the campground due to some rule about bringing wood across the state line so we didn't think to buy any before we left this time. We were told we could buy wood at "Jacks camp store" so we headed out to find it. As we left the campground we proceeded to follow hand painted signs directing us to Jacks. We chuckled as we saw each sign because it looked like a kid had painted the words. As we approached Jack’s house there was a big arrow made out of christmas lights to show us where to go.
So D and I had the pleasure of meeting good old Jack and we even heard a few stories in our short time there. We weren’t as pleased with Jack once we got back to our camp site though. You see it's quite hard starting a fire here in Illinois since everything is so moist and the girls were having a particularly hard time getting this fire going. The boys were watching us as they set the tent up and they couldn't figure out why we weren't able to get the darn fire started. So naturally once they were done setting up the tent they came to relieve us of our fire duties. However they couldn't get it started either, the only way they could keep flames going was by using the air mattress blower to keep a constant amount of oxygen on the wood. We discovered Jack had sold us some very green wood. We were able to roast our hot dogs and a few marshmallows but that was about it. We bought some different wood the next day so we would be able to actually enjoy a fire.
Saturday morning we headed out to explore the park and all of its hiking trails. We hiked to the top of Starved Rock and Lovers leap then we walked along the many trails that lead to the canyons and waterfalls. It was so fun to be in the outdoors walking through nature. The weather couldn't have been more perfect for our long hikes. The sun was out which got a little warm at times but luckily we were hidden in the shade of the trees most of the day and there was a nice light breeze that helped keep us cool.
The only accident we had all day was when Rob tried to go mud sliding. I don't know if he thought it would be fun to slide down the muddy hill or if he was trying is "lite on your feet" technique. Whatever it was, he ended up in the mud. We were lucky that it all dried by the time we made it back to the car so he could just brush off the mess and not have to ride in the car in his panties.
Once we made it back to our camp site Saturday afternoon we all plopped our bottoms down in a chair, and just relaxed the rest of the evening. D and I even took a little nap. We made our delicious dutch oven potatoes and hot wings for dinner and even shared with the neighbors. We seem to have really big appetites when we plan how much food to make so we had an abundance of food to share. After we received high praises from the friendly neighbors they were gracious enough to let us try their apple fritters the next morning.
All day Saturday Rob was suffering from a bad allergy attack so we made a trip to the local grocery store to find some drugs to help relieve him of his suffering. The drugs didn't seem to do the trick though. My poor hubby was having a very hard time breathing do to his asthma kicking in from all the commotion with his allergies. The worst part was that we forgot to grab his inhaler. As we went to bed I could hear his lungs tightening up and he was not doing well. Luckily Rob was able to mentally tell himself to relax and not panic so he could try to breathe a little better. We definitely will not forget the inhaler on any of our next adventures.
Early Sunday morning we put the new tent to the test. We had quite the rain storm come through. As we all just lay in bed listening to the rain and wind it crossed our minds a few times to pack up and get out of there. We could here the commotion around us that confirmed we weren't the only ones thinking it. We decided to give the storm a little longer to see if it would ease up at all. By about 8:30-9:00 the storm was over and the sun came out to play. We all climbed out of the tent and took our time to make breakfast and pack up. Since the sun decided to show its lovely face we were able to get the tent, and everything else, all dry before we packed up.
We made it home that afternoon in time to drop everything in the middle of the floor and drop ourselves on the couch. What a great weekend. We sure do love camping, especially with friends.
To see all the pictures our two cameras snapped go to http://picasaweb.google.com/chicagobowlers
3 comments:
OK, so I am very jealous. I MISS CAMPING! I am going to try to talk Dan into going soon before the baby comes. What would be crazy is if I went into labor in the wilderness. That would actually be pretty cool.
Bri
what a gorgeous place!! i am so glad that the weather is finally warm enough here (well, now hot) so we can be outside!! Please visit my blog (stampin blog) to play a "tag" game!
I love the picture at the top - what a cute couple. We had a blast with you two (even if Rob was sick). Thanks for being such great friends that we can party with all the time!
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