Holly's Birthday Camping Trip

Day One

Estimated time of departure was set for 7:00 am Friday morning, which meant we left at 10:30 am. We traveled for about and hour and a half up I-77 N from Charlotte to Elkin, NC, then another thirty minutes on US 21 N to Stone Mountain State Park. We stopped for gas at the foot of the mountain at an ancient gas station. While Robbie was inside, a group of fishermen asked him if he was going camping. He said yes, for a couple of days. The fishermen wanted to know what the trailer was for if we were only camping for a few days. Robbie answered, “That’s for my wife’s makeup.” Razz

We found a very nice campsite and had a blast setting up our new Big Agnes 6-person tent for the first time. Robbie isn’t the most patient person and he was bellowing and barking orders like a drill sergeant while Ashley and I ignored him like we usually do but we managed to get the tent up and staked down within an hour. And Robbie only cursed about five times, a record in restraint for him!

Robbie drove back down the mountain to go pick up some extra firewood. Ashley and I decided to get the fire going while he was gone. My proudest moment came when Ashley used my mag/flint stick and pocketknife and got a fire going in just a few seconds! Way to go, Ashley! I boiled a pot of water and made our afternoon tea.

We bought a couple of solar powered lanterns just to see if they really work. I put those in the sun to charge up. We started blowing up the air mattresses, using Ashley’s bicycle pump. OMG, it took an hour and a half to pump up three mattresses. Next time, we will bring the electric pump and hook it up to the truck battery. But it was good exercise. My triceps are killing me! Very Happy

I piddled around the camp, putting our sleeping bags inside the tent, straightening up our gear. The Big Agnes tent has really neat mesh pockets all along the lower inside tent wall to put your stuff in. It is a perfect place to keep eyeglasses and flashlights.

Ashley found a lizard on a tree to play with. I wondered why it suddenly got really warm and I turned around to see that Mr. Pyromaniac had built the fire up big enough to roast a pig in! LOL!!! Oh, well, he loves playing with fire, so I just let him be…

It was a great idea to bring the trailer to keep all of our stuff in. It made the camp itself look so neat with just the fire pit, the grill, a picnic table, the tent, and our chairs sitting around. And at night, all we have to do is close the back of the trailer to keep the critters out of our food.

For beginner campers, a state park is a wonderful way for someone to be introduced to camping. We decided after a couple of hours that it is just a bit too civilized for what we want, though. The campers next to us brought out their portable stereo and forced us to listen to Randy Travis and other equally obnoxious music for hours and hours. Razz

But the icing on the cake came at dinner when they brought out a TV!!! Robbie and I decided we’ll try the backpacking camping area next time. Very primitive compared to where we were this time!

A nice thing though, is having a bathroom/bathhouse with hot showers within a hundred yards of your campsite, especially if you have the world’s smallest bladder…

Our first night’s dinner was delicious! I brought out all the ziplocks full of the veggies I had chopped up the night before and the marinated cubes of steak and we sat around the table putting our shish kabobs together. We laid them on the grill and in ten minutes, dinner was done! No mess, no fuss. Then we sat around the firepit, munching on chips and dip and roasting marshmallows. Okay, Ashley and I burned ours, pulled the burned part off and ate it, then repeated the process over and over again while Robbie turned green. He hates marshmallows! LOL!

Those solar powered weatherproof lanterns work GREAT! They have two settings, low light and high light and last a long time before needing to be recharged. You can even plug them into a car charger if needed. I hung one up in the tent and kept one on the picnic table.

We were pretty sleepy by 10:30 pm, so Ashley and I crawled into our sleeping bags and left Robbie to tend the fire for awhile longer. I must have passed out because when I woke up at 2:00 am, (having to pee, of course) I was still in the same position I had fallen asleep in and I had drooled! HAHAHAHA!!!

It was COLD that first night! Well, around 40*F, but cold for this Southern woman. I was wearing a base layer and wool socks under my flannel pajamas, but I was shivering by the time I got my shoes and jacket on. I grabbed my windup LED flashlight and headed for the bathroom.

It was dead silent and pitch black at that hour and sort of creepy walking through the woods to the bathroom. I kept sweeping my flashlight back and forth, almost hoping to see some shining eyes just to scare myself for the fun of it! It was actually beautiful walking in such darkness, looking up through the trees seeing the most incredible display of stars, something I never get to see in the city…

Day Two

We woke up around 6:00 am. I went to take a shower while Robbie and Ashley built the fire back up. When I got back, they had a big mug of hot tea waiting on me. How awesome! I started breakfast and we ate like pigs on hickory smoked bacon and scrambled eggs and toast. After cleaning up, Robbie and Ashley headed for the showers while I packed my daypack with water and healthy snacks. Okay, so I filled my daypack with Riesen candy. But I did pack some peanut butter crackers and trail mix too!

We drove up to the trailhead to go climb the rock face of Stone Mountain. What an incredible climb! The trail is only about three quarters of a mile, but it is straight up. For some reason, my asthma got really bad on this trip and I had to stop every few feet to catch my breath. Robbie must have felt bad for me because he took my daypack and hauled all our water and snacks up the side of the mountain. I loved having my personal Sherpa along! LOL! After we broke out of the tree line, we were amazed at the huge expanse of sheer rock leading straight up to the top of the mountain. It was so awesome! It took us another thirty minutes to slowly climb up the face of the rock to the summit. All of us sat and rested several times at this point. When we reached the top, we just sat there for over an hour, listening to the wind in the valley below us, watching the eagles soar around the rock, enjoying the beautiful view and the gorgeous day…

Coming back down the mountain? Piece of cake! Cool

View from the road below

My girl!

We got back to the campsite around 3:00 pm. Evidently, it was a tougher hike than Robbie admitted, because within fifteen minutes, the tent was filled with the sound of his snoring…

Dinner this night was simple, just hamburgers. We roasted some potatoes in the coals and ate those later that night. Yummy!

Day Three

We were up again around 6:00 am. This morning was very leisurely and unhurried and very relaxed. We just piddled around, enjoying the beautiful morning, the warm fire, and each other’s company. We broke camp around noon and were on the road in less than two hours, all of our gear already cleaned and stored in plastic bins, ready for our next trip.

This was truly one of the best birthdays I have ever had…

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"Home Sweet Home"

A great read and great pics Very Happy

Oh, and happy birthday Very Happy

eric

Thank you so much! I'm doing good for an old gal, aren't I? LOL!

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"Home Sweet Home"

Wow, looks like you had a great time, I hope to get out for my birthday next weekand! Laughing

Great outing Holly. Very Happy

For my birthday, im packing my canoe up & heading out on a lake for around 5 to 7 days. Cant wait !. Cheers.

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A Knifeless Man is a Lifeless Man
Canadian To The Core
Carry Less by Knowing More
Knowledge Weighs Nothing

I honestly can't think of a better way to spend your birthday than in the fresh air and sunshine! I know you're going to have an awesome time too, Dave!

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"Home Sweet Home"

Hey holly glad you had fun!

FUN, FUN, FUN!!! Very Happy

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Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend. - Prov. 27:17

That big rock area looks awesome!

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"There dosen't look like there's much shelter over in those mountains, but that's the only choice I got right now, this is gonna be a long week" - Les Stroud Arctic

Nice fire picture Holly, glad you had fun Very Happy

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It's not climbing the mountain to get to the top; it's climbing the mountain to enjoy the climb.

Great pics, Glad you had a good time !

Haha she posted this in april Razz

I bet she would say thanks but shes really busy latey Very Happy

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"There dosen't look like there's much shelter over in those mountains, but that's the only choice I got right now, this is gonna be a long week" - Les Stroud Arctic