Journal Entry #10

We just got back from our camping trip. There were good parts, including roasting marshmallows, spending time with friends, and hiking along a beautiful, rugged mountain trail. There were also lows, including getting lost and extremely tired on our hike and having to sleep in a wet sleeping bag. Overall, it was a pretty good experience though.

Day #1 (Tuesday): We arrived in the afternoon, set up our tents, and started making dinner. After the food and dishes had been cleaned up, my siblings and the young daughter of the people with whom we were camping roasted marshmallows for s'mores. I couldn't have any because of my braces, but I've never been a huge fan of s'mores anyway.

Day #2 (Wednesday): We all rose early, washed up, and ate breakfast. After breakfast we explored the area around our campsite. After lunch, we went on a hike down a mountain, which was beautiful. After a while, though, the trail circled around and we found ourselves trekking up steep paths. A little while after this, we discovered that we were lost, so the men (including my 13-year-old brother) hiked up the mountain to the main road while we girls drank water and ate granola bars. They eventually came back to inform us that we were roughly four city blocks away from our van. We managed to make it back to camp safely, where we ate dinner and played Taboo and Apples to Apples until bedtime.

Day #3 (Thursday): The morning went much the same as Wednesday morning, and after lunch we went fishing. After a quick trip to the visitor's center for some fishing tips, we drove to a small lake nearby. After just a few minutes, however, it started to rain, so we packed up and headed back to camp. Once we arrived, we found that there had been much more than a drizzle at the campground, not to mention hail, which had piled up all over the ground. Since it was still raining, we all headed to our friends' tent, were we warmed up, ate snacks, and played cards. After the rain, we ate dinner and played some more board games. Afterward we decided to get ready for bed, only to discover that rain had entered our tent, and most of it seemed to have landed in my corner. My duffel (which contained my pajamas and clean clothes for the next day) was soaked through, along with my sleeping bag. I ended up sleeping in my clothes.

Day #4 (Friday): We awoke to sunny skies. After breakfast, everyone started packing up. A lot of cleaning had to be done because of all the mud that seemed to coat everything. Around 11:30am, we said our goodbyes and headed home.