Had a great trip this weekend in the George Washington National Forest out past Harrisonburg, VA. We focused more on the camping and the relaxing and less on exploring and don't regret it one bit. Weather was awesome and it felt really good to connect with the woods and family.
Felt like we brought the entire house, but no worries as we had plenty of room in the back of my Silverado to bring whatever we wanted. So we did, and put it all to good use at one time or another. I love that Husqvarna 40V battery powered saw....always amazed at the work it can do...quietly....with minimal mess or fuss.
We brought the big tent....I like room to stand and I like things organized, so this tent gives us plenty of room. It's just an older Walmart Ozark Trail but I take care of it and she's still going strong.
Our preferred campsite was occupied so we scouted out a new one. At first it looked a little too rough and had a lot of trash, but actually turned out to be quite nice once we got set up and cleaned up a little. We spent 3 enjoyable days here and it quickly became a home away from home.
I had some new gear I was trying out, like my Lifetime 55qt cooler which did amazing. Also first time bringing a side table which felt like a violation of some roughing it camping code, but I'm converting from a backpacking mindset and the older I get the more I appreciate making things relaxing and enjoyable with more gear. Also had re-done my organization into 2 Rubbermaid Action Packers (24 gallon and 8 gallon) and fairly pleased with my various camp kitchen and miscellaneous gear organization.
Biggest surprise was setting up camp and realizing I left my Coleman stove 2 hours away
. I was ready to go find a replacement at the nearest hardware store when the g/f made an executive decision that we can make do with the campfire. Good call and we did just fine. I still prefer the stove since I'm the cook, and it makes coffee faster for sure, but the firepit did awesome.
It was a trip for relaxing so I read a good adventure book recommended by site member @Billiebob called '20,000 Miles South' about an amazing Jeep trip from Alaska to Tierra Del Fuego. Highly recommended. You can download a copy from archive.org. In between reading and cooking and making the campsite very homey we did some trail exploring, hiking and hanging out by Switzer Lake.
Met some nice folks. Had a middle-of-the-night false alarm thinking we had a bear in the camp (it was just a deer). A real good relaxing trip and actively planning our next trip to the Monongahela National Forest in September.
Felt like we brought the entire house, but no worries as we had plenty of room in the back of my Silverado to bring whatever we wanted. So we did, and put it all to good use at one time or another. I love that Husqvarna 40V battery powered saw....always amazed at the work it can do...quietly....with minimal mess or fuss.
We brought the big tent....I like room to stand and I like things organized, so this tent gives us plenty of room. It's just an older Walmart Ozark Trail but I take care of it and she's still going strong.
Our preferred campsite was occupied so we scouted out a new one. At first it looked a little too rough and had a lot of trash, but actually turned out to be quite nice once we got set up and cleaned up a little. We spent 3 enjoyable days here and it quickly became a home away from home.
I had some new gear I was trying out, like my Lifetime 55qt cooler which did amazing. Also first time bringing a side table which felt like a violation of some roughing it camping code, but I'm converting from a backpacking mindset and the older I get the more I appreciate making things relaxing and enjoyable with more gear. Also had re-done my organization into 2 Rubbermaid Action Packers (24 gallon and 8 gallon) and fairly pleased with my various camp kitchen and miscellaneous gear organization.
Biggest surprise was setting up camp and realizing I left my Coleman stove 2 hours away
. I was ready to go find a replacement at the nearest hardware store when the g/f made an executive decision that we can make do with the campfire. Good call and we did just fine. I still prefer the stove since I'm the cook, and it makes coffee faster for sure, but the firepit did awesome.
It was a trip for relaxing so I read a good adventure book recommended by site member @Billiebob called '20,000 Miles South' about an amazing Jeep trip from Alaska to Tierra Del Fuego. Highly recommended. You can download a copy from archive.org. In between reading and cooking and making the campsite very homey we did some trail exploring, hiking and hanging out by Switzer Lake.
Met some nice folks. Had a middle-of-the-night false alarm thinking we had a bear in the camp (it was just a deer). A real good relaxing trip and actively planning our next trip to the Monongahela National Forest in September.
