Smells Like Camp

Actually that would be what my dining and living room smell like right now. That heart-warming aroma of wood smoke and damp grass that reminds me of many camping trips I've been on.

I was camping last weekend in the lovely soggy sunshine and brisk (okay, cold) temperatures. It wasn't all that bad, it actually felt normal to be at camp in the rain. I know the eskimos have lots of names for snow, we need lots for types of rain like the guy in the Hitchhikers' Guide series. This was an on and off light drenching rain that went to moderate for a couple of hours and even stopped for a while. The temperature was in the 40's, but felt cooler as it always does when raining.

Despite this it seems everyone had a good time. Not many hiked (myself included), but there was Atl-Atl chucking (a spear-throwing method used by many native cultures--"Run like gazelle" as I told the OA member that I wanted to use as a target) and some French and Indian War re-enactors playing the part of the British. There was also a fun OA ceremony involving much fire and flash-bangs that made me smile. I stayed dry and warm through it all and was well-fed by a local troop and the OA who I camped with. The key to staying dry is several hundred dollars of really good rain gear and non-cotton under layers. I realized this as I was pointing out that jeans are not the best idea in cold-damp weather to a 14-yr old Arrowman.

I was disappointed that two troops cancelled because of the weather. Weak. As I have said before, Eagle Scouts and Scouts in general are no smarter than everyone else, just better at dealing with it. Cancelling a campout because of weather (short of an ice storm) doesn't build this trait.

Besides being exhausted when I got home, I had a wet tent and dirty rain gear to handle. The rain gear was easy in that I washed it all in the washer and it is like new again--this is the first time I have done that. The idea with the tent was to hang it in Ed's garage, but that was locked, I don't have a key to it and he is in VA until June. Plan B is why my apartment smells like camp--the tent and rain fly are spread over dining room chairs and bar stools in the living room and the ground tarp is in the bathtub. At least it is already mostly dry. Now I will need to clean it all on a nice day in June when I have access to Ed's garage to hang dry it all in.