It’s a chilly predawn morning, and I’m sitting at a picnic table in Boulder Lake Campground enjoying a freshly brewed cup of coffee and listening to birds sing in the Cheuamagon-Nicolet National Forest somewhere near White Lake, Wisconsin.
The last three weeks have been an absolute whirlwind, and I feel as though even as I sit here in the calm of the morning, the figurative winds around me are failing to subside
As Natalie continues to recover from her concussion, we were able to sell our cherished Airstream Excella the last week of July. We used the proceeds towards the purchase of a new Keystone Montana Fifth Wheel Camper. I was able to pick up the camper on Saturday, July 25. The maiden voyage home to the Steinthal property was uneventful, albeit somewhat nerve-racking for me.
I spent the preceding week clearing our country home drive of all overhanging tree branches and various overgrowth so the 14-foot-high trailer would have plenty of clearance upon arrival. Luckily, I was able to make it into the drive and across the driveway bridge without incident, and the bridge didn’t collapse from the weight! I honestly worried a bit that I would somehow end up with the camper in Cedar Creek as I took it over our bridge, not really knowing what the weight limitations of the structure are. Still, I figured that much more significant and heavier machinery successfully made the trek onto our property in the past while constructing the lodge, the tennis court, and pole barn.
We then spent the next week after work trying to learn about the camper and provisioning it for our planned first trip into the Wisconsin Northwoods.
The following weekend, just as we planned to travel to a friend’s vacation home in northern Wisconsin we learned that Natalie’s father, who was recently diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, was in failing health and needed to be extricated from his home and moved into a facility that was able to provide for his basic needs.
We ended up canceling some of Natalie’s physical therapy and doctor appointments, packed a few bags, jumped into the car with the kids, and drove straight to Tennessee. We spent most of the week in Oak Ridge with her family cleaning out his home, getting him admitted into a hospital for acute care, and then subsequently transferring him to his new facility which provides 24/7 care. To see the change in his appearance upon our arrival and after he was finally moved was truly remarkable, and his children should be very happy with the end result!
After our brutal 11-hour drive back home early Thursday (August 6) morning, we were immediately charged with last-minute preparations and plans for the week-long trip in our new camper and our departure of Saturday, August 8. I still think we have a bit of a problem overthinking our “needs” and we subsequently overpacked for the trip. With two Great Danes along for the trip, the three kids, Natalie and I found ourselves needing to take two vehicles.
We packed the dog beds, two paddleboards, various large inflatable rafts and toys, a grill, tables, chairs, six bikes, clothing for a month for all, over a dozen pairs of shoes, rollerblades, two canvas canopies, food and drink galore and even two very large stuffed animals (Gems the Panda and Rainbow the Koala), two toy strollers and two toy baby cribs at the behest of Natalie’s girls and despite my objections. We all know who’s the boss in this relationship……
Every time I go camping, I am always reminded of the ungodly amount of work it seems to entail, especially when it involves kids and dogs. I still fantasize about my perfect camping experience in which I arrive at a scenic and quiet lakefront site, easily set up a small tent, start a fire and take in the solitude and casual conversation while drinking a chilled glass of white wine and enjoying a plate of cheese and crackers. As I sit, I watch the sunlit sky over the lake as the sun slowly dims away into various shades of orange, red, and purple hues.
In reality, it seems like my camping experiences are more like what might be seen on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, with kids and adults moving around the campsite in different directions and at a frenzied pace, often yelling at each other with various arm and hand signals, trying to get the bikes out and put together, inflating all the beach toys, eating hot dogs and plenty of non-diet soda, all while trying to organize the site with chairs, canopies, tables and coolers, all perfectly placed for the weeklong adventure. All this is happening as music blares from various Bluetooth speakers strategically placed around the site to best enjoy the hi-fidelity stereo sound. Solitude and calm are nowhere to be found…..
With my very limited experience of hitching and unhitching a fifth wheel (I did it once before I pulled into the campsite), I managed to add an element of excitement for the entire campground upon our arrival while preparing to back into our site for the first time. I had no time in advance to practice with this camper because of our unexpected travel to Tennessee.
My specific hitch is made for a short bed truck, and it slides into two positions depending on if I’m hauling on the road or maneuvering at the campsite. Basically, this allows the truck to make sharper turns while at the site and backing in and it moves the hitch over the rear truck axle when hauling in order to provide more stability.
Unfortunately, as I was trying to make the transition between the “Hauling” and “Maneuvering” locations on the hitch, I pulled the incorrect pin on the hitch and drove forward a bit to transition to “Maneuver” and subsequently completely unhitched the trailer which forcefully dropped onto the liftgate of the truck with an amazingly loud bang and earth-shattering thud while Natalie stood outside and watched!
The sound of the trailer slamming into the back of the truck paled in comparison to the ear-piercing scream that emanated from Natalies’ mouth, which then caused an immediate stir in the entire campground. People were running from all the surrounding sites to help rescue us from this embarrassing situation. I calmly pretended like everything was just fine and it was just some sort of strange malfunction in the hitch easily remedied and managed to calm the commotion with our future neighbors.
Luckily I was able to quickly jack up the camper and hitch it back up with absolutely no damage to the truck or the trailer albeit my ego was slightly damaged after the ordeal. I successfully backed the 40-foot behemoth into the site after a couple of tries and several readjustments and secured it for the weeklong extravaganza.
We spent a couple of hours searching the national forest for downed trees that we are allowed to cut up for firewood. With chainsaws and a portable splitter along, we were able to cut up and fill the back of one truck with split firewood that would last the entire week. It was a lot of work, but very rewarding in the end.
Our days were spent mostly entertaining kids and dogs and dogs and kids. Every now and then I was able to speak a few words to the group in between the various simultaneous kid and adult conversations, but found myself mostly sitting in a chair next to the fire contemplating that sunset while holding my imaginary glass of chilled white wine and plate of cheese and crackers. I settled for a shot of fireball and some Doritos instead.
Our friends brought along a projector, and along with our catalog of old DVDs we were fortunate enough to watch Back to the Future on a sheet one evening while eating freshly popped campfire popcorn!
Our campsite was located right next to the lake so we had direct access to the large lake in our backyard. The dogs cherished their time experiencing water like that for the very first time. It was especially fun to watch Willow walk into the lake as she notoriously refuses to go outside any time after it rains for fear of getting her feet wet. A princess indeed!
After a week of action-packed adventures, it was time to start the day-long routine of packing up all the gear we brought and make for home. Why did we bring all this stuff? In the end, the trip was a huge success and despite a few hiccups and stressful moments during the week, I think Natalie and I can finish this one week vacation satisfied, but also wishing we could have a vacation after the vacation! Instead of rejuvenated, we were exhausted……and dreaming of that chilled glass of white wine, cheese and cracker platter, and neverending solitude during a colorful sunset.
