Kate's First S24O

Last fall, I took both boys on an S24O to Alum Creek (though we didn't end up there). In the six months since then, Kate's been regularly reminding me that the next time I take multiple kids on an overnight trip, it was her turn. This Memorial Day weekend, the forecast was absolutely perfect for an overnighter: days in the 70s, nights in the 50s. If you don't make an effort to camp during weather like this, just crawl back inside to the couch and big screen TV and give up.

I planned to go to my favorite (and so far, only, but it will be hard to top) "stealth camping" spot. Henry and Kate and I left after dinner, about 6:30 or so. We stopped again at the dam so Kate could see it:

She was impressed! Next time, we'll have to stop on the west side so we can walk down to the water. But we had our camp site to get to, so we rolled on.



Even though we'd already eaten dinner, it wouldn't seem like much of a camping experience if we didn't cook something. So I boiled water for some truly nasty mac and cheese while the kids gathered flowers to decorate our table:

Our dining atmosphere far outshown the meal.

Before we left for this trip, we were hanging out at our neighbor's cookout. In their backyard, we found a skeletal rabbit haunch under a tree. While we were exploring after dinner, we found  a second rabbit haunch:

What are the chances of two in one day? Although, due to the evidence of some nearby tracks, Henry thinks these came from a deer. A very small deer, I would say.

Henry showed Kate the finer points of setting up our tent:

And then we tucked in for the night to read some stories and look at family videos on my phone.

The next morning, we packed up our gear and had a quick breakfast bar to hold us over, and were on the road by 7:00. Henry was looking forward to our next stop. Kate didn't remember this from when she saw it last summer, but they both loved the electronic game at the Emerald Fields playground:

I was riding my Surly Cross Check for this trip:

Maybe the last big hurrah for the CC... I'm going to build up the Breezer as my next utility bike, and that will leave the Surly in the uncomfortable role of not having a spot to fill. My bikes get nervous when I approach them with the polishing cloth in hand.

We had a light breakfast at the camp site so we could have a bigger breakfast at our usual spot:

We brought donut holes home for Sam. Next trip, this won't be necessary: I'll have all three kids.