Paulina Lake Sunrise, Little Crater Campground, Aug. 22, 2010:

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

At Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy, if you miss a day, you miss a lot!  All material on this post is copyrighted and not for use without my permission ...Please click here to go to my home page and see what is happening in Mayberry today.
 

Cary's Harem:

On Friday afternoon, the campsites were filling up quickly.  We knew that somebody was sure to claim the space next to us.  We just hoped that they would be nice.  Soon, two little Subaru's pulled up with a hiking group of women from Grants Pass, Oregon.  Yay! Instant friends! 

Cary immediately claimed them (and me) as his harem girls.  He enjoyed being the only guy with the seven of us women.  After they got their camp all set up, we took them on a boat ride around the lake for site seeing and getting to know each other .  Then Cary treated us all to dinner at Paulina Lake Lodge.  We had so much fun that night and the rest of the weekend with them.  We could not have asked for better camping neighbors.

Remember, you can click on a photo to enlarge it for better viewing.

"Cary's Harem":
Me, Sandy, Amanda, Ellen, Ruth, Jan and Marilyn

Sandy, Amanda, Marilyn and Ruth

Jan, Ellen and Cary

Ruth, Jan, our friend Maria and Cary

The next morning, I tagged along with the ladies to the Big Obsidian Flow guided hike, and will be sharing that with you soon.

Camping Adventures: Thursday

Yesterday was a good day.


We were blessed in a work situation that mutually benefits us and our new security people.  Plus, Paulina Lake Lodge had upgraded our  spot at the dock, which was so nice of them.

We took the dogs up to camp and then went on a three hour fishing cruise on Paulina Lake.  Two fighter jets flew overhead.  I missed those shots, but look at what I did get:

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 A Bald Eagle catching a fish.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

A noisy Blackbird fighting with his brother.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

A husband who ...

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

watch carefully ...

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

caught one fish in three hours and who wished 

very much that he caught more than that.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

There were some people kayaking...

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

A few other boats out on the lake fishing ...

The lake was just doing it's own thing by being there.  When we were over by the slide, I began missing Cary's Dad, Troy.  That was one of his favorite spots to fish.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

We got back to camp and let the Sonny and Dana out of the trailer.  Then Cary took them each on a golf cart ride.  It was Sonny's first time; Dana's second.  I didn't take any photos and Cary wishes I would have.  They were all so cute.  I'll take some later, because I think this is an ongoing family tradition now.

We visited with some of our new neighbors.  One couple is from Bend, another from Seattle.  Jimmy and Carole, the camp hosts, returned from their weekend away.  Even so, we gave away some more wood, this time to the people from Seattle.  

We made a fire and heated up the chili from the other day.  Then we hooked up the little t.v. and watched a movie and went right to sleep.  We woke up at 5:30, and I am still so tired.  I kind of miss being home and having my regular routine back.  I think this going back and forth between two worlds is wearing me out.  I am looking forward to camping this weekend with our family and friends though.

Hope you guys all have a wonderful weekend!

At Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy, if you miss a day, you miss a lot!  All material on this post is copyrighted and not for use without my permission ...Please click here to go to my home page and see what is happening in Mayberry today.
 

Tuesday's Camp Out:

On Tuesday, we went up to the lake in the afternoon, taking the dogs.  There was supposed to be a big thunder and lightening storm on its way, and I knew that they would be happier with us.  They want their mom when they get scared.

Here are some photos of the clouds up at the lake shortly after we arrived at camp:

  Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

  Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

  Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

  Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Cary decided to go out fishing on the boat before the storm hit.  Sonny, Dana and I stayed inside the trailer.  We heard the thunder and got some rain, but I never did see any lightening.  

Cary did see lightening, but the fishing was good and he was enjoying himself, so he stayed out there for several hours.  I made him take his cell phone when he left, but it really doesn't work where we are.  After a couple of hours, I started to worry.  All I had was a golf cart for transportation and VERY SPOTTY cell phone service.  If it got too late and my best friend husband was still gone, I would need to enlist the help of fellow campers, because I am not too sure how safe it is driving around on a golf cart during a thunder and lightening storm.  On fresh chip-seal; with no helmet.  In the dark.

Who would I ask to help?  During the time I was putting together my contingency plan, hardly anybody without a motor home was camped nearby.  If I had a motor home, I wouldn't disassemble camp for somebody else (though I would offer to see if my cell service was better than theirs.)  Roger and his wife (from two spots down) did not seem like a good bet either.  They had just passed by walking their dogs and drinking huge cocktail glasses full of something.  They were not planning on having to drive anywhere the rest of the day, I could tell.  The camp hosts were still in Washington, which we knew for sure since everybody kept coming over and getting wood out of the back of our pick up instead of buying theirs.  The camp host wood was all locked up in a dog kennel with a sign that read:  "Please purchase your wood prior to 8:00 p.m.  Thank you."  

To cover my bases, and to let him know that I really did care, I tried to call Cary and leave a voice mail.  It said, "Honey, I love you and miss you and am worried about you!"  So I could tell Search and Rescue that I had tried to contact my husband at around 4:30.  I'm not sure if that voice mail took or not.  Then I tried to text him a long and loving message, but it came back as "signal failed".   I tried to put my worries out of my mind the best I could.  That actually worked.  He came back to camp.  And, sure enough, when he returned, he said, "There I was, out there fishing for your dinner in the middle of a thunder and lightening storm and you were not even worried about me!"


I said, "Check your messages."

  Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

I wasn't sure if Cary would come back with any fish, so I made my best chicken soup ever, ever.  I took 4 Costco chicken breasts and cooked them in a bottle of lemon/herb/garlic marinade and a cube of butter.  Then I boiled a bag of peas and a bag of frozen stir fry.  Keeping 4 or 5 cups of that water, I added the cut up cooked chicken, the sauce, and a large can of cream of mushroom soup and some seasonings.  It was so good!

I gave some to this guy who rode his bike into camp.  He had come from Lava Lake that day, which is probably around 50 miles away. The road to Paulina/East Lake is very steep.  He told me that he lives in Washington, D.C. and is originally from The Netherlands.  It was getting dark and windy when he got there, and I thought he deserved some of my best chicken soup ever.  He did.  He brought back the bowl and said it was very tasty.

Meanwhile, my fisherman husband returned, safe and sound, and cooked up our dinner ... three trout and a big chunk of salmon that Jimmy had given us.  It was a fish delight!  I had a cup of my chicken soup too.  What a great feast we enjoyed that night.

  Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Yumm!  Thanks, Cary.  

The storm returned later on, after dark, and lasted for hours.  I slept through most of it though.  I was really tired.  When we got home yesterday morning and watched the news, La Pine had had a huge storm that got stuck and thundered, lightninged and hailed for quite a while.  I'm kind of glad we missed it, but still would have liked to have seen it.  There were over 2000 lightening strikes in our area, and many forest fires were started that night.

It wasn't only Central Oregon that was effected though.  The huge storm cell covered most of the state and there are forest fires and grass fires still going all over the place.  But, not too close to our house or our camp.

At Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy, if you miss a day, you miss a lot!  All material on this post is copyrighted and not for use without my permission ...Please click here to go to my home page and see what is happening in Mayberry today.
 

Camping Birds:

These two photos of the Bald Eagle were taken when we were on Paulina Lake on Monday.  They are cropped and enlarged, so they are not too clear, but I like them anyway:

Cary took these of the Blue Jays stealing the dog food in camp.  They ate two whole bowls of it!:

This little brown bird was poking around, happy that the dogs had stayed home for the night with Uncle Howard:

Cary took this one of me.  A real close up of this grandma chick ... I kind of like it though.  No make-up with a dirty face.  Camping at it's best!  (I am putting it on here to make up for the Kewpie doll hairdo on the post below.):

Last night we had huge thunder and lightening storms throughout our region.  I took some neat photos of the clouds over the lake, but forgot to bring my camera home from the trailer.  I'll post them soon.

Fake Campground Hosts:

You can't beat these Paulina Lake sunsets.

But, if you really want to relax and have no responsibility other than cooking chili over the campfire and washing a few dishes, please do not bring your own golf cart to the campground.  It sounds like a good idea, and it is kind of fun to have it around, except that a lot of people will mistake you for the camp hosts.  The men campers think that bringing your own golf cart is a really good idea though.  They go, "Hey, man, is this your ride?  Whoa!"  We may have started another trend.

Doesn't she look a little young to be a camp host?

The first night we were camping, Rob and April came up to visit  us.  April and I were driving around in the golf cart and the campground was full.  People avoided looking us in the eye.  The only person who even smiled at us was the little red headed 5 year old boy who just mastered riding his bike.  He was so proud of himself that he smiled and talked to everybody, even the crazy ladies on the golf cart.  April began letting the power go to her head, pointing at people as we drove by and saying, "Did you pay?"

Cary does look like he could be the Camp Host though, especially when his hat covers the cute Kewpie doll hairstyle.  People keep stopping him, giving him envelopes full of money to pay for their stay.  That is true.  Just because we have a golf cart.  We took it to the box where you pay for them.  Yesterday, the real camp hosts had a day off, so he gave a grandpa some firewood out of the back of our own truck.  That is the nice kind of man that he is.  Generous.

Still, we keep confusing everybody, so I made a sign and taped it to the window of the golf cart.  Now Cary doesn't get quite as much business, but he still gets some.  Last night, one old lady in a straw hat just wouldn't read the sign and listen to his words, so he gave in and said it was fine for her to save a spot for her boy, who was on his way, since she had already paid for it.

We will see what happens tonight.