Friday, June 08, 2007

Camping Report
The weather wasn't as cooperative as would have been ideal, but the trip was still pretty nice. There was a short downpour Friday afternoon and I'd left the windows in the tent partly open, and some stuff got wet. Then on Sunday it drizzled all day. I discovered that I don't mind standing out in a slight drizzle if I'm right next to a big camp fire.
On Friday and Saturday nights our campsite had a visitor. Friday as soon as I lay down to go to sleep I heard a rattling outside the tent. I had to locate my glasses, locate my flashlight, open the tent, and shine the flashlight outside. The first time whatever it was had gone by the time I got the flashlight on, so I lay back down. The rattling started again almost immediately. I went through the whole process again. The second or third time I finally saw what it was. There was a raccoon on the picnic table, trying to get at the garbage bag that was hanging from the lantern post. It had a "Who, me?" expression on its face. Then it was gone.
The next morning Rob discovered that a jug with a screw-top lid full of candy-shelled chocolate kisses was also gone. We don't know if the raccoon ever got it open.
Saturday night before we even went to bed the raccoon emerged from the shadows at the edge of the firelight and headed to the lantern post, I assume looking for more garbage. I yelled at it and it ran through some rhododendrons towards the back of a neighboring campsite.