Weekend Tidbits

Both Saturday and Sunday saw Boo charming fishermen. She was shown big fish, and the guy in the nice bass boat came in close so she could see his bait.

During our "explore", Boo walked through a burr bush. She must have gotten every single burr on that push in her shirt and hair. Poor kiddo. It was bad enough that I had her climb trees without a shirt on so I could pick burrs out better, and I reached my patience limit with her hair and Lee had to finish.



The rest of the park we saw was fine, but around the campsite, the only plants were nettles and poison ivy. Turns out nettle flowers sting a whole lot worse than the rest of the plant.

While setting up camp, we found a mostly dead "It's a Girl!" mylar balloon. I stomped on it to pop it as we were packing up, and it made a huge bang that echoed like a gun. I would not have been surprised to see a ranger come investigate it.

We had a good weekend. Did you do anything fun?

Weldon Springs: October 11-12, 2012

Last October we needed one more overnight, even though it was getting a little chilly. Enter Weldon Springs. The map didn’t look too thrilling, but it’s only 1 ½ hours from home, there’s a river… So we went. 

We checked in at the park office, and the person who checked us in seemed a little inexperienced at such things. I asked about trail conditions, and she said they were overgrown. Apparently she was comparing them to a suburban lawn, because the trails were wide and obvious. She did tell us that in the spring the two more distant campsites flood, so if you’re planning to go, call ahead. 

There are 4 campsites within 100 yards of the trailhead (and outhouses and a pump) that would be good for very inexperienced kids or a gear shake out or anything where you might need to bail.  The most direct route to the further campsites is about a mile. We took a slightly loopier route. 

Weldon Springs - Boo's Trip Report

I had Boo dictate a trip report for our October overnight to Weldon Springs. 

We explored! We found a creek. We also found a beach. I found mushrooms and took a picture. I had to take a few pictures before it turned out OK. 

Climbing trees! It’s kind of tricky to get up there. I can’t walk up on the tree without falling over.

Breakfast was cocoa and oatmeal and I loved the oatmeal. 

I was walking behind because I was slow and tired. But I was OK walking behind. I did the whole hike. 

We heard owls and dogs. 

My favorite part of the trip was getting to go to the beach. 

Baba, post the pictures that you think people will find amazing. 

What she Carries

Boo’s 5th birthday is coming up, and we were discussing what she would like. After going through several categories, I asked if she wanted anything for backpacking. “No. I just want to carry more of my stuff.” 

So when we went on an overnight, she carried most of her stuff. 

·        

• Backpack
• ~3/4 L of water
• 2 hankies
• Whistle
• Complete  change of clothes – both for sleeping or in case of complete destruction of what she’s wearing. In a stuff sack that is used as a pillow.
• Z-bar and a bag of trail mix
• Chap stick
• Wildlife ID pamphlet
• Park map
• Cord (to practice knots)
• First Aid kit (a few bandages, sometimes alcohol wipes)
• Squishy bowl and cup, collapsible spork
• Headlamp
• Cut-down blue foam sleeping pad (not pictured)

With the sleeping pad strapped to the pack, she looked so overloaded. We didn’t weigh it, but it felt heavier than I expected her to be comfortable with. I expected to have to lighten her load pretty early down the trail. 

Shows what I know.

I think we checked in with her 4 times in the first 50 yards. “How is your pack? Is it too heavy? Do you want us to carry anything for you?”

She kept insisting, “It’s fine, it’s light!” 

And she carried it. It was only maybe 1.5 miles on a slight downhill. But she carried it. 

.

Packing up in the morning, she added her paperback chapter book, and tried to put the tent stakes in her pack. She carried everything the ~mile back to the car. Then we hit a different trail in the park, and she suggested that we should all carry our packs on that trail, too, to build up our muscles.

Lesson Learned

•  The cord that comes on the backpack  is not long enough to regularly hold the sleeping pad. 

What do your kids carry at what age?

Chicken and Chickpeas

This week we took a couple of days off to sneak in one more overnight trip.  I threw together a meal from what was in the pantry, and some ideas that had been rattling around in my head and it turned out delicious.

Dicing the vegetables very fine helps them dehydrate and rehydrate faster.  The same applies to mashing the chickpeas.  Using sun-dried tomatoes makes for a richer flavor, and I had a bunch on hand (we make them from excess garden tomatoes, after all, why have a dehydrator and not use it)

Chicken and Chickpeas

serves 3 adults
Ingredients
2 cups noodles (we like the Barilla Plus noodles for their higher protein and fiber content)

1 onion chopped fine
1 T oil

2c chickpeas (canned or cooked)
1 carrot chopped fine
1/4 c (approx) sun-dried tomatoes (not packed in oil)
2 T dried celery
1 c chicken broth

1 7 oz package chopped chicken

Cook the noodles as directed on the package, drain very well, and dehydrate

Saute the onion in the oil for about 10 minutes.  Add the carrot and cook for another 5 min, then add the chickpeas and broth.  Cover and let simmer while preparing the tomatoes.

While the chickpea mixture is cooking, puree the tomatoes and the dried celery.  You may need to add a bit of water.  Add the tomatoes to the chickpeas and let the whole thing cook until the chickpeas are nice and mushy, and most of the broth has been absorbed, about half an hour.  Use the back of a spoon to mash up the chickpeas and dehydrate until its nice and crunchy.  Package the noodles and chickpea mixture together.

At dinner time, boil 1 L water  (this makes it a bit soupy, you can adjust to your preference), and add to the dried noodles and chickpeas.  Mix in the chicken and enjoy.