It was good/strange being away from the computer for a few days. I hardly knew what to do with myself without a guitar or a computer, so I made up for it with camp fuel. And pictures. So without any further ado… our 2006 vacation, fully illustrated:
We arrived at Lum’s Pond State Park on Friday and setup camp. The site was set back a ways from the road and it faced Lum’s Pond. It took us about 3 hours to setup completely:
After everything was unpacked, I played with fire. This is undoubtably the best part of camping and the best part of being an adult. You can play with fire and it’s ok! In fact, I took care of shaving for the week the first time I stood too close when dousing the fire with camp fuel:
We meandered around Lum’s Pond for a while, checking out some of the beautiful scenery. Lot’s of beautiful forest and a shoreline with no gradient… complete overgrowth to complete pond in one sharp line. We rented a kayak and chased some egrets around the pond for a good shot, but got none.
By Sunday we realized that northern Delaware was BORING. The state park had no swimming areas, we were about 5 miles from an airport (read: helicopters passing all night), and the most exciting thing we found to do was watch the RC planes flying around overhead. That and meat cooked over the campfire was starting to lose its novelty. So we packed up and headed for Lancaster County.
I learned a few very interesting things about Lancaster this week. When people talk about the charm of Lancaster, Pennsylcania they really don’t mean Lancaster, PA. They’re really talking about Intercourse, PA. The city of Lancaster is about 8 miles west of Intercourse and is, from all my experiences there, the furthest thing from a vacation spot you’ll find. Intercourse and Bird-in-Hand, on the other… hand, were two unique towns with plenty of country goodness to offer. You can pet pigs, make your own pretzel, sample relishes and jams, dip your own candles, watch homemade fudge being poured, enjoy a home-cooked Amish meal or just knee-slap to some good ole bluegrass.
We learned that it’s rude to take a picture of Amish people–they consider it a violate of the first commandment. We learned that it was black-fly season. We learned that you can rear end a car without leaving a trace. We learned what Meadow Tea tastes like. We learned that during a storm, sleeping in a cheap motel with flies is better than sleeping in a fancy tent with spiders. We even learned how to catch a lightning bolt.
But best of all, we learned just how grand a thing it is to celebrate one year of marriage together with your best friend. Those flames are even better than the one’s that singed all the hair off my legs!
