Back in the Woods

Our motorhome, dubbed the bus-house by our Grandson Ryan, has two bedroom slide-outs. The queen size bed sits cross-ways and along with the head board moves with the slide. When the slide is open, there are two small windows, one on each side, that are positioned right next to our heads when laying in bed. Laying on my left side I can see outside... the stars, moon, shadows, and any activity on that side of the camper. What's more, those windows open to let a little of the outside in.

We're getting back to that time of the year when we can sleep with those bedroom windows open all night. It's a small thing, but those little windows make me feel like I'm camping. For me, a breeze of fresh air makes for great sleeps. Other senses get involved too -- the scents of pine or lake, or even a hint of campfire add to the effect; the sounds of waves lapping on the shore or a stream flowing over rocks or the wind blowing through tree-tops or leaves rustling on the ground. Even if the outside temp is getting down into the 30's, and as long as the wind isn't blowing too bad, I prefer to just add another blanket and sleep with the window open and invite nature in for the night. Yes, it's a small thing. But it's something I've come to really savor.

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I think I mentioned some of this in last night's late journal entry. We blew into Oologah Oklahoma yesterday afternoon, and headed directly to the Hawthorn Bluff COE Park. This time of the year most campgrounds are only lightly used, especially during weekdays, so finding the right site for us was quick and easy.

Getting into the site wasn't quite as easy. The bus-house got a couple more low-hanging limb scrapes and at one point I had to climb to the roof for a little tree trimming exercise, but we eventually got in and leveled. And speaking of "level", there aren't very many sites here within our leveling capabilities. We love COE (Corps of Engineers) Parks, but you've got to be selective about sites as many won't work for the bus-house. That's another reason we never make reservations without knowing what we're getting.

We made contact with an old buddy of mine... a good friend that I used to work with in my business life. After setting up camp, we drove over to Stan and Sue's house and then to dinner at a great Mexican restaurant down the road. It was a very enjoyable night and it was nice to catch up with them. Time goes by sooo fast and there was no shortage of things to talk about.

The birthplace of Will Rogers is just a couple miles from our camp, and a Will Rogers Museum is just down the road too. We're planning to stay here until Thursday and, as always, there's plenty to do.

Thom