Chain o Lakes State Park...A Day of Rest

I woke up at 5 in the morning on Sunday itching like crazy from all my bug bites. I got up and put anti-itch cream on and went back to sleep to TRY to get some rest. Just a moment later I was awakened by the people at the next campsite splitting wood for their fire. I grumbled under my breath about splitting wood at 7:00 in the morning when people are trying to sleep, and then I looked at my watch.

Almost 10:00 in the morning.

Guess that anti-itch cream worked really well!! I was OUT! I apologized (though they didn't hear my grumbling) for accusing them of splitting wood during quiet hours and then thanked the Lord for those hours of rest that my body absolutely needed!

Ryan had slept in too (which he doesn't normally do) but he hopped up and went outside to start the fire for the second half of the campfire breakfast adventures. 

There was actually a slight breeze that morning, so I was able to sit outside without excessive bug visits! I loved it. I had been so sad that I didn't get to just sit outside like I hoped.

(Sorry for the truly awful picture of us both. But you know - we just woke up.) 

We had initially planned to finish the 9 lake paddle challenge that day, but we decided to just rest instead. By the time we were done with breakfast, we would have had to hustle to paddle five more miles and get our campsite packed up by the time we needed to get out. So we just rested, and I think it was the best thing for us. We watched some TV. We rode our bikes. We sat at the beach for a while. It was lovely!

We also walked all over the campground, making notes of sites we might like to stay in the future!

We decided to do one more campfire meal before we came home and then it was time to tear down our beloved site. It was our first time to take down everything (awning, lights, etc.) and we weren't sure how quickly it would all come down. We were pleasantly surprised at the speed.

And then I had to drive back home!! The worst part was getting out of the campground, ironically. I was so thankful that the place had emptied out into a ghost town, because it made it easier to maneuver. And of course, the ONE ROAD I needed to exit the campground ended up being blocked by a truck trying to attach to a trailer. I couldn't confidently back up, so Ryan pulled his truck into an empty site, hopped out, backed up the RV and took it on a detour, and then I ran like the wind (if the wind was a pitiful breeze) to catch him and jump back in the driver's seat for the ride home.

And that was the end of our first proper state park camping trip! Three glorious days! (Almost.) SO much fun, so much rest, and so many campfires!!!