Ahh, family camp. I sort of thought camp was just for kids until I went to sign up Paloma last year and realized IT’S FOR ME TOO! Unbeknowst to me, my childhood camp, the Bar 717 Ranch, started doing family camp where we could all go together. Now, as sweet as it sounded, I would not have wanted to do this as a kid. My favorite thing about camp was reinventing myself in a safe place where my complicated home life was not a factor. But…Paloma went to both kid camp and family camp with us last year, and she said she’d rather go back only to family camp.
Fewer rules. More play time. Easier.
And that’s what camp seems to be. A whole lot of fresh air and happiness. A clay room, and crafts, and silkscreening, and hiking with sunrises, and swimming in a fresh river every day.
The weird thing is that camp really hasn’t changed at all. I mean AT ALL. The song book has not even been updated. I think the newest tune in there is For What It’s Worth, which was written in…1967? Anyway, the hippies got their way up there. Tie die still rules the roost.
But I love it. Peace and love and lots of fresh air. Nice people to help cook and clean and sing with us and make it fun and easy.
What a nice way to start this trip. Fun and easy. And together, with my girls. <3
Now for some photos:
Before leaving: one last selfie on the back yard trampoline.
Paloma finds a happy barn cat.
The chickens are feathered.
Anika holds no reservation to get up and dance during the camp songs. Too much sugar? Nah…
Paloma’s newest best little-brother-she-never-got, Stone.
The smoke rolled in sometimes from Oregon fires, making unreal morning sunrise colors.
Paloma took this upside down photo in the pond one morning on the walk from our sleeping platform to the meal platform.
Anika is truly un-talented, as shown in her fabulous performance of “meow.”
We milked the goat. The baby still posed with us even though we stole her breakfast.
Anika composes “meow” with Emi.
And the big swing was…big.
An afternoon with Paloma.
The swim hole was always the perfect temperature for a swim, especially on really hot days.
My sunglasses match the local nuts!
The hike up Gates mountain was not really on a trail so much as a fire break. And it was steep. Really steep. For a really long time. We had to slide down at times….
Previous hikers’ support message, 1/4 mile from the top.
The sun is rising!
And we hike.
And we hike.
Stopping points on the way to gates. A teepee, and Illa. A fresh water spring, and Paloma.
Farm dinner at the river!
Ropes course with Anika: The Flying Squirrel. Have you ever done that? You run, and then as you’re diving off the edge of a hill, your 22 friends pull you up about twenty feet into the air and you just start flying. It was REALLY fun.
Sunday morning breakfast was so fun we did it twice! On Tuesday morning I got inspired to make “french apples” as a counsellor called them, fried on the wood fired grill and later turned into a pancake.
Paloma crafts a bowl.
That pig would snort back every time I snorted at it.
My horse Sage was super big and super awesome. So nice. Probably all of the hearts on her bridle.
My girls on horses, off to the river for a swim.
This is what happens to your car when you space out and drive off the cliff. This happened on wednesday morning at 5 am. Yikes. Guy climbed out alive – amazing.
Boat race!
Mini Crockie! Anika could not bring her lovie on our trip because it’s too big, and too old (it was mine, and my sister’s and my mom’s, so it’s seen a long life of love). So, I decided to up my dad-game and make a mini lovie for anika’s journey.
At the eating platform, enjoying one final delicious farm meal together.
