Active Summer

If we haven't written it here before, it's worth repeating that the thing we like most about being in Happy Valley is the summer weather. The summer weather also happens to be one of the things that I hated most about DC. A typical July day in State College includes temperatures in the mid to upper 70s, a light breeze, and low humidity. Compare that to the mid to upper 80's, stagnant air, and high humidity of the DC swamp, and it's easy to see why we prefer it here. Of course, we suffer through long and pretty cold winters, but I am happy to make that trade.

All of that being said, we have made a commitment this summer to get outside and enjoy it. Whether that is spending more time in the yard, gardening, having fires in the fire pit, playing softball, going to parks, or getting to a nearby state park or forest, we've been pretty successful so far. Jean has already written about her two 5Ks this summer (ok, one 5K and one 4K, but you get the point), which I believe is a record.

As for me, I am trying to be less of an Aspirational Outdoorsman, and more of an actual one. Take for example the overnight camping trip I took my nephews Andrew and Spencer on. One night in a state park on 15 miles from home is not exactly Everest, I understand. But it was a start to organize a 14 year old and a 16 year old for hiking and camping - and we pulled it off without a hitch. Penn Roosevelt State Park was the destination, a small state park nestled within the much larger Rothrock State Forest, and right on the Mid-State Trail, a footpath that bisects the Commonwealth of PA from Maryland to New York. After setting up camp in the morning, we set off on a 9 mile hike along the MST. Despite the threat of rain all day, we stayed dry and the only real excitement was Ripley's attack on a never-seen porcupine. It was so exciting that I completely forgot to take of picture of poor Ripley with ten quills sticking out of her nose, muzzle, and gums. The picture below was taken only a few minutes after said attack, and as you can see, Rips is just fine. In fact, she went right back to chasing everything that moved for the rest of the day.



To further prove our amateur camper status, Jean, Ruth, and the three little ones brought dinner to our campsite and we had a great picnic! We were able to build a modest fire despite the soggy conditions, which was probably the greatest feat of the weekend. Well, maybe not the greatest.

That honor would belong to Alexander, who decided to camp out with us and then go on our hike the next morning. We chose a steep hike to the top of a mountain in hopes that we could climb the fire tower and get great views. After a few minutes of complaining that he was tired (only ten minutes into a 2 hour hike!), we put Alexander in the front and he led us all the way to the top! Even the teenagers were impressed! Unfortunately, our luck was about to run out... Turns out that the fire tower is now closed to hikers - and there are no views from this very high mountain top. And after a quick lunch in the shadow of the tower, we started heading back down to the car, only to get caught in a massive downpour! And, while I was somewhat prepared for the rain with ponchos for Alexander and me, he was not prepared to get wet while being ABSOLUTELY EXHAUSTED. Meltdown ensued, so Andrew and I had to run 1.5 miles downhill to get the truck and rescue him and Spencer from the side of the mountain, just as the rain stopped. Thankfully, the boy has NOT been scarred for life, but didn't hesitate to remind me several times that he was unhappy about the rain...

Overall, I'd say a successful outing - and hopefully one that clears the way for more camping in the future.

Oh, and one more thing - CJ was absolutely DEVASTATED that she couldn't camp out with us in the forest. She, Alexander, and I had done a successful night out in the tent in the yard, so she thought she was ready...maybe there is hope that my little diva could be an outdoors diva someday!