California or Bust: Girls Only Camping Trip Day One

Woo hoo! Time to go camping! And nothing like having to back the car all the way into the garage because of the rain coming down while packing Monday morning.  Where there's a will, there's a way....yes, we got all of what we needed in.  And, after the fact, I can honestly say, we did not over pack...all this stuff was pretty much what we needed and used for four days camping.

This was the drive south.  Yes, good choice to get outta dodge!

Our girls were very enthusiastic.

However, due to Dramamine - this was the backseat scene within an hour of leaving our house. 

After a stop off to fill up with gas in Medford, we were headed over the border.  Normally, I LOVE Oregon, but I was really okay to see this sign.

And, then, to see this sign.

And, soon.....this view.  Wait, is that blue skies?!!!

 

Finally, within an hour of getting into California, we hit McCloud, Oregon.  The campground we were aiming to stay at was just five miles from this cute little historic logging company town.

And, there it is.   Michele absolutely NAILED it in terms of finding the IDEAL place for us to stay.  It really is an achievement to have done that sight unseen - and we are VERY picky about campgrounds and sites to stay at.  But, this place had it all and we had a unanimous decision in no time about where to set up home for the next three nights.  I probably complimented Michele a half dozen times throughout our trip of just how perfect her suggestion was to come to this particular location.

We made pretty quick work of getting the tent and campsite set up. 

And, then on to dinner.  Because we have a brand new stove/oven combo (before, I'd had both components, but not combined) - we picked foods we could warm up easily in the oven.  Dinner #1:  Orange Chicken and Fried Rice from the Safeway deli!  What can I say, our kids are picky and this is one of their favorite meal choices!

Unfortunately, within an hour after finishing dinner, the rain drops began.  We hussled to stow the things that shouldn't get wet back in the car - and we stowed ourselves in the tent.  We'd tried to do a good job setting up with the rain fly to protect us in case this did happen.  Huge praises to the Coleman Company for creating a tent that did withstand hours and hours of steady rain.  We did not get wet!  However, the kids were a little hyper and not quite ready to hit the hay at 6:30.  They played card games, worked on lanyards, and played with their stuffed animals.  Eventually, we all fell asleep to the steady, loud rain.

We went to sleep hoping to find clouds having cleared out in the morning - and refreshed for lots of adventures ahead!