We just enjoyed another beautiful camping weekend, although our last-minute planning habit meant that as usual, we showed up with no reservations. We actually had to pass two huge signs leading up to the park saying "Golden Ears- Campsites are FULL- NO VACANCY," and "Absolutely NO VACANCY," then waiting 20 minutes to move up the line to the park booth to ask foolishly, "so- uh, do you have any vacancy?" We got the last free site in the park. Kate is a good-luck charm this way- the same thing happened at Sasquatch on May 24. I take this as validation that planning can be bad- i.e., you planned to go camping, but you don't make it, and then your campsite gets given away to jokers like us who show up at the last minute...
A complete indifference to planning can go too far- we forgot the camp-stove, so had fun cooking over fire, but we also didn't bring enough ice/cooler paks for 35 degree weather, so our egg-based breakfast went bad overnight. No big deal, -if we hadn't then fed it to Dallas who chose the car ride home to vomit grotesquely 4 times all over the back of the Element. Also over breakfast, the coffee bodum that I knew was kinda-broke became convincingly-broke, so after the hot coals took forever to boil the water, the coffee grounds exploded in a symphony of black dregs shooting into the body of the bodum through the broken mesh. One cube or two, dear? Since we're planning a major camping/kayak vacation shortly, we're revisiting the importance of PLANNING this coming weekend. In fact, we're debating GPS and marine radio. Flares couldn’t hurt.
