Camp Conco 2009

I want to beat my sons to posting on my blog about our completely awesome weekend camping at the Conconully State Park. I have to say, I was very apprehensive about tent camping at my age. My body can't take the abuse I put it through when I was a young newlywed camping on our honeymoon for 16 days straight. And maybe that's true but I thoroughly enjoyed it for 4 days anyway.

Conconully is a small town, last count approximately a population of 187. It just happens to be the place my sons came home to after they were born in Omak, 15 miles away. We loved our little 535 square foot cabin there but after years of heartbreak watching renters bleed the life out of our little home, we sold it. This trip back I was almost sick to my stomach to see what the new owner had done. Even though the cabin was small, it had a million dollar view of all of Conconully and the upper lake area. What did the new owner do to that? Why, he built a shop encompassing the entire lawn area rising up so high it obliterates any thought of a view. I always wanted to build a deck and put in a sliding glass door to enjoy that view. The new owner did that, just one problem, no view. I guess life perspectives are just different.

A short walk around town (it doesn't take long) and we were able to meet up with the old Postmaster from our years of living there. He owned the place right next door to the Conconully Museum which is next door to the Conconully Post Office. He has since retired and remembered nothing of us but we remembered him, especially the talks he would have with our son at the age of 2 about dinosaurs. He used to be so impressed with his dinosaur knowledge. We could not resist the opportunity for a family photo.

If you ever want a great place to camp, Conconully State Park is it! The facilities are first rate, clean bathrooms and great shower. Be prepared for a few characters possibly camping next to you. Excuse me, have you seen the campsite next to you? There is always one thing you can count on when you go camping, the campfire, Jiffy Pop and S'mores. It only took Maddie until the third night to stay awake for those. But it was worth it. At any given moment, you could see one deer or a whole family of them, up close and personal.

We camped with my nephew Chris and is wonderful family, Jen, Alex and Maddie. We have such fond memories of fishing and spending time with Chris when he was young and now we had the opportunity to spend time with his kids. Alex is an incredibly smart young man who is so diverse in his interests. I would have to say his first love is reading, he may have read two whole books over the weekend but he is also quite the outdoorsman and fisherman. How many 11 year olds do you know who can stay up until 3:00 am and talk to adults about anything and everything? He reminds me much of my oldest son at his age. And Maddie, the "Little Princess". Don't let her diminutive little stature fool you. She can fish with the best of them and is not afraid to pick up those fish to either let them go if they are too small or string them up if they are keepers. Poor thing though, she did get stung by a bee which wasn't fun. All in all, I think there was a total of 5 bee stings among the campers. Fortunately, no one was allergic.

We got to fish and swim, eat and drink, play games and simply enjoy each other's company. My son Hal was crowned Bassmaster for the weekend snagging the three largest Bass. Jenny was very close with a pretty big one of her own. There was no cell phone service in Conconully. You had to drive out 1 mile to the cemetery to get that. I would not have even thought of it except, after all, Cougar football tickets went on sale. I had to do it!

We even went into Omak on Sunday to add to our trip down memory lane. A drive on Duck Lake Road past the old Wicks abode, the site of the infamous distance bike races of years past between my husband and my nephews. We went to the top of the Suicide Race Hill which will be the site of that famous race in just a few days. And lo and behold, there was a baptism going on in the river at the bottom of the hill. Does anyone else want to be baptized, Hal? Another photo op, obviously! We ventured to the North Country Pub, the site of so many of our memories and my dad's favorite watering hole. Of course, being Sunday in smalltown America, it was closed. We settled for a decent meal at a Mexican Restaurant where we of course ran into friends our dads had known in the past.

On our way out of town we stopped by the place my parents had lived for so many years. The view is incredible and it was an opportunity to remember them.

So, camping was not as tough as I thought it would be for this 54 year old. The best part was just being able to spend time with people I love with no interruptions from anyone or anything. It is clearly the beginning of a beautiful tradition. What is in store for Camp Conco 2010?