Day 6 & 7: 7/24 & 25

Day 6 & 7:  Cousins Camp Cool-Lea - Odessa, NY

Mile:  1,545.5

Relatives:  8

Features:  Conversation, food, play and daddy-long-legs

Cool nature thingy:  Saprophyte: a plant that does not use photosynthesis.   

Memories:

Rose:  Going out on the boat with Gordon, Grace, Adam, Hugh and Danny with the wind whipping in our hair; a visit from a friend before leaving for camping.

Hugh:  Basketball with  Adam and Danny at the campground playground; Grace driving the boat in a huge loop before bringing it back to the dock.

Grace:  Driving the boat.  Making charcoal drawings on flat rocks.

Danny:  Playing legos with Hugh; going on the boat; waking up Grace.

Sarah:  Listening to Therese read at the campfire; the kids playing at the goodbye breakfast.

Adam:  Grace driving the boat from the landing to the lake and back to the dock.  Hugh shouting:  "Danny (Dannie?) get your gun!"

Therese:  The cousin's van coming up the road to the campsite; sitting on the swing with Sarah watching the kids play at the lake. 

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We bid a bittersweet goodbye to our friends at the B&B.  It was a wonderful, relaxing stay with a lot of memories.  We probably won't be back this way again.

With one last delicious made to order breakfast behind us we headed out around 11:00.  It was going to be an easy day of driving so we weren't concerned about a late start.

We took the scenic route and drove through rolling hills and charming small towns.  I was able to replace my old unraveled Amish basket with a new one. We also stopped at a roadside farmer's market and loaded up.  We took a gamble on sweet corn: early in the season, but you never know.

The campground was one of those older places with a sweet beach, playground and many RV-regulars who spend every summer there.  Tucked up near the woods were rustic campsites where we stayed.  With a camp store that used the honor system for ice and firewood and grand-parenty owners, we felt right at  home.  It was nice to have all the amenities within a short walk and still be located in a rustic area.

As soon as the cousins pulled up, Danny and Hugh paired up and were inseparable for the rest of the visit.  With the same interests and a similar sense of humor and mischief, the boys had a blast.  

Grace and Rose bonded over a Kindle edition of the Guinness Book of World Records.  Did you know the worlds smallest dog was six inches long and three inches high?  

I've discovered that the best way to cook sweet corn is to wrap it up in foil and cook it over the camp fire.  The corn along with the rest of the contributions made for a delicious late supper.

Earlier in the day I had been lamenting bringing so many cold-weather clothes as the weather had been quite warm.  But every layer came in handy on our first night at camp. It was freezing!  I don't think I ever got warm.  My nose was a block of ice all night long.

I made crepes the next morning for the gang; the rest of the day was dedicated to playing and catching up on two years worth of time since we were last together.  As the weather warmed up, the kids shed layers and got soaked in the lake. Later, Adam took boatloads of kids out on his rowboat.  The kids got a real kick out of his electric motor which was mellow enough that everyone could take a turn driving the boat and navigating around the lake.  Sarah and I took this opportunity to spend about 11 minutes talking and catching up.

A potluck dinner was highlighted by expertly grilled, wonderfully smokey pork-chops a la Adam.  I made a polenta dish and astonishingly, everything was ready at the same time.  Everything but the kids.  So, miracle of miracle, the adults sat down and ate together.  We even recruited a kid to photograph this rarity.  I also need to give props to Adam who, after hearing me wistfully wish for a beer, disappeared for 20 minutes and came back from town with a six-pack!

Of course marshmallows factored in one way or another each evening.  We also contributed glow-sticks and the freaky fire color changing thingys.  The Chandler family brought super cool sparklers for the last night.  

I tried to get a little e-reading in on the last night as the time has been so busy and passing so quickly that I haven't  managed to do any of the leisure activities I brought along.  After a few minutes, Daddy-long-legs started dropping on my reader.  I figured I was better off not knowing what was creeping along above me so I turned out the light.  One more dropped down on me as I dozed off.  I only realized after I picked it up and whipped it away that I was aiming right at Grace's head.  Oh well...the ignorance of sleep is bliss.

Our visit came to an end all too soon and we broke camp while the Chandler crew made us breakfast.  Pancakes and eggs and bacon, yum!

A few last photo-ops, making sure we had the right two kids in the car, and off we went.  We wanted to get an early start as we had a very long drive ahead.  Or so we thought...