Let's back up and review a few things. We don't often 'camp' like most people. Camping for us comes in one of two ways: a) we need a place to sleep and, since we're cheap, we find a free rec site and pull in late at night, pitch a tent, crash, and leave the next morning OR b) we're on some other longer adventure (backpacking, hiking, paddling, etc) that includes tenting for several nights in a row. We are NOT typically the kind of campers who have lots of stuff and have things really organized and stay at the campsite for a while and have fancy food. I remember seeing families in Australia that went 'camping' for the summer and had fridges, generators, and tvs set up next to their surfing spot on the beach. So... if you are the kind of family who plans to relax and sit around at the campsite and make yummy food... we are not the people who should be giving you advice from our experience.
Let's review our plan for this trip.
Friday - Meggan works until 4pm then we drive down to Winthrop, WA and hope to get there in time for Rachel's bedtime. Eat on the way. Set up tent. Hope for no rain. Sleep.
Saturday - Trail Marathon starts at 8:30am and it takes about 45 min to drive from the campsite to the start. Meggan runs the first half while Jason takes care of Rachel. Then Jason passes Rachel to Meggan and he completes the second half of the race. After some food we either stay another night and relax or come home if the weather is not great.
ELEMENTS OF THE TRIP:
1) The Drive
We found driving much easier on this trip than some others. It's a 2.5 hr drive - much shorter than a trip to Vancouver, Seattle, or Spokane. Also, we had room for an adult to sit next to Rachel to entertain her. Lastly, we can feed her food on the road since she can eat solids from her car seat. So we had no issues whatsoever with the drive down or back. (Previously we endured horrible crying on this highway.)2) The Weather
The forecast called for rain, and rain it did. However, we were blessed. It did not rain while setting up or taking down the tent or very much while we were running. It rained hard overnight and after we were finished running, which did spark the desire to come home Saturday instead of spending a second night in the tent. It was very cold overnight and this caused Rachel's little hands to be quite chilled. She let us know this was the case at 4am when she screamed and screamed until she warmed up inside her Mama's sleeping bag and puffy.
3) The Campsite
4) Our Tent
In our pre-child camping years, we were all about light, efficient, and cramped. For this trip, we borrowed a 6 person family dome tent from our friend Amber and we were sold. It took a little bit extra effort to set it up, but once it was up we were sold! We could walk around inside it. We could diaper change inside it. We put Rachel's travel crib set up inside it and we still had heaps of room to set our own sleeping pads and bags up without disrupting her sleep. We would not have been able to make this happen to the same level of luxury with our old 2-person light-as-a-feather backpacking tent.
5) The Help
We didn't try this alone. We had 6 other adults and a dog at our campsite with no other children. There were many hands on deck to set up tent, hold the baby, entertain the baby, etc. We also had other friends doing the race that were around at different aid stations and at the finish and the post-race meal to help hold Rachel.
6) The Food (Rachel's)
I was pretty stoked to try the dehydrated sweet potato, green bean, and pear/peach mixtures I'd made. We'd also bought jars of food for the first time and started with that in the car on the way down. Rachel was NOT a fan of the mixed vegetable WalMart brand jar... but she is a good sport and politely had some without throwing it up. We'll have to see if she dislikes all jarred food or just this flavor or what. She ate lots of cheerios and rice crackers as we were on the go quite a bit. She didn't have many opportunities to try the dehydrated food after all... but I will admit I am really disappointed in the outcome there. She took down what we offered her like the great eater she is. But the food didn't 'hydrate' into any kind of appealing texture and it all seems like it was a lot more effort than it will be worth in the end.
7) The Race
The Sunflower Trail Marathon Relay race course was beautiful. I ran with my friend Jehanne for our 13mile section. We were a bit nervous going in since our longest run to date was a mere 13-14km. We weren't sure that the extra 7km would happen. But we felt really strong and enjoyed the trails and the scenery as we chatted along. At 10km we saw Jason, Rachel and Nick cheering. Onward we went.
We had it in our heads that our section was 12 miles, and in fact is was 13.1 miles. That last mile was also on pavement and uphill, so it was a challenge to our tired legs. But we came into the exchange and saw Jason, Rachel, and Nick waiting for us happily at 2 hours and 18 minutes. Not a bad half marathon time for a casual long run in the woods! Jason handed me Rachel, gave me her latest food and diaper update and he took off.
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| Meggan finishes 21km and gets Rachel as Jason takes off |
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| Jason crosses finish line with Rachel in his arms |
So. One night in a tent and a trail half marathon done. In two weeks, we'll go down again. We'll make Rachel wear more clothes to bed and it will be warmer. We won't have nearly the help or access to the cabin. Jason will be running 50km and we'll be camping for at least 2 nights. Wish us luck!
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