Chewacla 7-23-15

Off we go to DeSoto State Park!  Wait … I mean Monte Sano State Park!  No … to Lake Guntersville!  Hmmmm … Deer Lick Campground!  Or maybe … Chewacla State Park near Auburn??  Yep, that’s it!!!  The original plan for the past 3-4 months was to head to DeSoto State Park in Northeast Alabama so we could see the beautiful fall foliage color change, but since everyone else decided to head north this weekend we were left hunting for somewhere to stay!!  Fortunately we landed at Chewacla, so let me tell you how we got there…

A few weeks ago we were chatting with our good friends Mark and Katelyn Williams, and they were sharing with us how they want to take their kids (Avory and Aliza) camping.  It has always been on Kelly’s list to have some good friends go camping with us, so the planning began!  Mark and Katelyn said they were up for wherever so we told them all about how awesome we heard DeSoto was.  Weeks go by and, as is custom for Kelly and me, we decide not to book anything too far out because you never know what will happen.  The week of our trip arrived and we still did not have a place to camp, so we started looking around.  Mark and I decided to try Monte Sano in Huntsville because they have some nice dual pads where two families can camp together.  Unfortunately, Monte Sano does not take reservations so we were left hoping for the best … which didn’t happen.  Mark called early Friday morning before they left and said Monte Sano was out of spots so we started a mad hunt for somewhere else to stay.  We consistently looked northeast because we wanted to see the color change, but kept coming up short.  Alas, Mark found a spot at Chewacla outside of Auburn and we were off for our adventure!

I think it's safe to say we would invite them back;)  We had such a blast!

Mark, Katelyn, and the kids got to the campsite earlier in the day and were able to set up their tent just off the pad.  Kelly, Carter, and Caroline arrived somewhere around 5:00 and I followed up after work at about 7:30.  The site was great and had just enough privacy.  Mark did some work at the check-in station and was able to get us a spot that backed up to the woods.  There was actually a pretty awesome trail about 30 feet behind us that connected to different parts of the 700-acre park.  Once I surveyed the lot I went ahead and backed it in (best backup job I’ve ever done, says Kelly).  Carter, as is his routine now, helped me set everything up and get the camper running.  Meanwhile, Mark was busy cooking everyone’s dinner over the open fire!  We were definitely in for a treat in that not only did we have good friends for conversation, but we also had friends who like to cook!!

Everyone enjoyed Mark’s hamburgers and hot dogs, and we sat around for a bit while the kids became acclimated to the site.  Carter and Avory decided they wanted to go for a hike on the trail and look for some bears.  Mark, Avory, Carter, and me all grabbed our headlamps and headed out into the woods to see what we could find.  Other than a few trail markers and a bench or two, we really didn’t find anything other than a good time.  Carter and Avory had a blast looking around and Mark and I had a good time watching.  

Once we got back from our bear hunt, Katelyn and Kelly decided to see if they could get Aliza and Caroline to sleep.  Fortunately for everyone, they both went down fairly easily, and Avory and Carter followed not too long afterwards.  That gave the four adults a chance to sit around the campfire and just hang out.  It was definitely not lost on Kelly and me that this is one of the few times we’ve been able to hang out after the kids go down.  Normally we spend our evenings going to sleep at the same time as the kiddos, so this little hang-out was a lot of fun for us.  We ended up talking until well past 11:00pm when we all realized it’d be best for us to get to sleep since the kids would likely wake early and who knew what the night could entail.

Somewhere around 7:15 Saturday morning everyone emerged from their respective camping units (6:00 for the Williams, thanks for being so quiet!).  Mark once again got busy cooking and whipped up biscuits and chorizo!  We all enjoyed it along with Kelly’s wonderful muffins that she usually makes for camping trips! 

I also enjoyed Kelly’s effort to make my birthday great even if it was a little less traditional since it would take place in the woods.  She did a great job of decorating the campsite with birthday items, as well as making some really really incredible cupcakes.  

It was, however, one of the birthday decorations that caused the most morning excitement.  As we sat around and enjoyed the morning, Carter and Avory were playing at the edge of the woods.  One of the decorations was a string of pennants tied between the tent and a tree … and happened to look a lot like the finish line of a race (so now you probably know where I’m going with this).  Carter was running his very own race and crossed the finish line with quite a bang.  Instead of the pennant banner breaking like they do on television, it actually “clothes-lined” Carter and took him down in a pretty nasty way.  He had several ugly marks on his neck and also probably had a knot on the back of his head from the fall.  I did not see it, but from the accounts of those who did, his body was in the air and parallel to the ground at the same time, which is never good.  

After a lot of consoling and a few more minutes of campsite playing, we set off to find a trail, and this Chewacla lake that we had heard about.  The kids were very excited to be heading out on an adventure, and I must say Kelly was also since she brought her new backpack on the journey.  Kelly has three weaknesses when it comes to purchases (koozies, dog beds, and tumblers), and after I saw the look in her eye when she whipped out the new backpack, I think we may now have a fourth weakness.  We did not have to go far before we found the day-use area.  It was the connection to a lot of really cool stuff at Chewacla.  From here, you could follow a trail to the waterfall, many different mountain bike trails, or just hang out at the 26-acre lake (and maybe play on some seemingly unsafe playground equipment).  We chose to hang out at the lake and play on the playground.  

Katelyn and I had a good laugh about the "man-spacing" 

Eventually, all four kids ended up on the shoreline with their feet in the water.  That turned into one shirt off, two shirts off … and then they were all playing in the water in just their underwear. It probably isn’t one of my prouder moments, nor is it something I hope there is a photo of, but the kids had a blast and that’s all that really matters.  Once we dried them off, we played on the playground a little longer, and also had the first of many conversations with other campers about how to find the waterfall area.  It seems that no one really knows how to get there, but everyone agrees it’s a long walk.  

This girl needs to be on a magazine!  SO cute!

It was approaching naptime for the girls so we headed out for the camper.  Once we got closer, Carter saw the “flamingo park” and wanted to stay and play.  Flamingo park is nothing more than an area full of sand with about 50 of those fake pink flamingos people put in their yard when someone has a milestone birthday.  Carter made up a bunch of different games in this area and he and I passed about an hour of time while everyone else slept at the camper and ate lunch.  Eventually we made it back and settled down as well. The next 2-3 hours was dedicated solely to napping, snacking, and watching the end of the overly heart-breaking four-overtime Auburn loss to Arkansas.  I was quite relaxed and enjoying my weekend, and really not paying much attention to the game.  Then I decided to watch the end … and that’s when all of the craziness happened.  I remember thinking at one point I would have been fine if we lost, or even won, in a normal fashion.  It was the four overtime emotional roller coaster that my relaxed-camping-self did not need!  Oh well … and War Eagle anyway!

Once everyone was awake, we set off for the elusive waterfall area.  I have a process in all state parks that requires asking at least three other campers where something is before settling upon the truth.  Each of the first two I asked gave me the same answer … “whew, it’s a long walk … but it’s over there past the lake.”  The third person I asked ignored me so I figured I had enough cross-references to move on.  We made it to the trail and Carter and Avory led the way.  They ran most of it (impressive) and managed to miss most of the roots and rocks that could have caused a problem. 

At last, we made it to the waterfalls!  It was really cool because there were lots of rocks/boulders at the base that people could climb through.  It was definitely a hot spot because there were probably 30-40 other people in the area.  These rocks are where Carter went into wild man mode.  He wanted to show me how courageous he is and how good of a rock climber he has become.  Despite my uneasiness in several sections of this adventure, he was right.  The kid is pretty good at climbing.  I moved in and out of being a helicopter parent but landed at “he can handle this.”  

The walk back was a little more difficult … the kids were tired, the adults were now sweating, everyone was hungry, the sun was going down, and we weren’t that close to the camper.  Moods seemed to dip at this point (or maybe it was just me), but we made it back and were able to turn on a movie.  Unfortunately, it was time for our friends to drive back home, so our trip got far less fun in about 15 minutes.  We are, however, so thankful that Mark, Katelyn, and the kids joined us! We all had a blast and the kids all played together so well (thankful for RescueBots this trip!). It was a lot of fun and we are so hopeful they can come again one day!

After the Williams departed for Birmingham, we went into normal Clayton camping routine.  The best part of the evening was when Kelly, Carter, and I were sitting around the campfire while Caroline was inside the camper watching Frozen … then we heard her at the door trying to come outside.  I went to open the door for her and she said (in Caroline language, mind you), “Daddy! Hug me!”  I gladly hugged her and she said “I love you” (comes out of her mouth as “wuvu”).  She then muttered something that sounded like “happy birthday” and proceeded to ask for three more hugs.  I obviously melted on the spot, and also thought I was the only one seeing this, but when I turned around I saw Kelly and she said, “I’m about to cry.” ***More because this was the first of Caroline to initiate all three, and ALL at once!!! ;) -Kelly.  Carter and Caroline went on to bed, so Kelly and I hung out at the campfire again.  I fell asleep once, then woke up and talked about deep topics for a few, heard a coyote in the woods (seemed really close and freaked both of us out), finally saw Kelly fading into the evening, and said it’s time to go inside.  The fire was down to the final ashes so we moved inside. Once I got settled in for a nap, I heard Kelly gasp (or curse, but gasp sounds better!) and move very quickly (ninja-like).  I did not move, but then felt Kelly tapping me on the head (still silent by the way).  When I looked at her she just pointed at the wall and said, “Get it.”  That’s when I saw the BOS (Big Ole Spider).  She was gigantic … like so big the only way she could have gotten inside was if she came through the front door (maybe a slight exaggeration but she was big- and FAT)!  BOS and I stared at one another and sized up each other’s strengths and weaknesses.  Kelly remained silent, and hopeful that my quick-strike attack would work.  She knew if we lost the BOS there would be no sleeping this evening.  I knew a shoe would not work because the canvas wall was too flimsy… I needed something softer.  I finally found a roll of paper towels and prepared my swatting stance.  Kelly, at this point, still has not moved other than to stealthily breathe out of her nose.  Whap!!!!  Strike number one was actually unsuccessful, but BOS simply walked up the wall a few more steps (thank the Lord!), giving me another chance at the elusive arachnid. Whap!!!!  Strike number two, you ask? Quite successful.  BOS had been conquered.  There was no worry about sleeping this evening because the remains were left outside in a paper towel for any other spiders who might dare to enter Jack the Camper!!  The only thing missing in this exchange was me saying, “Go ahead … make my day.”

The crew slept great this evening.  It was about 58-60 degrees outside so that was perfect for the interior of the cabin.  We all woke up happily and moved outside for some breakfast.  Kelly and I used all of the firewood the evening before, but I scavenged for some good stuff in the woods and made one last fire happen (it was a VERY impressive fire, that only a true MAN could build! ***see last blog if this is not making sense -Kelly).  We cooked some eggs over the open fire, enjoyed some more muffins, and finished off the Lucky Charms.  Kelly put some popcorn kernels in foil and tried to pop some popcorn.  It kind of worked, but kind of didn’t also (that was sweet, it didn't work at all -Kelly).  We have this on our list of things to conquer in future trips.  

Before beginning the cleanup process, we all headed back down to Flamingo Park for some more fun with the pink birds.  Carter managed to turn the flamingos into pretend football players so he could work on his juke moves.  Kelly and I took turns doing our part in the take down and finally prepared to leave about 10:45am.

Such a random little spot that we initially laughed at, but the kids loved it!  Carter had a great game of tackle football with Mommy!

All in all, it was yet another great trip.  We are so thankful to have these opportunities together as a family.  It’s nice to be able to visit so many different places at an affordable price, and to have the time away with just our family.  It’s truly a gift.

Enjoyed some time in the Sonic and Walmart parking lots this trip:)  

Rating- we tied this place for first with a 9.2! Tied with Wind Creek which is also in Auburn. Clearly Auburn knows how to do camping! More details under rankings.