Hippie Weekends

To commence my less-than-ideal hippie summer, I crammed in a bang of an ending with the camping trip to Chippewa National Forest (see previous post) and a weekend dedicated to turf.  I had quite the best companions:  my mom and Ms. Cindy Yang.  What started as a wedding weekend plus camping got changed in the last minute because my mom needed a driver to Missouri.  (I am really sad I missed the wedding though.  It would have been beautiful.).
The drive down to Missouri was no picnic!  It poured in Iowa all the way through Story City to Ames, which are normally horrible driving spots anyhow.  I charged through the rain even though there were plenty of cars and trucks pulled out along the wayside, but I figured the rain would have to stop at some distance given it'll stop at some time.  The rest of the ride was pretty smooth, and some where along the way, I switched with my mom and slept all the way to Diamond.  We arrive roughly at 3am.
Sleep was short, but I seldom sleep long when its not in my own bed.  We were up cooking breakfast by 8am and out to the fields by 10am.  We rode around in my dad's truck chasing the cattle, and seeing all the calves.  Took a quick peep at the turkey barns, and went back to the house for a shower and change before we hit the road again for good ol' Texas. 
We departed my old farm at about 1pm and headed south on 44.  It would end up a longer road than we anticipated, but we were basically ready for anything. 

Ruffin' It at Cass Lake

Similar to many of my trips, and just the way I like it, a good friend of mine and I winged it up to Chippewa National Forest this last weekend (Aug 27-28).  What could be better (or more scary) than two Asian women from the cities trying their hand at camping up in Northern Minnesota?  Yes, it sounds like a comedy and disaster in the making, but we had a great time learning the ropes in the dark.

Our drive should have been five hours only if I hadn't taken the wrong exit and the wrong turn that lead us south for about an hour.  Opps.  We got Bao's GPS to work, and turned back on a detour on our way in the right direction.  Driving through the small towns really brought back the excitement of last summer when I went up by myself.  I loved driving through Brainerd, Nisswa, Pequot Lakes and Hakensack, and I loved most arriving in Walker.  I just can never get over the awe and enchantment driving down that curve on 371 and seeing Leech Lake glistening in the sunlight.  Its like falling in love. 

When I say we "winged it" up north, I seriously mean nothing was set in stone or planned out.  I just knew I wanted to see and hopefully camp in Chippewa National Forest.  I tried reserving a site, but it was too late to do so.  I was told most of the sites are first come first serve, and we could just pay when we got there.  The first sites we looked at were just a little outside of Walker.  I think they were Steamboat and Harmony campgrounds, which are privately owned.  We were not impressed.  Its not that the sites weren't nice or that they weren't in a good location; it was kind of the opposite actually.  The spots were clear on the lake, and with lots of great space, and LOTS OF PEOPLE.  We decided to clear out of those places and look for something wilder.  Our next stop was at Pike lake campsite, which is a Chippewa National Forest site.  This was more to our liking.  We had to actually drive through woods and small roads to get to the campsite.  When we arrived at the site, it was nearly dusk.  We pulled into the loop, and to our dismay all the sites on the lake was taken.  The camp host was very friendly.  He was a hefty man, and he was out walking his little dog; it looked like maltese.  I wonder if he felt any safer with the dog, or if the dog felt safer with him.  We opted out of this site, and decided we'd drive on to see if there were any other sites. 

On we drove on 371 until it was cut off by 2.  At 2 we took a left and searched for Stoney Point Campgrounds.  When we saw the place, we were not impressed.  It was like the private campgrounds we'd first checked out, so we check that off our list.  We drove on to Norway Beach Loop, and we settled at Chippewa Loop in campsite 114 right infront of Cass Lake.  By this time it was 8pm and dark.  We paid our $23 to the pay post, $3 to the camp host for firewood and went on to set up Bao's brand new four man tent.  It took us probably an hour to get the tent up.  Then, we drove back out of the campsite to the nearest grocery store and bought our supply of the weekend.  Yes, we did not buy anything for the trip but the tent (and two packs of brews).  We decided on hotdogs, water and bananas.  We were keeping it simple. 
I seldom tent camp, and even when I go I usually sleep in my car.  I am lucky and glad Bao was quite the expert at getting a campfire going.  The last time I tried my hand at a bonfire, I burned all the firewood in the pit and outside of it.  Bao did a great job using the extra grocery bags we gat as kindling and getting a nice cozy warm fire going.   By this time it was 10:30ish.  We put the dogs on the grill that came with each campsite, popped open two beers, opened up our lawn chairs and enjoyed the wilderness in all its darkness, silence, interruptions and brightness.  You never really enjoy stars until you're up North.  The sky seems bigger.  Stars are brighter, and, for me, I feel smaller the way a person should feel.  All my worries are specs, and my thoughts are big.  We sat mostly in silence, and what we talked about didn't seem to matter as much as the fact that we were there - finally. 
I don't know if its common or uncommon for women to camp alone, but I felt perfectly safe and comfortable under the abyss with Bao.  For whatever reasons, I felt really fortunate to have this weekend with just her and I.  I miss the thoughtful conversations, and insightful enlightenments.  I mean, I get that with other friends too, but it feels different with each person, and Bao has been someone I've looked up to for many many years.  I was glad to get to see her the way I had always known her again.  Of course, time changes everything, but in the core of it all even the toughest trees have a soft inner ring - well protected and ever lasting. 
At about midnight, we aired up the air mattress (yes there are outlets at each campsite), and turned in for the night so that we could get up to see the sunrise. 
I awoke to some scratching and shuffling outside our tent.  The campgrounds, otherwise, was still quiet.  It was a squirrel scavenging for acorns.  I woke Bao up and we walked the few steps to the beach with our folding chairs.  The lake was still as ice.  An arobatic mist rose up into the pink skies, and sliver of light cut through the horizon.  We were speechless, and busy taking pictures and posting it on to facebook.  Not a ripple.  Not a sound.  Not even a thought interrupted such a natural beauty.  After minutes of silence I hearda swooshing like you'd hear in movies for a boomerang.  Woosh woosh woosh woosh... a black bird flew over.  It was the first sound to break the silence.  Seagulls flew in, and two loons appeared on the lake.  The seagulls patrolled the shoreline, and the loons dipped into the lake hunting for breakfast.  When they came close together, the male loon would call, and they'd come together then apart and dive.  It was quite romantic. 
When the loons dove into the lake, there was just a slight ripple.  The surface quickly became still like ice and reflective like glass.  It must have been the loons, but I was feeling quite romantic and this thought came to me:  I suppose Love and Relationships are like the sky and lake.  From afar they seem to blend into one.  Up close the lake reflects the sky and they seem to be in unison, but in substance they are each their own matter; they are neither together or seperate, but better together.  Yeah, it sounds cheesy, but you'd have had to been at the shoreline to feel and understand what I mean.  lol. 
.... more later....

Sunday Morning

Clarity