A Short Odyssey (Not a (Numbered) List Post)

"1979 Swinger RV" by dave_7 is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

We just got back from an RV camping trip where...

- the tire blew out on the camper on a busy road at least seven miles from civilization. My husband, brave soul that he is, changed the tire on the side of the road, where he discovered that it was so hot that the jack was sinking into the slightly melted asphalt rather than lifting the trailer. 

- the trailer battery decided it didn't want to live anymore, so the lights and AC stopped working. It got to be 98 F in there (the heat index hit about 101F that weekend). Chris went around to the other sites begging for jumper cables. There were none to be had, but one kind soul lent us a battery. 

-Even with power, the AC still refused to work that night. We gave up, opened all the windows back up, and crossed our fingers. It got no lower than 86F in there. Thankfully the fridge/mini freezer was still working; I gave the kids the lunchbox ice packs I'd brought along. They stuck them in their pillows and that's what got them comfortable enough to sleep. 

Thus ended day one. 

-The next morning, Chris and Little Boy went fishing. I tried to make breakfast, only to discover the propane line on the camp stove wasn't working. The girls and I ate peanut butter and jelly. 

The rest of the trip got better from there. Chris was able to fix the stove, the girls and I saw a turtle, a frog, some deer, and some butterflies on a hike. We went into the nearby city that afternoon and found a free museum on the ecology of the area (air conditioned!!), ate a picnic lunch at a nice shaded, breezy table, went to another museum on boats (also air conditioned!) and we went to Walmart and bought a $200 portable AC unit. 

We came back, plugged in the AC (which involved making a supporting structure out of cardboard for the tube bit that sticks out the window and insulating it with a blanket...I'm adding safety pins to the stuff I have stashed in there), and then went down to the water. The park we were in didn't have a beach, just rocks, sandy yet slippery mud, and rank grass, but there was a really neat little tide pool we found that was lined with oyster shells and full of hermit crabs. 

We stayed in our swimsuits the rest of the evening, so we could spray ourselves off periodically. I've never been more thankful for a water hose and a kiddie pool in my life-- it made life bearable for us and the kids. 

There was all the normal camping stuff too- s'mores at the campfire (made without chocolate and with peanut butter. I love chocolate, but I think s'mores taste better and are easier to eat without it), exploring, playing cards, and sitting around talking. At one point we saw a fox that was clearly familiar with the campsites and had a grift going. He very clearly went up to people and asked for a handout-- Chris had to chase him off from our site. 

That last night it got down to 82F in the camper -- but the little AC brought down the humidity quite a bit. It made a HUGE difference. 

Overall, it turned out to be a good trip and we made some good memories. That said, I don't think we're going to go camping locally during the summer again. I'm all for adventure, but there's definitely such a thing as too much.