TENT CAMPING - LAKE PERRIS

 

I swore I would never do it again.  I mean, you know, been there, done that. Why oh why would I ever subject myself to being cold and uncomfy for an entire weekend???   I really enjoy creature comforts like central heating, fireplaces, and a warm cozy bed.  

Nevertheless, I found myself buying a tent and driving to a campsite where my friends trailered our horses for a fun filled weekend of horseback riding.  I arrived after everyone else and my poor horse was standing in a corral by himself, looking lonely, so I quickly saddled up and met my friends on the trail.   

We enjoyed a beautiful afternoon of sunshine and countryside, then returned to set up camp.   

My “Insta-tent”  was, of course, not so instant.  I’m not very mechanically inclined so the “instant” took more like an “hour” before I figured it out and had it standing and ready for action.  I had bought an inflatable mattress which, to my dismay, needed an electrical outlet to inflate.  What?  How did that happen?  Luckily, our friends, Mary and Bill, campers extraordinaire, had a beautiful horse trailer/camper equipped with all the necessities, including a portable outlet.  Mattress inflated, I piled two sleeping bags, a down comforter, and numerous blankets and pillows on top of it.  Surely this would keep me warm?  

We threw logs into a stone pit to get a warm fire going, listened to music, and feasted on steaks expertly grilled by Chef Bill.  Everyone contributed food – salad, baked potatoes, and wine, lots of wine.  We certainly never went hungry or thirsty the whole weekend.  

The thing about camping is that there isn’t a whole lot to do once it gets dark and COLD.  By 9:30 everyone was in bed.  Shivering under my mound of covers, I realized I was never going to be warm. And of course, in the middle of the night, I woke with the realization that I was going to have to extract myself from sleeping bags and comforters, put on a coat and walk outside in the freezing cold to use the primitive facilities.  

Our good friends provided us with coffee and a hot breakfast the next morning, then we all went for a ride.  We rode around the whole lake, 10 miles, which only took about 4 hours, thanks to our gaited wonder horses.   

Photo by Peggy Jones

It was a nice warm day with a lot of interesting sights.  We saw a rock with ancient petro glyphs, 

and a bunch of crazy people scaling a sheer rock wall with ropes.   

Why?  
 My palms were sweating just thinking of dangling in the air, staring in terror at the ground 100 feet below . 

Lake Perris Dam

 

Our last night was filled with more great food, a beautiful sunset, and lively conversation around a roaring bonfire. 

  

I piled on more clothes, determined to stay warm.  Strange creature noises were rustling outside my tent.  Something was scratching and snooping around and I was keenly aware that I was only separated by this unknown marauder by a paper thin sheet of nylon.  I slapped at the side of the tent, hoping to scare it away. 

Sometime during the early morning hours, I woke to the sound of rain tapping on my tent.  Great.  I thought of my saddle, exposed in the back of my truck, but I was too cold to move.  Peeking outside, I saw a thick layer of fog and moisture hovering over us and it remained drizzly, cold and foggy the entire morning.  We hunkered gratefully inside Mary and Bill’s warm camper, drinking coffee and telling horse stories until noon.  

After that, the sun came out and warmed us up enough for one last trail ride.  We found a spot in the hills for a champagne picnic and sat on a warm rock in the sun, gazing at the gorgeous view and watching our horses munch blissfully on the sweet grass.

We broke down our camp and got ready for the trip home.  My Insta-tent was not Insta-folding which frustrated me greatly.  Guess you have to be smarter than the tent.  I threw my half folded home-away-from-home in the back of my truck with disgust, trying not to let it spoil my mood.  After all, we had great rides, fun with our friends, and I SURVIVED A WEEKEND OF TENT CAMPING!  Yay me!

Perhaps I needed this weekend to be more thankful for things like indoor plumbing and a heated house with walls thicker than strips of nylon.

I patted myself mentally on the back as I walked in my front door, locking it behind me.  I put my purse with the house keys on the counter and went outside to start unloading.  As the garage door slammed shut behind me, a sickening feeling waved over me and I froze in my tracks, paralyzed by the realization that I had just completely locked myself out of my house.  Yay me.