Camping trip to Little Big Econ state park...

Camping trip in Little Big Econ State Park

Learning how to camp was an exciting experience for me. I never went to the Boy Scouts, & never went camping as a family unit. I have a few good friends who are all very experienced at camping, & they agreed to take me out to the woods and show me the ropes.
The day came, but it was also the day I was going to go see Star Wars, The Force Awakens! I saw the movie, then went to work and did a Star Wars tattoo! When I was done, I packed up my bag & was out the door. “I'm going camping!” I said as I made tracks. I then took the all-to-familiar drive to the Orlando area. Little Big Econ State Park is about 20 minutes north-east of Orlando. While I was driving my friends Geoff, Kurt, & April were already at the park, hiking in, and looking for a good remote place to set up camp somewhere off the trail. When I got there, it was already dark out, and the guys hiked out to meet me.
I gathered all of my stuff and we hiked in. They found a great spot on a river bend, so our area was surrounded by water on three sides! I took my pack off and started setting up my camp. The tent was easy enough, since I set it up once right after I got it so I would know how to do it. Kurt proceeded to give me lots of good advice as I went, and I had everything just right in no time. We enjoyed the camp fire they made as the temperatures dipped into the high 40's. After a while as the fire died down, we all decided to turn in for the night.
I got in my sleeping bag and tried to zip it up and the damned zipper broke! Such is life. Now I had a weird shaped blanket. After spending the night tossing and turning due to the fact the ground under me wasn't entirely level, I got up around 7:30, did some stretches and went outside to the beauty of the park that I hadn't seen the night before! 

It was great. I just sat and looked at the trees, the birds, the river. I listened to the sounds on the woods, and enjoyed the sun coming up. As relaxing as it was, I still fidgeted, and looked around, looking for something to do! I don't really ever just sit around any more, so I was becoming antsy. Eventually everybody else woke up and emerged from their tents.
The day was relaxing, spent taking pictures, doing a little hiking, and some cooking. We needed some more water for cooking so I went down to the river's edge to try out my new water purifier. I pumped the water through it while keeping an eye out for alligators. I didn't want to become lunch! As the day drew to a close and the sun was not far from setting, I told Kurt I wanted to make the fire, so he guided me through the process. I made a damn fine fire, and we all enjoyed it and even used it for cooking some great food they had prepared in little aluminum foil packets, using the hot coals in the fire to slow cook everything. Watching the fire and the the coals just glowing was mesmerizing, and there were multiple times I caught us all just falling out of the conversation and stare at the fire. Nothing needed to be said at those moments, as we were all somehow connecting with the most primal energy on the planet. This was good.

The next morning was a repeat of the first, so with everybody else still asleep, and the sun barely creeping over the horizon, I decided to go on a solo hike through the woods. I grabbed my walking stick Kurt had given me, and my camera and took off for an hour hike. It was cool walking on the trail by myself at me own pace, stopping whenever I wanted to take some pictures, or just listen and soak it up. So far we'd seen two bald eagles in a nest, some alligators, and now I got to see a beautiful owl in a tree below me, over the river. I tried to get a picture, but it heard my camera turn on with a chime, and flew away… damn technology!
The woods were full of surprises, from the squirrels following me, to the rising sunlight catching a perfect spider web with it's host sitting right in the middle. I looked closely at all of the moss and lichens on the trees, and the endless air plants. As the sun came up I got hotter, still having on three layers of clothes from the night before, so I headed back to camp. We all had some breakfast, cooked over Kurt's little camp burner, and we coaxed a fire out of the still smoldering log. Geoff packed up & headed out, and we did the same after another short hike & some lounging about in the hammocks. We collected our gear, which somehow fit better now, and headed out. Good times, great friends. I can't wait to do it again.

Element trouble

The day started like any other, with me shiftlessly rolling about in the bed, fighting off the notion that it was probably time to get up. But I knew I had to, because the Element had a hiccup last night. A sort of a repeated stall when I accelerated. I looked at the dash, and sure enough, the engine light was on. This happened once before, so I knew I needed to get it fixed right away. So I got up, got dressed, and headed out the door. Once I got to the local mechanic who I said I'd never go to again, they eventually got around to telling me it was a solenoid of some sort that's located on the back of the engine, and that it would probably be finished around 3:00. My appointments start at 2:00, the first one of which I haven't even drawn for yet! Shit. Time to make some calls...

   When I go on my adventure, with a new (to me) vehicle I'm sure this sort of scenario will happen many times on the road. I've been stranded on the side of the road in a van before, but then it was with four other people. Things will certainly be different on the road solo, but I'm looking forward to it. An adventure it will be! I think it would be smart of me to have some money in the bank for emergency repairs & such. Time to open that savings account... That's it for now, going to enjoy a couple hours at this bookstore!

Not sure what's to do...

While thinking about the intricacies of writing a blog, I find myself constantly thinking about the platform. Should I do a written blog with accompanying photos? Maybe one with videos too? Or how about a video blog ( vlog?)? I'm not really sure. Writing is tricky sometimes, and video takes a lot of time (set up, editing, etc...). I'd like to meet some people who do both and get their perspective on the subject... Know any?

Surviving

After conferring with some highly qualified friends, I've decided a camping trip or 10 might be in order to get my survival skills to a respectable level, since there will be times when I'll find myself alone out in the wilderness getting amazing photos, & I'll have to rough it! I'm also compiling a list of stuff I need to get to do said camping....
Here's a list from my friend Kurt who hiked the Appalachian trail: 
Sleeping bag, mattress pad, tent, tent spikes, light weight tarp tent size, backpack, water bottles, water filter, airtight water proof food bags that can be strung up in a tree, set of camp pots - utensils (vary by what u plan to do), camp stove and gas (also vary, I have hiking one and car one), clothing that dries fast (I always hike in shorts that u can zip pants legs onto) - as little cotton as possible  Small essentials bag (mine has) -small salt pepper, seasoning, pot tongs, pug spray or wipes, cards (books, dice), flashlight, head light, batteries, light weight ropes, duct tape, star chart, tiny solar panel with USB plug. Small roll toilet paper, nice pocket knife, condoms, hat, head bands, plastic zip bags for trash, more water proof camp bags to put clothing and sleeping bag in, Also good to get mesh bags.. and carabiners... hang stuff off back of backpack to dry while your walking.. 
Small firestarter sticks..  a small first aid kit..bandaids and suture strips, alcohol wipes,  small eye drops, gauze, Fold up solar charger, knife,axe, bowl, cup, small shovel, wipes, TP, matches, peanut butter,

Did we forget anything?

This is a test.

Yep, that's right. A test. Let's go on this ride!