HNY to you Dalew,

Sweet looking canoe. By all means, use it as often as you can.

Yup, hopefully 2014 will be a camping enriched year. My son is talking about it already so that's a good thing....I think he's including me but at his age, I can never be sure.

Have a healthy one......elliot

Happy New Year everyone! Hope it's going to be a great camping year for you. I'm sure looking forward to getting out there and also getting a canoe for the first time. Have been searching around for a good deal. Gotta get out my boots to hit the trails and do some hiking to get rid of some extra weight and get in good shape. It's harder for us oldies to lose weight you know.
Jo

So, here sits old Rusty Jones, watching his yard full of nasty cold snow just laying out there, not melting-at all! Not conducive to thoughts of camping. Nor, much else.
Yes, i realize the snow is going to melt-some day. I bought a nice used pickup, newer than my old Ranger. It has a tonneau cover, but no cap. I'm going to see if i can get a cap for it. Makes it better for rainy camping. I used my older Chevy pickup for a number of years, that way. Picked a lot of Bluegrass on the tail-gate.
Since Ruth has passed on, I'm rattling around the house a lot.
Warm weather will let me open up the mower shop, again. Nobody mows grass now. The Meals on Wheels furnish some of my food, but an occasional trip to King's Restaurant helps a lot.
My Son and his Daughter come by and help me a lot, too. Come on, Spring! by: Rusty Jones

Tough, long winter in upper Midwest. Ice is 32 inches thick, too thick for a standard auger without an extension. Very cold week will lay down another 3 to 5 inches of ice. An avid winter camper, gone every year and slept in an igloo or tent 10 straight years in February, but not this year! Working on 50+ days below zero! too cold for me!

Anyhow, thaw will come in no more than 5 weeks. No new gear (yet) this year, but hope to hit Canoecopia in Madison in a week looking for a Go-Lite tent cheap. Every pound counts for backpacking when you get north of 50. Rusty still camping says you are never too old to sleep outside.

Cheers to all planning those week+ getaways. Even a weekend in the woods is a thrill, particularly after this crappy winter.

Steve

Good News,

This past weekend, planned out a couple of weekends to go camping. Nothing exotic but excited regardless.

End of this month driving only an hour to a reservation in Westchester, believe it or not. Son with some friends, are looking to go hiking. Found a park, Ward Pound Reservation noted for their trails. They, at 17-19, want their independence so another father and I are in a different site, not too too far away. Primitive sites but hopefully relaxing anyways.

July fourth, my son and I are heading to Bethel Woods (Woodstock) for a CSN concert. We'll be camping at a campground close to the venue reminding me of my ultimate camping weekend there 45 years ago. Might be our last outing before he heads off to his freshman year at school. Gonna miss my campin' buddy.

Enjoy the season people......Speak soon,

elliot