Father & Son Campout

Last weekend our church ward had a father & son campout. It was a lot of fun. A member of the bishopric has some family property just south of Pocatello in Inkom. The property has a small pond, a river that runs through it, and lots of open spots for camping. Ethan, Christian, Elliott and I packed up after Ethan got home from school and then we headed out. We were the second ones there so we got our pick of tent sites. While the boys were playing in the pond, I found a nice flat spot a little way down a trail and across the river. I had to scare off a skunk, but it was a perfect spot. Everyone else in the ward ended up setting up there tents right close to the pond so it was nice to have a little space just to ourselves.

After setting up our tent, the boys and I went for a short hike and played on a rope swing some. We then had dinner. I just purchased some cheap hot dogs on the way to the site, thinking that would be enough. We each had two, but the boys were still pretty hungry. Many of the other dads had brought steak skewers and fancy things like that, so I was getting pretty hungry too once our hotdogs were gone. Luckily, the bishop brought a whole smoked turkey and two huge dutch ovens full of a potato dish and a green bean dish that he said he brought for the whole camp. The boys and I filled up on that and it was pretty yummy. After dinner we played catch with the football and then we shot off bottle rockets. That went until about 8:30 or so and the bishop was supposed to have a cobbler and fireside prepared to start then, but the cobblers were not done until 10:30. They boys were super tired by that point, so we went back to our tent instead of staying up for the fireside.

It was a really clear night, so we slept with the rainfly off and the stars were amazing. For some reasons the stars didn't show up very well in Alaska and that is one thing that I like a lot about Idaho. It was a little cold, but the boys just burrowed in their sleeping bags and slept through the whole night. The next morning we packed up and had a breakfast prepared by the High Priest - pancakes, bacon, and orange juice. The boys loved it and ate a ton. Then we went back home.

I think we all had a fun time. On the drive home the boys told me that they wanted to a lot of camping this summer. I am not a big camper, but it is a nice way to get a break from the usual routine. Plus, with it being a father and son campout we were able to give the girls a break back at home - they painted finger nails and watched the Little Princess.