Car camping gone bad

“And I'm home.

I attempted to try out my new tent and new sleeping bag... BUT...

1. I decided too late. I left too late. Left around 6:30-ish. By the time I got to Yellow River State Forest, it was way dark... and I...

2. Hadn't been able to find my headlamp. So I decided, oh what the heck, I'll just camp in one of the campgrounds, so at least I can have the lights of my vehicle to set up my Eureka Zeus Exo 1, which has only been set up once.

3. Drove through both campgrounds. Nada. No one. I thought, cool! I went in the Little Paint campground, and set up by this trout stream (yes, part of the one mentioned in the "Sierra Club trip" thread). It's really a gorgeous spot. Had camped here one other time, probably 3 years ago.

4. Tent is easy to set up. I get in the toasty -15 degree Kelty down sleeping bag. Get it all pulled up tight, both the chest baffle (is that right terminology?) and the mummy hood. VOILA!! I am still chilled. DAMNola, I must sleep cold!!! SHEEYAT! And yes, I had on thermal long johns, socks, thermal top and fleece vest, fleece gloves and balaclava. Also, I discovered a weird thing. The drawstringed chest baffle thingee loosens up. It makes a noise almost like something crawling on the bag when this happens.

5. There are a million stars everywhere. I had walked around a little, to help provide warmth before going to bed. In the tent, the stream within 50 feet provides beautiful sounds. However, the jets flying overhead at the rate of 1 every 20 minutes are extraordinarily loud. (I was in a valley; were they echoing??) Seriously loud. WTF?? So I am having trouble sleeping.

6. At whatever time (remember, I was probably in the bag by 8 at absolute latest, perhaps 7:30), I hear a big truck coming. SHEEYAT!! I mean, I am camped right, smack dab by the drive (you have to; it's a campground) I sit there and listen in fear. The truck loops around once. Then starts the loop a second time. SHEEYAT! However, it stops at the far end. I can hear they are taking the truck offroad, onto the 4WD trout stocking trail (which you are not supposed to go on)... Or maybe on a snowmobile trail. I dunno...

But this is not good. It's the frickin' middle of the night, I am alone, 20 feet from a roadway, and this is Allamakee County. A couple miles from the Mississippi. In the last couple years, people have beat each other to death with baseball bats in bars in river towns in this county. I am about 5 miles from a river town. Middle of the night. Hmmmmmmmmmm.... THIS IS JUST NOT GOOD!

So I debate. I really have nothing to potentially pound 2-4 250-pound drunk men with, should they choose to make a visit. I get dressed, I tear down camp, I come home.

7. Did I mention the tent? A single wall tent, it was not set up to be well ventilated tonight (how the heck do you guy out the tent with stakes in frozen ground??) It was frosty all over on the inside when I went to leave.

8. Also, before I left, I drove past the horse campground. SHEEYAT! There were campers there with horse trailers. I should have checked it out earlier and camped there (horse or not), to be near other people with BIG camping gear.

Sooooooooo, I'm home. Better safe than sorry... (and a lot warmer! Was 18 when I left... supposed to get down to 8.)

They say to trust your instincts. I'll let a lot fly. But a truck with crazies going offroad at what I later found to be midnight? I didn't want to be there when they came back through, thanks.

All kinds of lessons learned tonight.”

“Glad u r safely home...always trust your instincts. There will be other times to go bpking.”

“Yellow River by I.P. Freely”

“OK Jello...I'm game...

Rusty Springs by I.P. Nightly”

“Let's get this sad, sad tale of woe back up on the board!!!”

“Lizs, you did the right thing by heading home. Ive had to bail on a trip but was glad that i did.
gee we are smart!!!”

“Yes, we ARE!”

“The dominatrix:

Yes, there are those people who seem to be bent on causing trouble in the wilds.

I wanted to get a dominatrix to go camping with me in redneck country so she could sashay into their camp in her work clothes and proceed to tie them up and beat the crap out of them.

"Hey Billy-Bob, this here ain't th' way ah thought it'd turn out!"

"Shet yo mouf Joe-Don, she's a hurtin me!"”

“Huh?”

“Always trust your gut..there's no harm in bailing out!

You did the right thing and now you know a little more for the next time out.

(glad no one made you squeel like a piggy! hehehe)”

“dang lizzy.....


that's why i opted for the mountain pass over the zues(the ventalation thang)

if i were a woman, i'd NEVER go out like that unless i was packin a lil heat and i knew how to use it well....but hey that's me....

glad you made it home and thawed out...”

“Car camping gone bad
Car camping gone bad
Car camping gone bad
Car camping gone bad
And Baby I'm a bad man...

Yeah!”

“Can't quite place that song, Tilt???”

“Baaaaaaaaaaad Company, LOL”

“Please see the numerous "guns on the trail" threads.”

“This thread has such interesting possibilities. Lizs, ya need a write-thru!”

“It is evil!

8|”

“Come on folks, put all those great minds to work.”

“Great call Lizs!”

“Like I said car camping is evil!

8)”

“This thread started out quite familiar and reminded me of a certain zipper bailout. At least you had a better excuse. ;o)

Hey, you did the right thing Liz.

As far as staking your tent in the frozen ground, I use an ice axe to get through the frozen stuff. It makes a great defense weapon also.”

“i wait till it thaws out.....”

“An ice axe will scare the living #&%!$ out of the average goober, 'tis true.”

“It's scary to be scared. Bummer.”

“Especially if you're carrying one in the summer, Tilt...lol...”

“So tent stakes don't just break or bend?? All I could think was, I don't want to ruin my nice, new tent stakes. LOL!”

“they do liz.....


they get lost in sand too!”

“You liked that truck, you wanted that truck, where in Iowatucky were you camping?”

“Liz,

What the hell where you doing car camping, you know better then that!!!

All the phycos stay 2miles near a road. You have to hike in to be safe.

I am glad you are ok, and upset that you had to bail because or routy hicks.

Again, car camping, thats where you meet all the lazy people that pack so much crap so they wont notice that they left their house (or trailer in mississpi's case).”

“Reminds of a time we were car camping while on the way to a trailhead. This one young couple with two kids were set up down the road a bit. As it started to get dark, they pulled a regular table lamp, like people have in their homes and set it on the picnic table. Obviously they had a site with electricity, but it was weird.”

“It's quite something to be admonished by a youngster!!! MY!!! (BTW, that's A-D-M-O-N-I-S-H-E-D... lol)


And Buddha Bear, I mentioned it's near the Mississippi River, right? Nuf said. ;-)”

“...squeelin lil piggy...good call...never camp in a camp ground...walk in 100 yards and dissappear into the darkness...campgrounds suck...I've learned that now...”

“that's a bummer lizs. As a solo female, I have never camped within sight of any roads because of the yocal factor. That, and I always carry a minimum of pepper spray for personal security (to temporarily blind them, then kick the crap out of them and run...LOL!)

Hey, that sleeping bag doesn't sound very good if you were cold at those temps. Are you sure it is rated to -15? Of course, ground insulation is a big factor.

glad you are safe!
:o)”

“So, MsG, where does one get pepper spray??

As far as the pad, there was a piece of carpet runner under the tent, from the door as far up as it was (maybe 5-feet?), then a 1/2" blue foam pad, then my 1/2 or 3/4" three-quarters-length Thermarest (that is why I put the carpet down there), and then a fleece blanket on top of Thermarest. I think that was adequate. lol

It has been suggested I sleep in fleece pants, which I now have. The thermal pants I wore were acrylic and thin, for active workouts. Also, cold air really seems to bother my breathing. How is it for you when you're out in the winter? Right now I have a cold that is not totally over. After I came back from being out that little bit, my throat was all sore again.”

“I have to sleep with all that and fleece too when it's cold. I also have to make sure I can breath warm air while I'm sleeping or I have rather serious breathing issues the next day. I usually just make sure I'm breathing the warm air in the sleeping bag all night long. That usually involves cinching up the mummy hood and then turning my head to the side so the opening is at my cheek instead of my mouth and nose. Hope that helps.”

“Isn't that what happened to Dare?

I heard he camped out next to a road in Pennsylvania and woke up in Niagara Falls with a bump on his head and a ring on his finger.”

“Hey Tilt, it is the other way around for sure! Why, less than a year ago, I was still soaring the blue skies, galloping across green pastures...
Now I am in quicksand and sinking fast!! uhhhm wedded bliss. =:0

lizzy - WOW! With all that ground insulation, I can't believe you were still cold. You are never coming on a FYAO trip, right? If so, you'll need to sign a permission slip! ;D

Pepper spray is pretty much the same as bear spray, I think. I got mine from a cop friend of mine, but I've also used the commercially available bear stuff and it has the same blinding effect.
=;)

re: cold air breathing
I think it is a matter of hydration, since you lose a lot of moisture throughout the night. In Winter, you will most definitely need to get up for a nature call during the night (at least once) and you should also drink something at that time. The warm water from your water-bottle-wubby works well for this job.”

“AmyG says: "Pepper spray is pretty much the same as bear spray, I think. I got mine from a cop friend of mine, but I've also used the commercially available bear stuff and it has the same blinding effect."

That explains all the blind guys named Bubba walking around the hills.”

“Geo, it's a service to my community. What can I say, I am a selfless, giving person...

;)”

“Well, I can tell you that the spray works pretty well. She sprayed me right before the wedding then clubbed me over the head. I woke up the next morning and I couldnt see. AmyG told me that I was buying a car. I couldnt see anything, so I signed a bunch of papers and by the time my vision cleared, it was too late. I was married. I promise you, the pepper spray works.”

“LOL!

I think I am just a waaaaaaaay cold sleeper. If I would have had on fleece pants, it might have made all the difference in the world. It was mostly my knees that seemed chilled. Weird, eh?? lol

Also interesting, skully, on turning head and breating into the side of the bag. I used to cover my head all the time with blankets at home. But then it got so that seemed constraining. However, I will definitely have to try it outdoors!

Also, remember the tent was not well ventilated, which it really needed to be. It was getting really frost and, I assume, humid, in there. How might that have affected things?”

“Increased humidity will make cold temperatures seem even colder. I'm sure that did affect it. Dampness will suck the warmth right out of you.”

“dang. A car, too, eh? LOLOL

I wonder what Skully used on G00SE?”

“AHA!!

I figured as much. (well, theorized)

Thanks for verifying....”

“hey lizs, you can get pepper spray at gun shops. i mean, the next time you're just browsing...LOL! but for real, i've gotten some there before.”

“Duct tape.”

“And thank you Lyra! I feel very special you grace us on this thread. We should have sought you out on the "all Lyra, all the time" thread.

lol!!! j/k... Seriously, I had no clue. Now I'll just have to find a gun shop. Actually, I think there's a gun/sports shop within 45 minutes. (and they sell LIQUOR TOO!!! GOD BLESS WISCONSIN!!!! LOL) I'll check there.”

“LOL! all the essentials in one place...awesome.”

“Down here, the fireworks stands sell beer. Sometimes, they sell gas too. It's like the Apocalypse, just waiting to happen...”