Coming Home to Camp

Our family has a wonderful tradition of taking a 2-week family vacation every summer. It first started when we would go camping at Spikehorn Campgrounds near Bailey’s Harbor in Door County. We would arrange for campsites that were next to each other. Each year on New Year’s Eve, I would call the fellow who made the arrangements. We spoke so often, that he would send me an annual Christmas card.

This was our first experience with tent camping. Our tent had 3 sections. You could stand in the middle. This is where we would keep our clothes and where the dog would sleep. The other two pods were our “bedrooms”. 

Matt had a cot with a sleeping bag and an air mattress. He had a milk crate with a battery-operated light on top. He would lay in bed and read himself to sleep. 

Michael and I shared the third pod. We had a queen-sized air mattress with a double sleeping bag. I can remember feeling totally comfortable and sleeping well in our cozy tent. The campground had a garage that was set up with a ping pong table and comfy chairs for the kids to read, relax, play games, and spend time together. It reached a point where we would go to Spikehorn at the same time every year so the same kids would come and renew old friendships.

The Cana Island lighthouse was just down the road from the campgrounds. We would make it a point to visit the lighthouse every summer. We all would laugh when we arrived for our vacation because the sign in front always said “No Vacancy”. The sign was a misnomer because the sites were always less than half full.

It was a sad day when we found out that the campgrounds had been sold to the Department of Natural Resources and were being returned to wetlands. It was no longer available for camping. Now what?

We decided to check into Peninsula State Park as our replacement. It was an amazing place to camp. Getting adjacent campsites on the water there was quite a challenge but my sister worked her magic. 

We camped at Peninsula for many years. If I had to guess, I’d say no fewer than 6 years. Each year brought a new adventure. The first year we were in the woods with a bike ride needed to get to the lake. The year I remember the best was the year Lisa and Craig adopted their two boys. I had not met them yet and I was so excited to finally get to spend time with them. 

Michael, Matt, and I rented an Escalade to load our camping gear, clothes, bikes, and two dogs. We decided to drive all night so that we didn’t waste any vacation time. We would trade off in 4-hour shifts. One would drive while the other two slept. After seventeen and a half hours we were ready to be in Peninsula State Park. 

The rest of the family was already set up and they were excited to see us. My fatigue left me as soon as I saw everyone, especially the two little boys. What a treat! They were two and three years old. They were both blond, almost white hair, adorable, and full of energy. With our dogs, we had 7 dogs at the campsite. It was a very active week! We had campsites on the water.  (thanks to Sandy, Craig, and Michelle) The swimming beach was just a short walk or bike ride from our sites.

I remember Luka was enjoying hitting a wiffle ball with a bat. I spent many hours pitching to him. He had amazing accuracy in his batting for a 2-year-old. The bright smile each of the boys displayed opened our hearts at first sight. Craig and Lisa seemed really happy.  We could tell they were enjoying their new family. 

We spent our time playing with the boys, bike riding, swimming, walking the dogs, and being together. Our highlight of each day was cooking dinner in our “kitchen” which had almost all the conveniences of home. Michael and Lisa were the frequent cooks. Lisa made fantastic soups and Michael was always up for trying something different. I remember one night with a beef stew laced with cooking Sherry. We didn’t give up comfort even though we were camping. 

After dinner, we would gather around the campfire, tell stories and sing songs. This part of the evening was my special favorite. Lisa would lead silly songs like “Tarzan” and a fun song about a buzzard. The adults would have a drink or two and the kids would crawl into one of our laps and quietly fall asleep.

Some people think tent camping is awful. I respectfully disagree. It does take some planning. I think you could call our style of camping, glamping. Climbing into our sleeping bag each night, I felt like I was snuggling in a soft, warm cocoon. 

The drive home to Colorado wasn’t nearly as exciting as the drive to Peninsula. We all agreed it was worth it. We shared and laughed about the great times, took our turns to drive, and dozed as we could. The biggest challenge was one Michael got stuck with. He spent several hours vacuuming out sand and dog hair. When he was done you’d never know the SUV was our traveling home for 35 hours. Happy memories to last a lifetime.

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