Glad To Be Back

I’ve been back at Belknap campground for 5 days now and been working hard. Yesterday was the first day of opening up for campers, but only a few came. A storm is coming in today in the afternoon, with higher winds, freezing temperatures, and heavy rain turning to snow by tonight. A couple days of that, and then back to warmer weather. I’m used to schizophrenic springs here, with swings from 15° up to the 80’s before summer really arrives. Even snow in June, at times.

Both of my campgrounds were closed last year, due to the highway collapsing or washing away in many places. The record snowfall and late spring flooding was the cause. The road replacement look to be about 3/4 done, but I expect there to be traffic closures and slowdowns lasting all summer. It took me an extra 20-30 minutes to come up here, because of one lane roads and highway equipment. That might discourage the casual campers from coming up. I get paid the same if it’s busy or slow, but would prefer not too busy. This work is getting harder to do, as I age, and each year more duties get added on or less help from others. This week, I got all the bathrooms cleaned perfectly, most of the 35 picnic tables moved back to where they belonged, worked on both water systems, did lots of raking, shoveling, sweeping pavement, throwing rocks and sticks off the roads and camping sites, and more. My hands are blistered and I tore a hole in one palm when lifting one end of a 400 pound table. I’m fully exhausted by day’s end. My boss helped some on one day and the new maintenance man helped me with some of the heavier work for 3 days. But it will still be 2-3 more weeks to get everything close to tip-top shape. I’m supposed to only work 6 hours per day, but have 5 hours extra already. Maybe I’ll work less during the upcoming storm and gain those hours back.

A lot of the locals have came by to say Hello or I’ve seen them at the local store. I have forgotten most of their names, but the faces are familiar. They are excited that the campgrounds and day use areas are reopening after missing last year. I have to be careful not to talk too much with them or I won’t get my work done. Plus, my throat is already sore from overuse this week, after months of barely talking to anyone. Even with drinking lots of water, my voice is quite raspy. Can’t let that get worse. That reminds me, the clinic test results came in today; and my body looks to be in good shape, as far as my heart, lungs, and circulatory system goes. I may be overweight and out of shape, but those can and will be remedied over the summer. And maybe I’ll be smarter next winter about keeping the weight off.

Dozens of deer have been coming around already. No sightings of bear, mountain lions, coyotes, foxes, or bobcats yet; but I’m not surprised. It’s only been a few days and I’m in bed before dark, when they are most often active. Trees and bushes are budding a little but no leaves yet. All but a couple of the baby trees that I had planted in my campsite 2 years ago have died; from animals chewing on them, getting trampled by the tree cutters, or dying from lack of water last summer. I plan to transplant a few more next week and see if I can keep them alive. I had oaks, Cedars, Sequoias, Firs, pines, and a couple that I’m not sure on. Only 2 Cedars survived. My campsite has little shade for about 6 hours each day. That’s good for heating my solar shower, but not so good for keeping my van cool during summer. So, it would be nice to get some trees growing big enough to provide shade. Probably not for me, but for those who follow me as camp-host after I retire.

I brought over a hundred books to the campground and am reading my second one, currently. I plan to do more reading and writing this season, and a bit less of being online. My hiking time will be similar to past years, but not until I lose some weight and get more fit. My average daily walking is about 6.5 miles so far, almost all during working hours. I do walk to the nearby cabin, where I can use their wifi. Just to do a quick check for messages, the news, and sports. Haven’t had much time to do more than that yet. There are a hundred DVD’s in my van, but I doubt I’ll watch a dozen all summer. There are 3 restaurants close by, but I’ll likely only visit one 3-4 times per month. Save money, lose weight. I’m eating one meal a day, plus a small snack. My food expenses should be fairly low, even with the 40% inflation since 2019. My only health concern at the moment is recurrent nightmares about Sudoku, of all things! Maybe I overdosed on playing that game, and screwed up my brain. I’ll wake up a dozen times some nights, playing that game in my dreams and getting frustrated. So, I’ve stopped playing it in real life, hoping my troubled sleep will pass and I’ll get better rest.

My boss is still deciding whether to give me a company pickup to use or a gas-powered golf cart for going back and forth to the other campground. The company refuses to pay for my van’s gas this year, so they have to provide me a vehicle. Or I just won’t do that campground. She said she will decide this weekend. It would be cheaper for them to just pay my gas, but no other company employee, in any state, gets paid for mileage and they don’t want me to be the sole exception. I’m hoping for the golf cart, though it might be nippy during cold or rainy days. It is only 2+ miles to the other campground one-way, with lots of steep hills and sharp turns. It’ll be good not to use my van’s gas and brakes.

I’ll have more to write soon, but this is enough for now.