True beauty lies within our hearts, our health and our passions. My passions include knitting, promoting wellness and being amidst the company of beautifully authentic people.







Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Camping Trip To Niagara Falls - Take #1



I have many fond memories while camping as a child with my family.  We went every year, and sometimes twice a year.  We typically would camp in tent and sleep on cots or air mattresses along with our sleeping bags, and we have tried cabin camping as well during colder seasons.  Camping is sooo much fun, but it can be lots of hard work too depending on whether you're the child tagging along with your family or if you're the adult organizing the activity.  We set out to camp at the Four Mile Creek Campground located 15 minutes from Niagara Falls which is approximately a 7.5 hour drive from where we live.  Mike drove the distance despite my readiness to take over the wheel, whew!  Along the way, we made a few stops for lunch, two bathroom breaks and gas.   It was a pretty straight path, but thankfully we arrived to our destination without incident at 4:30pm.






Immediately taking advantage of daylight, we set up our tent and quickly begin to prepare dinner.

All Hands On Deck!


Our condominium for the week



During the course of the week, all of our meals were quite yummy and primarily featured a starch of either potatoes or rice, a vegetable and fish based stew and a salad.

Salmon Stew & Rice
Salad

Tilapia Stew & Blue Potatoes

After dinner we wash our dishes and walk over less than 100 feet to view Lake Ontario and the beautiful sunset while listening to the waves crashing in on the shore.  It was so peaceful.

Mike at Lake Ontario



The bathhouse and restrooms were less than 40 feet away, so before retiring for the evening we showered and then jumped into our sleeping bags.

Shower House/Laundry Station
Shhhhh!  They're all asleep...Zzzzzzzzzz!

This is the best time of year to go camping in my opinion.  Temperatures were quite warm during the day ranging between High 70's to 86 degrees and up, and would typically fall to high 60's in the evening, and even lower in the mornings...Brrrrrrrr!  For the cool nights and even cooler mornings our thermals and layers of clothing came in handy, and by 11am we quickly traded them in for shorts!

Breakfast was pretty much individualized, some mornings it was smoothies (yes, I brought my Vitamix!  Whaaaat???  LOL), toast and hot cocoa or tea,  hot or cold cereals, waffles, melons, etc.   Surprisingly we weren't too fussy about what to eat for lunch, since time often passed us by.  However, we had loads of snacks to help keep hunger at bay, such as nuts, nut butters and rice cakes, dried papaya, Lara Bars, hand fruit, sweet potato chips, etc.
 
Waffles anyone?


On days 2 and 3 we decide to relax and stay local, enjoying the beautiful scenery of the campground.  The boys (father n' son) decided to go fishing. Dilemma: we were 2 fishing rods short, as Mike only thought to bring 2 rods, one for himself, and the other for Mekhi. Hmmmm, I guess girls don't fish?!!

While the boys decide to walk over to Lake Ontario's edge, back at the campsite Skylar and I begin to make the boys some lunch, after all, this is what girls are good at, right?  Hmph!   Once we're done, we venture over to where the boys are and sit on the huge boulder rocks at the shore's edge to eat.

It's at this time that Skylar decides she'd like to fish, so naturally her dad makes her a fishing rod from a long branch and adds some recycled fishing line he finds caught up in a nearby bush. He adds a small weight, a flotation device, small hook and worm and offers a story or two about how he used this very same type of rod to fish with as a boy growing up in Ghana...viola! Skylar's in business with her new fishing rod from nature.

As it turns out, this is no ordinary fishing rod.  Over the course of the next couple of hours, Skylar catches not just one, but 7 fish!!!  She was the only one who caught fish this trip...we're still scratching our heads over this.

I remained hopeful for the 7 lil' Blue Gills return to Lake Ontario, so I kept them in water while she continues to fish.  When I suggest that she throw them back since they were so small, she firmly protested saying, "Noooo, I caught them and I wanna eat 'em!"  Oh dear.  Her dad was more than happy to carry out her wishes and proceeded to clean them by the lake and we bring them back to our frying pan campsite.


Skylar's first catch...its a Blue Gill!

A congratulatory hug from Big Brother Mekhi


"Wanna know my secret?  I prayed..."
Dinner...courtesy of Skylar!


And now, time for desert...

Naturally, Its all about the S'mores



Stay Tuned for amazing photos of the falls, first from the New York side, and then from the Canadian side.  Sooooo exciting...promise!














6 comments:

  1. I love, love, love your pictures and comments! Felt like I was right there with you. Did you bring all that food with you or shop when you got closer to your campsite? Looks like the children had a great time too? How about Mike... did his back hold up under all the pressure of driving?

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  2. Thank you for your comment Citrinelady! Yes, we brought a cooler packed with ice for perishables such as Tilapia and loads of fresh produce. The children had a blast and can't wait to go camping again. Mike said his back never felt better while camping...I'm sure the hard ground on which we slept had a lot to do with that. My back, on the other hand, missed my mattress! hahahaha!

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  3. Love it! What a way to document a trip. You are an inspiration.

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  4. OMG OMG OMG... I want to go now and experience what you and your family enjoyed! My daughter would go crazy for the rainbows and the Maid of the Mist ride (and I wouldn't mind some of that tilapia stew with blue potatoes). You have a beautiful family! :D

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  5. @ CKingEducation: as are you, Mwuah!

    @ Amy Tse: LOL, you just ought to take your daughter...she'd have a royal blast, as will you! Promise! Something about camping meals...add a lil' scenery and adventure and they're far more tastier than those from the kitchen...weird how that works, lol.

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