First Time Greendockin'

Dean (the husband)  
 Shalane (the wife :O)

This past weekend we decided to give boondockin' a try without the travel trailer.  Using only the truck with its shell, we set off to find a place so remote that we wouldn't have to hear any traffic, people and sirens.  Sirens are constant where we live.  The spot that we found was a short drive off a paved road about 5 miles south of Shoshone, California.  We hadn't ever been here before.  We like going places that are new to us.  Exploring is the funnest part!  It was quiet, peaceful, and very remote.  Pretty too.  The sunset was gorgeous. The first thing that we did was set up our small propane stove and make some hamburgers.  We've ordered a solar cooker, but it hasn't arrived yet.  It was about 6pm, and we were pretty hungry.  The reason it was so late was because we had to speak in church that morning, and by the time we got home, made the unplanned decision to get outta town and packed the truck, it was already 4 o'clock.  Afterwards, we got things set up for the night.  Some of the more important things that we brought along were a portable solar generator for quiet electric power, our portable toilet, our lightweight, collapsible cooler, and collapsible 5 gallon water carrier full of water.   We never go anywhere without water.  We have two cots set up in the back of the truck to sleep on.  They're pushed together, but we can't cuddle because of the bars running down the center.  This is an issue that MUST be dealt with.  I can hardly sleep without a goodnight cuddle.  We are able to store things underneath the cots so it was a perfect setup for us.  Perfect may be too strong of a word, but I do like that we can utilize the space under the beds.

As the sun set, we made some s'mores and checked out the stars.  Dean's first s'more ever, as he can recall, and I made it especially perfect for him.  TWO marshmallows, lightly toasted.  :O) Since we moved to Vegas 5 years ago, it seems like we have only seen the stars just a handful of times.  The night was pretty uneventful except for some wind.  I took two sleeping pills so that I wouldn't have to use the restroom in the middle of the night.  That would have been kind of a pain.  It worked.  I slept like a baby.  :O) Still it was much better to be in a camper shell than a tent with that strong of a wind.  I remember a night, when the kids were little, camping in Colby, KS and nearly getting blown away.  It was seriously scary.  We ended up taking the kids into the car and riding out the storm.  By morning the wind had died down.  We hadn't gotten the curtains placed in the camper shell yet, so Dean took an old sheet and used bungee cords to brace it on the outside, over the top and sides of the shell.  Thank goodness there were no neighbors.  They would have called the HOA for sure.  It was a little chilly but not too bad.  We were cozy in our blankets all night and had jackets for the cool morning air.  It had all the ingredients of a perfect day, which will be the topic of the next blog tomorrow.  Ooh!  I can't hardly wait to tell you about it.  This was one of our best adventures ever.  SO fun!  Happy Trails!