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Ricketts Glen State Park part of the Pennsylvania State Park system managed by the DCNR (Dept. or Conservation and Natural Resources). (Photo credit to the web site)
My favorite camping spot in Pennsylvania is Ricketts Glen State park, about 18 miles west of Scranton, PA. While I've been to other spots, this place just grabbed a hold of me. I tried to put a slide show from the web site, but the YouTube html embed wouldn't take. So if you would like to see it use the link above. Google images has a lot of pictures too.
Many moons ago, almost twenty-five years, I went to Ricketts Glen with two small children in tow. The oldest couldn't have been more than 8-9, which made my youngest about 5-6. We had a cozy three man pup-tent and a screened-in tent to eat and hang out in, while in camp. Let no one tell you that pre-trip preparation isn't important because it is. No matter how seasoned a camper you are, once you get there you instantly remember the one thing you forgot.
I thought I had done a good job planning, bringing much that younger children would need. Books, toys, extra clothes, hand held video games and other necessities to keep them occupied while, I was doing camp chores and such. The meals were typical kid food, like Spaghetti-O’s, hot dogs, cereal and normal camp food. One trick I've learned over the years is to freeze food for camping. It helps to keep the cooler cool and things like homemade chili travel well in this condition.
This particular three day trip promised a chance of rain, so extra cloths were planned. And we were only a little over two hours from home, in case someone missed Mom.
Driving up there it was raining on and off. Up being the key word, because the elevation is about 2500 feet, at this location. Most of PA is like Kentucky, rolling hills and some small mountains. So up we went on a grade that will test every inch of your power train. It even has runaway truck ramps on the way down. The old Chevy Citation made it fine.
Campsite at Ricketts Glen (also credited to the web site).
We/I set up our camp site and got us settled in. The rain had stopped and was really foggy for a late afternoon. Little did I know, we were now in the middle of the cloud cover that was producing the rain in the valley below. It was so damp and soggy that I decided to hang out for the rest of the day, get a fire going, feed the kids. With the Spaghetti-O’s warming, I looked for the plates. Plates? Oh, crap! I forgot plates.
Necessity being the mother of invention, I created some fine china out of tin foil. Although, a half used pack of plastic spoons and cups was on the money, once the O’s were done. You guessed it, I left the silverware at home too. That foil saved the day, for I had all the camping cookware, but none of the utensils to eat with, that box was still at home.
Later on, when I finally got the soggy campfire going, we decided we would cook the "dogs". So the kids went in search of forked sticks and I kept stoking the soggy blaze. We were enjoying the dogs in no time. Plates? We don’t need no stinking plates! We have hot dogs and a bag of Doritos. Life was good.
That night it rained. A lot. The tarps and the tent did their jobs keeping us all dry. However, the weather was a little unsettling for the kids. Thunder and lightning is best viewed from home, not a tent. Not to mention it's much louder when you are actually living in the clouds. I taught them how to count and determine how far away the thunder and lightning is, which helped to distract them a little. So, it was long into the night, till we were all too tired to stay awake any longer.
Twin fawns (Credit RBNC.org through Google Images) Is it me or do these two look like they are smiling.
We'd gone through two changes of clothes. Most of which were already hanging in the crowded tent to dry. Their sneakers (two pair) were hanging with the clothes. Last hope was the galoshes.
Very early in the morning, when even the sun wasn't quite up yet, I was awakened by the sound of something running past the tent. not thinking to much of it I rolled over and it came though the site again. Now, I have to get up. Standing there rubbing my eyes, when all of a sudden a fawn hauls ass straight through the site. Still not believing my eyes, I woke the kids, who after the next pass were now ready to play, like this was some pet dog or something. It kept up for what seemed like a long time. As soon as one of the kids would move the fawn would change course and high tail it, over and over. It was really a LMAO moment.
At one point mamma doe stepped into the site. I thought she was looking for the the little one, but she kept coming closer and closer. She got so close my daughter actually pet the doe, I grabbed a left over hot dog and handed it to my daughter. She held it out and damned if that doe didn't take it right from her hand. With a shake of the head, the dog went flying and she devoured the bun. We remember it as the hot dog eating dear.
Doe and Fawn (credit BuckManger.com through Google Images)
Lake Jean, Ricketts Glen State Park (photo from site)
The day was looking brighter, as the clouds were up over our heads and had lost all their punch overnight. After breakfast we hiked to the “Falls Trail”, a landmark for this park. A beautiful well laid path following two streams from the top of the mountain to where the meet, taking in all the waterfalls along the way. Twenty-one in all. But when we got there it was still quite soggy and much to dangerous for adult, much less children. Some of the steps down the mountain are cut right in the rock and there are reasons for the signs like, "Slippery When Wet". (Note: There is a very nice slide show, on the RG web site link, at the beginning of this article, showing the "Falls".)
Making our way back to camp, we made lunch and planned the rest the day. Another clothes change and some fishing. But by this time all their clothes were hanging in the tents, the car or on a line strung between a couple of small trees. I hoped by the time we got back from fishing some would be dry. We caught nothing for dinner, but sun fish and blue gills can make some excitement to kids.
For us it was one of those bonding memories we'll never forget. However, before we even got to dinner time. I had to decide between a wet soggy adventure in the Pocono Mountains or sick little one’s. We had gone through four days of clothes in about a day and a half and the clouds were rolling in again. The weather report was no better either. So I broke camp and found a nice pizza parlor on the way home.
To this day they remember eating Spaghetti-O’s on tin foil plates and those crazy almost domesticated deer...and so do I.
