Sunday: time to go camping. I received an invitation to camp on someone’s farm land, near a small lake. Don’t have to ask me twice! Around noon I gathered up all garden produce that needing picking, washed it, and stashed in the frig. I also packaged up two days worth of veggies for the trip.

For once I did not get lost finding someone’s land. I am learning to how interpret directions that go like this: head east on the main road, at the top of the hill go left, no right, follow the curved road to the treeline and go left, drive along the edge of the hay meadow till it ends on the bluff, above the lake. Don’t worry about the beehives. The bees won’t bother you.

What a great spot.  After I set up the camper, Tango and I walk the fence line looking for a way to hike down to the lake. No luck. I am thinking I will need to learn how to scale barbed wire fencing, but not that day. Otherwise, perfection! A slight breeze left the air cool. No flies, mosquitoes or ticks?? What the heck. I gather up a summer bouquet and proudly place it on the table.  I  have been looking for a great summer camping spot.

You may remember exactly a year ago, when I was camping in northern Montana? I headed there thinking it would be cool, but temps were in the 90s every day (tough in a canvas tent popup) If I had come east just one state I would have found what I wanted—high 70s, low 80s during August.

Bees!!

After wandering and setting up I make a late supper of a hamburger with A-1 and a pile of those veggies. Barn swallows buzz around like drones, checking us out. They are bold, brave, territorial. Thank goodness the bees (50 yards away) are minding their own business, as promised. At bedtime I hear a brief coyote racket then total silence. When I awaken, still utter quiet. No people, no cars, no equipment noises. Well, I am exaggerating. Cows across the lake offer us random moos.

I feed tango, throw on clean clothes, grab coffee, and head out to drive around the area with nothing to do but watch birds and take photos. Wanderlust in full gear. I see living things everywhere- birds, deer, dragonflies, small, elongated rodents crossing the road.On another recent trip I saw all those plus a turtle, garter snake, and frog.

I head to a WMA on another lake, not far down the road. What a joy to set up the tripod and spotting scope. After playing I decide to pull out my chair and just sit outside, absorbing some rays and outdoor vibes. I pull out the smart phone and start up an Audible book.  Listening on my phone is my new favorite pastime since the Kindle Fire pooped out. I still have Kindle Paper White but it does not play Audible books. My fearless Samsung phone does it all. Before I leave the beautiful setting, I clean some of the nooks and crannies in the van and organize a few things. Amazing how the outdoor air energizes. 

Next I drive to Ashley, a small town about 20 miles south. I stop all along the road to aquire some new photos for the Colors of North Dakota series. Some of the sights on the way to Ashley:

 

 

In Ashley, the first and only stop: the thrift store. I find a couple of shirts. The temps were cool enough to leave Tango in the van, so I wandered around without being in a rush for a change.

The time is well after noon by now, and the light is too saturated for photos. Birds and wildlife are napping as we head into hottest part of the day (80 degrees). I head back to camp and join them in a siesta. Instead of sleeping, I lounge around in the camper-hand sewing, crocheting, reading. I look at my photos and realize it is time to learn about my camera settings. I start by learning about the histogram that I see through my viewfinder. That was a great place to start!

The silence is disrupted by a large group of Cormorants/White pelicans flapping in; must be fish movement on the lake. The Cormorant wings make such an interesting sound; however they all leave shortly after arriving. False alarm for the fish. At 4 PM  the sound of cows moving and mooing around across the lake also break the silence again. I can’t figure out what is bugging them, either a predator, missing calf or ???

I am learning about Germans from Russia food, as I previously mentioned. I like more veggies in my food and since I have so many with me on the trip, I decide to do a recipe experiment:

Nuevo German-Russian Soup

I call this Russian German because I use spaetzli and Nuevo because I add things not usually associated with it (tomato flavor, veggies, and cheese). Here is the camping version.

• 1 small can V-8
• Equal amount water
• 1 cup spaetzle (they come frozen, in large bag, but were thawed out after night in my camper frig
• Chopped kale
• Sliced zucchini
• Onion, chopped
• Any other veggie bits laying around
• Heavy dose of Mrs. Dash original seasoning
• Grated cheese

Simmer for about 10 minutes, sprinkle on grated cheese. YUMMMMM. I have used V8 as a soup base before and it is fabulous and handy when camping.

Another quiet, cool, perfect night. I sat outside and watched stars and finally the moon rise. Perfect get away for a tired minister and her lazy dog.

Some birds from the trip:

Solitary Sandpiper?

Franklin’s Gull?

 

Another Sandpiper

Northern Harrier