Buescher State Park (pronounced Bisher) is about 45 minutes from home and one of the prettiest parks around. It actually connects to Bastrop State Park that was nearly wiped out in the huge Labor Day fires a couple of years ago. Luckily, Buescher was spared.
It was another scorchingly hot summer weekend when we packed up and headed toward Smithville, Tx. We picked out a campsite not far from the restrooms/showers and one where the vehicles would be closer to the campsite. We learned well that carrying heavy equipment and supplies is not very fun in 100 + degree heat.
This part of the park is a "water only" area, meaning that there is no electricity to run a fan at night. Never fear, I bought one that runs on 46 D cell batteries. Well, maybe not quite that many, but we did discover that the batteries will last exactly one night and until 3:26 a.m. the following night. That was Raven's assignment.....changing out the batteries in the middle of the night.
Another thing I learned was to maintain an acceptable amount of ice in the ice chests, they have to be kept in the shade all day and, preferably, covered up to further insulate them. Before heading out the second weekend, I did some internet snooping and read about freezing containers, like coffee cans, full of water to make the ice last longer. It really does work. The second weekend ( a three nighter) the ice lasted much longer & I only had to dash into town for one bag.
Another nifty trick I learned is to keep things cold but dry, use one of those cheap plastic tubs. It fit perfectly on top of the canned drinks and held the cheese, lunch meat and other food we would rather not eat soggy. A couple of water bottles with frozen water in the middle kept it all nice and cool, but dry. We're really getting the hang of this!
We had a blast in the evening playing "baseball" with Elisha and tossing horse shoes. It was still a little warm for hiking for me and Daisy agreed totally.
Before the long weekend trip to Buescher, I prepared a menu of each meal, went shopping for what I needed and made "meal packets" the night before, freezing it all so it would stay fresh and help conserve ice. I made chicken breasts stuffed with veggies and spices and wrapped in bacon, then wrapped in foil and all put in a gallon freezer bag. There were double stuffed potatoes, hot dogs split and stuffed with cheese then wrapped in bacon I made pancakes, johnny cakes and cinnamon toast for breakfast, along with cold juice and hot coffee. We kept lunch light with summer sausage, cheese and crackers and sandwiches. A good meal prepared outside is the best.
These were good trips. As always, we met some interesting people and made some good memories. Elisha is learning more about nature and how to live outside. It's been an awesome summer.
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