Should I break camp?

Post for Saturday - November 2, 2013 in the afternoon

After arriving from my wanderings around Lajitas and Terlingua, I inspected my shower and found it was dry as a bone and ready to be packed away.  My gut instinct was telling me to go ahead and take it down as I was not going to use it anymore...but NO....I ignored my feeling.

Then I looked in my first night/last night tent and it was a darn mess.  Though it is a veteran of many Chili Cook-off's...I had never set it up here.  It is 9 x 9 whereas a little smaller my Kodiak Canvas tent is 8 x 9. I can stand up in my Kodiak Canvas tent...it is like a hotel in the desert. While the 9 x 9 is a cheap dome mesh tent that you have to bend down to be able to enter it...not a good thing when you have a bad back.

My sixth sense was telling me to pack away all the unnecessary items...but again I choose to ignore my gut feeling.  What did I do instead?  I went riding around all over CASI with the guys in their mule.  By the time we got back the rest of the guys camp had dinner ready.

Let me explain a little about Saturday or at least the camps in my immediate area.  Most have been here a week or more and are looking forward to going back home and sleeping in their own bed.  They do not want to take anything back with them.  Everyone cooks up what they did not consume and shares it with their neighbor.

If they still have bottles of liquor those too are shared with passerby's.  We had a couple of virgins that arrived from Austin, Texas on Friday night and the guys graciously shared their food and liquor with them. The virgins were very surprised with the guys generosity...but that is just the way the guys are...a true class act...like their late daddy Mr. A :-)

Now back to breaking camp.....when I first started coming in the mid 90's no one broke camp early.  People cooked breakfast, had coffee said their good-bye's and then commenced the arduous task of breaking camp on Sunday.  I think the Guy's Camp changed all that at least around us.  Their camp is pretty big and though they do not have far to go...they want to be home, unpacked and ready to watch the Cowboys play on Sunday.

They started breaking camp Saturday evening and my contribution to their efforts was shining my Wakawaka light on them which in case you are contemplating buying one...DON'T...it is worthless!  My shower and tent beckoned my attention and once more I choose to ignore my gut feeling.

Once again lots of gallons of water were wasted as people do not bring empty milk jugs or water containers to bottle up the precious liquid.  Most people do not want to drive back home with full or partly full  fresh water tank.  I donated my six one gallon milk jugs to save some of the liquid but more than 200 gallons were dumped by the guys camp alone.

For the first time this year they had two bands playing.  One in the main pavilion and another one at Krazy Flats. I camp right smack in the middle of the two but being along the ravine facing Krazy Flats I get to hear them better.  In the past a lot of people went to the dances but for some reason very few attend now.  Most would rather enjoy a roaring campfire with their friends accompanied with a cold adult beverage which is what I chose to do.

 

Stay tuned for more tales from the desert and pictures to back it up.

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.