As soon as we arrived Saturday afternoon, we headed with the group to the nearby Bullpasture Gorge. This involved strapping Silas into the Ergo baby carrier and carrying him across a suspended bridge to the banks of the Bullpasture River, where a wooden ladder up a tree led to a platform and a rope swing where one could clutch the rope tightly, fly out above the river, and drop into the water below.
After several other young men had done so, I (Matt) decided to show young Silas -- and the assembled group -- how daring and fearless I could be. I hopped up the ladder, grabbed the rope, jumped off the platform -- and precipitously dropped. Before I could appreciate why those standing onshore were gasping and shrieking, my feet, shins, and knees had dragged across the rocks in the shallowest part of the river.
The principal casualty of this accident, other than my pride, was my right knee, which was somewhat bloodied and bruised. I consider myself lucky that I did not break a bone, although Taylor almost busted a rib laughing at me.
Upon returning to the campsite, we saw that most of our fellow campers had already pitched their tents along the side of the river that bisected the 75-acre farm where we were staying.
Concerned that Silas' nighttime theatrics might disturb our fellow campers, we set up our tent at the far end of the camp, hoping that the distance would allow the other campers to sleep soundly.
To our great surprise, there was little need for such concern given that Silas slept far better in the wilderness in a laundry basket than he does in his climate-controlled bedroom on his organic sheets in his Asian hardwood crib while Mozart plays in the background.
Each night, we set Silas to bed at the appointed hour in a regular laundry basket stuffed with a flat pillow. The basket fit his 19-pound frame perfectly and provided an ideal sleeping surface for him. Around 1:30 or 2 a.m., as the temperature dropped in the mountainous country, we brought Silas onto the air mattress with us for warmth.
Silas loved the trip. He enjoyed the sound of the river, the dirty farm dogs wandering about, and the many campers eager to hold him and play with him. Perhaps his only difficulty on the trip -- of which he seemed oblivious -- was the quite unusual sunburn he incurred as a result of his father's attempt to avoid getting sunscreen in his eyes. This gap in sunscreen application led Silas to develop red circles around each of his eyes that contrast sharply with the rest of his face, where SPF 50 protected his thin, pale skin. He looks like a raccoon.
To sum up (and to indulge Taylor's obsession with puns): Silas was one happy camper.
2 comments:
Ah - the anticipated camping post. The laundry basket is hilarious. How did you come up with it? Lots of laughter from this post. Awesome.
I also love the laundry basket idea! Perfect size. Maybe you should try it at home!
We loved seeing Silas after his trip. He still seemed pretty happy. The sunburn didn't seem that bad. Not bad enough to call child protective services.
Good for Taylor for laughing at Matt. I would have a heart attack. I am going to have a very hard time as a mother!
Post a Comment