Camping

B.

Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts instilled a deep love of camping at an early age for me, to this day it is still an activity I love to do.

Camping trips have gotten further and further apart for me the older I get, it appears. As I have gotten older, I like to go camping at the perfect time of year.

When it comes to the weather. I have learned that I don’t need to suffer through 100-degree temperatures during a camping trip if I am the one planning the trip. Why on earth did my dad think it was a good idea to go camping in mid-summer?

Possibly it was the only time he could get a vacation, I don’t rightly know for sure. Still on those hot summer camping trips there were some pleasures to be had that could only be had on a midsummer Texas camping trip.

After a long hot day with nary a breeze there was nothing like jumping in a lake to cool off, it almost felt too cold at times. And there is nothing as fun as a nighttime swim - those would make even the smallest of breezes feel a little chilly.

The other pleasure that comes to mind is when the sun finally crept behind the tree line like a retreating fiery phoenix. The relief was palpable with each cool breeze bringing sighs of relief.

Ah, but alas, I am older and wiser and have found the end of May to the second week of June and anytime past mid-September to be near perfect conditions for camping.

Some warm-to-hot days sprinkled in with some cool evenings make for a very comfortable camping trip. By hot days, I mean low nineties, maybe upper eighties for the daytime would be just about right.

I don’t mind a hot summer day of 100-plus degrees if I know there is some ice cold A.C. waiting. So many of my early memories are tied to canoe trips down the Brazos and camping trips at Lake Whitney and other fine Texas parks.

For a kid there was nothing more adventurous than an overnight canoe trip down Brazos; if you haven’t been, it’s a must-do as a Texan. I guarantee your kids will love it and your inner kid will as well. A trip down the Brazos in a canoe should be a right of passage for any child in Texas if it was up to me.

Other camping activities that always left a lasting memory were the late night campfires. We kids huddled tightly around the fire as one of the dads or uncles told tales of axe-wielding maniacs loose in the woods or creepy ghost stories of someone who had drowned and now aims to take more kids to the bottom of the lake if they dare go swimming at night.

‘Smores, oh those gooey delights of chocolate delights with charred marshmallows and crispy graham crackers, those are worth a camping trip all by themselves.

The list of memories and activities that went with camping is endless, but for now I think I can hear the gurgling of the Brazos calling.

This is Will B saying, what are your favorite summer memories?

It’s summer, go make some fun memories outdoors.