Mr Hippo Goes Camping Part 1

Mr Hippos is pleased to report that he has just returned from a well deserved,
2 night camping trip at a wonderful park located a short 60 miles from Casa Del Hippo.


This is the first time Mr Hippo has camped there, because prior to this year,
that particular park system didn't take reservations, and Mr Hippo simply refuses to drive any distance at all
to arrive at a park with Mrs Hippo and the children in tow to find the dreaded "Campground Full" sign barring his way.


But anyway, Mr Hippo discovered that the park took reservations while he was searching out campgrounds in a nearby National Forest.


Mr Hippo didn't really want to stay in a National Forest campground this time of year because it is in the middle of the
Fall Hunting season, and Mr Hippo simply hates the color orange in any form, especially on articles of clothing.


Thus Mr Hippo would have not been able to take the requisite "Hike In The Woods" which is a staple of any Mr Hippo Camping Adventure.


Since Mr Hippo had never been to the park in question except on a day trip some years before,
and since the park map online didn't have a decent campground map, he thought it prudent to check out the
campground in person to pick the exact perfect spot for Mr Hippo and family to commune with nature.


This of course entailed Mr Hippo driving to the park and scoping out the available sites that would be vacant for the weekend,
a rather short list since Mrs Hippo absolutely insisted on an electric site.


Mr Hippo chose a perfect site, since nothing less would suffice, a site not too close to any neighbours,
but not too far from the bathrooms, an important consideration when one has young children in tow.
It also had to have a very large tent pad, since a good friend of
Mrs Hippo and her child would be joining us, making 2 vehicles, two tents, and 6 people.


Mr Hippo rose at his usual time Friday morning and instead of bidding his family adieu until the afternoon, drove Mrs Hippo and the children to school.


The plan was that Mr Hippo would pack the truck and drive out to the campground, where Mr Hippo would set up camp,
having everything ready when his family arrived in the evening in the car of Mrs Hippos friend, who will henceforth be referred to as Lou-Lou, the friend, not the car.


Mr Hippo left home at 12 noon, after spending the morning doing laundry, shopping for supplies and packing the truck.
Mr Hippo wasn't sure how he would get everything back home again, since the truck
was packed absolutely full of necessities, and no allowance was made for either Mrs Hippo or the children on the return trip.


Mr Hippo really wanted to get out by noon, since in the first town he would pass through 20 miles away had an Arbys restaurant,
and Mr Hippo once again wished to partake of the 5 for $6.95 deal for lunch.


Mr Hippo had the same deal on the way home from booking the campground, but he felt slightly gypped,
since he was forced to use one of his 5 picks on a soda. This time Mr Hippo had a cooler full of drinks,
so he could use the deal the way it was truly intended, to purchase 5 food items.


Mr Hippo decided that 2 cheddar melts and 3 curly fries would be just the thing to satisfy his hunger until he could
drive the remaining distance to camp, set up the two tents, organize everything, and lounge about until dinner time.


Mrt Hippos family would be dining en route, so Mr Hippo was free to indulge in one of his favorite camping meals.


Mr Hippo will share it with you:


1 can beef stew
1 can french style green beans
1 can new potatoes.


Open all 3 cans.


pour beef stew into large pot
drain water from beans and potaotes and pour into same pot.


Heat untill hot.


Pour in large bowl and eat untill stuffed.


For a real gourmet touch, one can have a crusty bun on the side,
however, Mr Hippo was saving his crusty buns for the following nights meal.


Once dinner was over and the one pot washed,
(Mr Hippo always uses paper plates and plastic cutlery when camping),
Mr Hippo settled in front of the fire to await his family.


Mr Hippo wasn't sure if he had mentioned to Mrs Hippo that the park gate is locked promptly at 8 pm,
but he didn't think it would matter, since by his reckoning, they would arrive by 7 at the absolute latest.


When 7 had come and gone and 7:30 was looming dead ahead, Mr Hippo thought that perhaps he would call
Mrs Hippo on the cell phone Mrs Hippo had left for him so that she could call and appraise Mr Hippo of their progress.


But, Mr Hippos first foray into 21st century telecommunications technology was doomed to abject failure.
There were ZERO bars, and thus Mr Hippo could neither make nor receive phone calls.


As 8 o'click loomed closer and closer, Mr Hippo dug through his wallet and found on a scrap of paper the
phone number and card number for a calling card that had long since disintegrated.


After banging the cell phone keys for a good 10 minutes, Mr Hippo was able to find the phone listings and the phone number of Lou Lou's cell phone.


Mr Hippo called, and got Lou Lou's voice mail instead. Mr Hippo later found out that at the exact time he had called lou lou,
Mrs hippo was trying to call him, and had in fact ignored the incoming call in her doomed attempt to reach Mr Hippo.


After finding out from the ranger the exact location of the gate to be locked, so as not to be accidentally
locked out himself, Mrt Hippo headed out to wait for his family and guide them to the campsite.


Mr Hippo entertained the possibility that his family had come into the campground just as Mr Hippo left, and being on a loop,
they would never have seen each other, so he returned to the campsite to wait untill after the gate was locked,
at which point he would have set his lonely vigil inside the camp gate, for as long as it would take.


However, it didn't come to that, for as Mr Hippo was driving the campground loop
back to the campsite, he heard cries of "there he is" and "daddy daddy"


Mr Hippo parked the truck and saw his eldest came running down the campground road.
But instead of being greeted by "daddy, I missed you" he heard the words "daddy, mommy fell and twisted her ankle".


October doesn't agree with Mrs Hippo, ever since she fell on a flat, level stretch of trail coming down off of a
mountain hike 3 years ago, and had to be carried the rest of the way off the mountain on a litter,
and spend a week on crutches after her ankle swelled up as big as a grapefruit.


The swelling wasn't there, but the pain was, but if there was a positive side,
then it was that Mrs Hippo wouldn't fall in the middle of "The Hike in the Woods",
since "The Hike to the Bathroom" would now be adventure enough.


On the way back from the bathroom the first time, since the shortest route between the campsite
and the bathroom was through the woods, Mr Hippo was thoughfully lighting the way with his flashlight,
and pointing out various tree roots and other obstacles.


At one point, Mt Hippo, in a joking mood said "look out, here's a flat level spot", and he narrowly
missed being whacked in the back of the head by Mrs Hippo,
on account of his being just out of reach, and Mrs Hippo being unable to run.


The night was glorious, the fire was roaring, the moon almost full, and everyone sat around the campfire drinking their favorite drinks and nibbling their favorite snacks.


To Be Continued.....