An unexpected camping opportunity popped up when Ken and Harriet were asked to fill in as camp hosts this week at Oakland Mills County Park south of Mount Pleasant, Iowa. It's a small campground and they expected a quiet week, so they encouraged others of our camping group to join them. Several were busy but Letha and I decided to check it out. It's a beautiful spot on the Skunk River. The photo is one Letha took of the sunrise on an early walk with her dog.
We arrived on Wednesday afternoon in perfect weather, but found that the hosts' week had been less than quiet. There had been a camper-rockin' storm Monday night, several incidents with squatters, and a couple of recalcitrant campers, but there also were some interesting visitors. Three flint-knappers sat around their campsites and practiced their craft of chipping rocks to make stone tools--arrowheads, knife blades, etc. They produced amazing work with a wide variety of colorful rocks. When we asked what they did with them when they were finished, one man answered "Make another one."
A tent camper was also in the area with a 1919 Model T that he had built from parts. He spent every day on the road with cohorts, visiting interesting spots in the area.
A tent camper was also in the area with a 1919 Model T that he had built from parts. He spent every day on the road with cohorts, visiting interesting spots in the area.
We hiked up the bluff a couple of times and visited the old cemetery. Many of the stones predate the Civil War. The earliest one we found was 1827. A swinging bridge crosses a ravine but I passed on that.
An old iron and wood bridge still stands and is for pedestrian use only. It was great for viewing the rise of the moon and the sun. We were careful to follow the rules
On Thursday, we were joined by Patti and Jeff, classmates of Harriet's and former students of mine. Per usual, we did not starve--especially with Italian beef sandwiches and potato salad on Thursday and Ken's smoked pork loin and Patti and Jeff's cherry cobbler in the Dutch oven on Friday. Agatha performed beautifully, which is a good thing because I returned home yesterday, did laundry and repacked to head up to Pleasant Creek this afternoon for a few days.
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