Winter Excursion 9, Day 178 The Life of a Camp Host

Well we have one more find of the day. We were at the grocery store this morning and Cath found this in the parking lot. She said "Here's a find of the day"!

I'm sure there is some little kid crying their eyes out because they lost this thing!

We spent the day packing up and doing a little relaxing. It's good to be campers again.

 

Winter Excursion 9, Day 177 The Life of a Camp Host

Today is our last day of hosting this year! It was a doozie!

We had 19 campers leave this morning. That means 19 sites to clean up on our last day! To say nothing about the bathhouses. It was mid afternoon before we got it all done. Many of the campers did not leave until a few minutes before check out time. At one point there were eight campers in line at the dump station!

Around 1500 that same pickup truck with the same young girl was back in the closed site by the gate. I went down to inform that she had been told yesterday that this area is for registered campers only. She decided to argue with me. She said she was a tax payer and this is a State Park. I informed her it is a State Campground and only registered campers are permitted here. By the way she had Florida tags on the truck. I told her again she had to leave and I left. I called our Ranger at High Falls (we are a satellite campground, with no day use area) and reported the situation. The Ranger said to give her 30 minutes and then call the police. She left a few minutes later. I do love "entitled" people. NOT!

We finally finished our duties around 1730 and got some down time at the camper. The AB this evening was well deserved.

Our last find of the day is this moth.

It's hard to tell from the pic, but this guy is 8 inches across! He was on the outside wall at the bathhouse. He hung out there all day!

 

Winter Excursion 9, Day 176 The Life of a Camp Host

Today is Saturday so it was not too busy. The weekend campers arrived yesterday so all the campers are settled in for the weekend. Tomorrow will be another story.

When I went out this morning I noticed a truck in the closed site by the gate. When I investigated there was someone sleeping in the back seat. Later in the morning about 1030 a young girl got out of the truck. One of the maintenance guys talked to her and informed her she could not stay here as the area is for registered campers only.. She said she would leave. Two hours later she did!

The weather is really warm and the "beach" at the boat ramp is really busy. That means trash and lots of it. We even found three recently used diapers. Cath and I often wonder why so many people feel it is OK to leave trash everywhere!

The find of the day was this balloon.

It was with all the other trash we picked up!

The bird of the day is the Heron.

One more day and we are campers again!

Winter Excursion 9, Day 175 The Life of a Camp Host

It's Friday and we stayed busy with all the new campers arriving. This is our last weekend of hosting.

We are still slowly getting the camper packed and ready to leave in a few days.

I had two finds of the day. First one was this amber earring.

As with all the precious stones I find I'll have to get it appraised. Who knows we may be rich!

The other find today was when I left camp to do our evening rounds. This guy was blocking the way just a few feet down the road from our camper.

It's a Rat Snake. He's over five feet long!

Winter Excursion 9, Day 174 The Life of a Camp Host

We did a little more shopping this morning in preparation for leaving next week. We got all the supplies we need and the freezer is stocked. We are preparing to be campers again!

We went to the Whistle stop one more time for an early farewell dinner. The food was great as always. As usual we forgot to take a pic of the dinner because when it finally arrives we are so anxious to dig in!

We are "ON" for the weekend, but slowly packing up. It's amazing how everything gets out of place when you camp in one place for 4 months.

All is well in the Boss Camp! 

Winter Excursion 9, Day 173 The Life of a Camp Host

We left camp this morning and drove to the Commissary to do some food and supplies shopping.

Back at camp we had a lazy afternoon watching TV and reading.

We did our favorite chicken wings on the Ninja. They always turn out super good.

We are expecting much needed rain tonight. 

Tomorrow is one more day off, then we are on for the weekend.
 

Winter Excursion 9, Day 172 The Life of a Camp Host

Today was the total opposite from yesterday. It was actually boring as far as host duties go. We had 4 campers leave and 3 arrive.

We spent the afternoon reading and watching the birds eat all the birdseed. We did get the freezer/refrigerator defrosted. This was the first time since we left home. Not bad for a RV refrigerator.

We had a little rain on and off in the late afternoon. That's first rain we've had for awhile.

The find of the day is a doggie ball.

It only golf ball sized so it must belong to one of those "yap hounds" that yap all day. We do have a few in the campground as I write this!
  

Winter Excursion 9, Day 171 The Life of a Camp Host

We had a ton of campers leave today. That usually means that some will not leave until the last minute before checkout time. That was not the case today. Everyone was gone by 1100. By 1230 we had everything done to include the bathhouses.

We spent the afternoon outside reading. The weather is great.

The find of the day was another fishing lure.

I'm running out of room in my tackle box for all the lures I've found!

Winter Excursion 9, Day 170 The Life of a Camp Host

Today was a lazy, do nothing day!

After a late breakfast (brunch) we just hung out at camp and did some reading and relaxing.

Cath made a super Easter dinner of lamb chops.

We are back on duty tomorrow, so we did hit the sack early.

All is well in the Boss Camp!

Winter Excursion 9, Day 169 The Life of a Camp Host

We left camp to do some shopping for Easter and the next few work days. We stopped at Five Guys for lunch and Cath loved it! For her to love a hamburger it has to be good. I think it will be her new go hamburger joint. They even had a sign about us!

From Five Guys we did our food shopping and then took it all back to camp.

Cath had a 1400 hair appointment at Ulta so I dropped her off at 1345. I headed to TSC to get more bird seed for the hogs.

I went back to Ulta at 1500 to pick her up. She had said it would take a hour or so. At 1600 I went inside to check on her. She was still in the chair getting her cut. She said just a little longer. I went back to the truck. At 1630 I went back it and she said "almost. I went back to the truck. At 1650 she appeared at the truck. That must have been the longest cut & color ever! I now have my brown haired girl back!

My new Kindle arrived today so we spent the evening in the camper reading and watching TV.

Winter Excursion 9, Day 168 The Life of a Camp Host

Thanks to all for the Birthday Wishes!

I'm glad we were off today, it got really hot this afternoon. I spent the morning packing up our screen tent. With chances of rain in the forecast I wanted to get it in while it was dry. When we get home I'll need to set it up again and get rid of all the pollen. The pollen here is no where near as bad as George L Smith, but it still gets into everything.

We went our for an early dinner at Kudzu Seafood Company in downtown Macon. It was really good. A couple from Macon was so in love with Louisiana cuisine that they opened this restaurant. We will go back next year.

Back at camp we spent the late afternoon in the camper (it's 88 outside) and enjoyed the AC and watched some TV.

The bird feeder was empty again when we got home. They will have to wait to get it filled until tomorrow after I take out a loan to buy bird seed! 

It's been a fun B-day!  

Winter Excursion 9, Day 167 The Life of a Camp Host

It was another nice and easy day. We got all our work done early and were relaxing by 1300.

The find of the day was this light holder.

I guess that light won't be standing anymore.

The bird of the day is once again a Grackle.

This is just one, but there are usually about 15 or 20 of them at the feeder. We are going broke feeding these piggies!

 

Winter Excursion 9, Day 166 The Life of a Camp Host

Back on duty today, but it was a really slow day. We only had a few campers leave or arrive.

After we did the bathhouses I spent the afternoon washing the truck. Pollen season is over and the truck really needed a bath.

Cath had the find of the day!

It's a little squishy, rubber squeaker. I glued it to the steering wheel in our host cart.

Here's the birds of the day.

Our resident Canadians had some little ones. I guess we now have some more illegal immigrants! Call ICE!

 

Winter Excursion 9, Day 165 The Life of a Camp Host

Cath and I slept in this morning in our very quiet camper. We finally got up around 0900. If it wasn't for Jerry & Carolyn leaving this morning we may have slept longer!

Jerry & Carolyn left around 1000. We wished them safe travels and will see them when we get home.

We left camp around 1130 to do some errands and grab lunch. We spent the afternoon outside enjoying the weather.

I forgot to mention that Ed (our co-host in January) stopped by on Sunday afternoon while the Kid's were here. He brought back the spider plants we gave him when he left. He said between him and his cats the plants were almost dead. He was hoping Cath could revive them! We got some potting soil and replanted the spider plants. We call them the "Spikettes"! Time will tell if they make it.

The bird of the day is actually four of them.

Two Brown Headed Cow Birds, a Female Cardinal, and one Grackle. The birds have been going through a feeder a day!
 

Winter Excursion 9, Day 164 The Life of a Camp Host

None of us got up till almost 0900.

Wesley and I had a breakfast sandwich making contest. Wesley won, but I think the judges were prejudice. 

For the rest of the morning we just relaxed. Around noon they packed up the car and were off to back home. It was a whirl-wind 24 hours!

Cath and I cleaned up the camper, relaxed, and then went over to Jerry & Carolyn's and relaxed some more.

We made them a nice farewell dinner as they leave tomorrow morning. It was great having them around for the past two weeks. They booked their site for next year already.

 

Winter Excursion 9, Day 163 The Life of a Camp Host

It was a busy day to end the weekend. We had 19 sites to clean. For the most part the campers did us a favor and starting leaving early so we could get our work done.

The highlight of the day was Brian and the Kiddos arriving. They left Charleston this morning around 0500 and drove straight through. They arrived around 1100.

After we all said our hellos the Kiddos helped us finish up our work. Wesley helped me clean the last 7 sites and Kennedy helped Catherine clean the bathhouses. By1300 we were all done. 

Brian was at the camper with the dogs while we finished up, so he made some hamburgers for lunch. 

The afternoon was just crazy fun. The Kiddos just wanted to ride the host cart almost until the gas ran out! Brian just wanted to chill at the camper and watch the Masters. And the Corgies just wanted to cause havoc!

Cath made Sticky Chicken for dinner and we ate it all. We had a nice fire in the evening to include Smores!

Sleep came fast for everyone.

Winter Excursion 9, Day 162 The Life of a Camp Host

It started as an easy day, but changed around 1100. It felt like everyone needed something all at once. Maintenance needed a hand loading an old water heater, campers needed a hand getting the pavilion ready for a B-day party, bathhouses needed cleaning, many of the campers just wanted to yak, and did I mention we were trying to do laundry all this time! All in all it was a normal weekend host duty day...LOL.

Around 1500 we were all done and had an hour or so to chill.

The find of the day was what I've been waiting for.

My lizard that I've had for the last 4 months finally got his white bead. I found it on site #23. It makes him red-white and blue! I gave him to some little girls in the campground. I'm sure they will take care of him.

No bird of the day, but the dang Grackles are eating us out of house and home! 

Winter Excursion 9, Day 161 The Life of a Camp Host

The storms hit around 2300. The wind was bad and there was lots of debris around this morning. We lost power during the storm and it did not get restored until 1400. We had a good size dead pine near our camper shed lots of large limbs. We had no damage. We spent most of the day cleaning debris and answering the camper's question of the day, "when will the power be restored"? I felt like answering, "when I flip the switch"! There is no more rain forecast for the next ten days.

The find of the day was this star.

I think it blew in last night from Macon about 12 miles away.

The  bird of the day is a White-breasted Nuthatch.

 

Winter Excursion 9, Day 160 The Life of a Camp Host

I never should have have made the comment about how good the weather has been. We are forecast to get severe thunder storms tonight!

After we said goodbye and safe travels to our friends Larry & Mona Cath and I left camp to do some shopping before we are "ON" for the weekend.

First we decided that we've not had a pizza since we've been here and it was high time we did. We went to Fatty's Pizza joint and were not disappointed.

We did our shopping at Publix and then headed back to camp. We spent the afternoon relaxing and enjoying the "calm before the storm". I'll let you know tomorrow about the storms tonight. 

Winter Excursion 9, Day 159 The Life of a Camp Host

We hung around camp this morning. Jerry & I made a quick trip to the store for rolls for the bratwurst tonight. We stopped at TSC on the way back for bird seed.

Our friends Larry & Mona did some exploring in Macon and had a good time. They went to the Rookery.

We played bones in the afternoon, then it was AB time!

Brats for dinner, some conversation with Larry & Mona, Jerry & Carolyn, then back to our camper for a good night's sleep.

The weather continues to be perfect, 70s and low humidity!

Winter Excursion 9, Day 158 The Life of a Camp Host

It was a very busy day. We spent the morning cleaning sites and the campground in general after all the rain we've had. We cleaned the bathhouses and resupplied them. I helped maintenance with the install of a new water heater in the main bathhouse. By the time we got all of this stuff done it was time to start the end-of-day checks.

We had some more friends arrive around 1700. Larry and Mona are some of our FROG friends from the FROG Rally we attend at Chenango Valley SP in New York. We had them and Jerry and Carolyn over for Schnitzel dinner. After they left I sat out by the campfire till almost 2300. It was a long day for both of us.

The find of the day was another fishing lure.

This one is meant to tease the fish only, as it has no hooks.

The bird of the day is a Rose Finch.

The birds are going through a lot of bird seed and suet. Another trip to TSC is in order!

  

Winter Excursion 9, Day 157 The Life of a Camp Host

It started raining yesterday evening and it rained all day today. We must have received inches of rain. We did have a few campers leave and a few arrive. Site clean up was easy!

For the most part we hung out in the camper. There was little to do in the campground. The rain slacked up around 1700 and we were able to cook dinner in the Ninja under the awning. Jerry & Carolyn brought over some Cornish Hens.

Just before dinner the Kiosk called to say that our replacement hosts (Dave and Rose) were here just to see the campground. They are full timers and have host experience. I gave Dave the grand tour and then we hung out in the camper. Best part is they are retired Army! He was a helicopter mechanic! Small World!

The find of the day was these fishing lures.

They swam up to our camper. As usual they made it to my tackle box!
  

Winter Excursion 9, Day 156 The Life of a Camp Host

We did our shopping for the week this morning and then headed back to camp. After we got it all put away we picked up Jerry & Carolyn and went to the Mexican Restaurant we had found a few weeks ago. The food was as good as last time. We will go back there again when we need a Mexican Fix!

Back at camp we sat outside for a little while and then the rain (storms) hit. The storms are forecast to last all night and all day tomorrow. We did have a Severe Thunderstorm Warning this evening and are under a Flood Warning for the next few days. Many areas in the south are having really bad flooding.

Back to work tomorrow, but it's going to be a wet one! 

Winter Excursion 9, Day 155 The Life of a Camp Host

We spent the morning in camp relaxing. 

We picked up Jerry & Carolyn around noon and did some more sighting in the area.

We all had a great late lunch at the Rookery. Their hamburgers were really good and the onion rings are to die for!

Back at camp we had a repeat of yesterday and just sat outside and enjoyed the breeze coming off the lake.

I did manage a bird of the day. Here's a pair of Northern Mockingbirds.

One more "off" day tomorrow and then back to work for a few days.
 

Winter Excursion 9, Day 154 The Life of a Camp Host

It was super nice to sleep in this morning. We crawled out of bed around 0830. I don't think I woke up all night.

The weather has turned hot and humid. The high was near 90 today with 85 - 90% humidity! Hopefully this breaks before we are "on" again.

We spent the day with Jerry & Carolyn. We took them on a drive around the area and we had a late lunch/early dinner at the Whistle Stop. We spent the evening at their camper and had a few ABs. We did get an evening breeze off of the lake.

The bird of the day was a Brown Headed Cowbird.

I can't figure out how he got his name!
 

Winter Excursion 9, Day 153 The Life of a Camp Host

Normal day of hosting. The campground remains full and will probably stay that way until we leave at the end of the month. We only have 12 more hosting days. We are off for the next three days and will be running around with Jerry & Carolyn.

I made the last reservation for this years trip today. All together we will be visiting 36 campgrounds including our host campground!

The find of the day was this screw.

Many of our campers have a "screw loose"!

The birds found the feeder again and managed to empty it in two days! I'll get some more "bird of the day" pics soon.
 

Winter Excursion 9, Day 152 The Life of a Camp Host

It's spring break for this area and the campground remains full. All 28 sites are occupied. The bathhouses are getting lots of use as there are lots of tenters. 

The weather is warming up and We are starting to see lots of ants. I made sure the area around the camper was ant proofed. Many of our trash cans around the campground were loaded with them today. A little ant spray seems to take care of them. The locals just say "it's normal"!

The find of the day was this kayak. Someone reported a kayak adrift with no people in it near the campground.

I went looking for it and it turns out to be two kayaks lashed together with the occupants lying down in them and just drifting with the wind. I hope they didn't get sunburned!

Winter Excursion 9, Day 151 The Life of a Camp Host

Our first day back after our four day weekend was a busy one. It didn't help that we had some debris clean up from yesterdays storm. Cath spent extra time in the bathhouses and I on some of the sites. We had a big turnover today.

Our friends from back home arrived this afternoon. It was good to see Jerry & Carolyn. We had them over for dinner and spent the evening catching up on all our travels.

The find of the day was this golden twirley. 

I was hoping it was real gold, but it's just worthless gold paper. It's now in the trash!

There is no bird of the day. The bird feeder was full when we left last Friday, but totally empty when we got home yesterday. I filled it this morning, but we think the birds have abandoned us!

Winter Excursion 9, Day 150 The Life of a Camp Host

After the Kiddos left for school and Brian left for work Cath and I hit the road around 0830. We stopped for a quick breakfast sandwich and then drove back to camp. We arrived in a thunderstorm around 1400. The storm ended with no damage to our campground. High Falls (just north of us) lost power and had trees down. Once again we dodged a bullet. 

Back to work tomorrow! It's been a fun weekend.

Winter Excursion 9, Day 149 The Life of a Camp Host

The girls got home mid morning and Brian had the day off. We all had a nice egg sandwich courtesy of Wesley.

We spent the day just hanging out and then went to a tennis match. Wesley and Kennedy won their matches, but the team lost.

Back home we had a super nice steak dinner and watched a few movies. 

Winter Excursion 9, Day 148 The Life of a Camp Host

Nicole and Kennedy left for a Girl Scout camping trip first thing this morning. Brian was at work most of the day.

Wesley had tennis practice at 1200. He is really very good and as one of the youngest on the team he is the #1 or #2 player!

We did pizza (of course) with Wesley for dinner and then watched a movie.

Brian got home around 2100 and we all hit the rack early. 

Winter Excursion 9, Day 147 The Life of a Camp Host

We left camp around 0830 and arrived at the Kid's house around 1400. It was a nice drive on the Georgia/South Carolina backroads.

It was great to see the Kid's and Kiddos. We stayed up till almost midnight yakking.