On a bright Saturday morning, I headed to Freeport to spend the weekend camping with LL Bean. The company offers a number of camping options, and I chose an Adventure Discovery weekend, which included a number of different activities for beginners over the course of a weekend camping. Really, I just wanted to kayak, but was interested in learning more about other activities and having a team to camp with.
I arrived at their site, and after our helpful leaders, Bob and Eric, finished their orientation for us, we went outside to pick out our tents. There were nine in our group, so none of us had to share. I chose a tent that was in a middle row with an unobstructed view of the water. I felt very fortunate to have it and settled in with some of my things. In a fit of packing genius, I had moved everything I needed for the weekend into my backpack and the rest into the larger bag that was stowed in my car for the weekend, because I had not expected to have access to my car. So I was well prepared.
The weather forecast included big storms, so we wasted no time getting started with the various weekend activities. Bob and Eric loaded us onto a bus and we headed out to shoot clay targets with rifles. The shooting instructors were very helpful and, after demonstrating appropriate techniques and safety, brought each of us up for our turn shooting targets. I shot outgoing targets first, but I kept lifting my face from the gun so I was getting some kick back in my face. After a few slaps to my cheek, I decided to give the gun back. I had hit one or another target and was ready to move on. I performed better with the incoming targets. The gun was easier to handle, and all of us campers noticed that we often hit the unexpected incoming target–the instructor’s remote was being activated by another group leader–than the one we were prepared for. Once I did both types once, I was happy to hand back over my gun. I’ve lost somebody very significant to me through gun violence, so I’m never going to love them. I tried it; I survived it. I hope that none of the sensory experience of it shows up in nightmares about the loss to cause a bout of insomnia.
From there, we moved over to a demonstration of fly casting. We stood out in the hot sun and practiced our casting, which got better the more I practiced. But most of the group were very quickly ready to move on. The instructor would have talked fly fishing all day as he competes in it. The best part of the experience was listening to him, but it was hot and time to eat.
We headed back to the camp site and, after lunch and a break, we changed into cycling gear for about an eight mile ride around the area. The bikes were nice, with wider tires than I am used to. I cycle a bit at home, so the hard thing for me was to stay in the group. I am used to navigating uphill on my own. On the way home, a group of us stopped off to see a local farm and visited with the goats, pigs, chickens and cats.
We rode back to to the camp site and, ordinarily, that would be the end of the day. But the weather forecast was ominous, so Bob and Eric decided to get us out paddle boarding to have more kayaking time on Sunday and because we could not predict how long we would have clear weather. This was my first time on a paddle board, and I must admit, I did not enjoy it. I am generally a water person, but they told us we needed to be tethered to the board to use it as a flotation device if we fall in, and that feeling of being tethered just messed with my head. I struggled to find balance and was really fearful of the water because I had this board strapped to my leg and felt very hampered by it. By the time they told me I could remove the tether, I was paralyzed in a balancing pose and could barely move. In hindsight, I should have dove into the water from the beginning so that I was already submerged and then not bothered with the tether at all. Maybe another time. I did not expect to dislike a water activity. I took consolation in seeing many of my colleagues sitting on their boards throughout and using them more as kickboards.
Once we were done, this was the end of our day’s activities. I took a wonderful shower at the facility just before the expected storm rolled in. I sat in my very solid LL Bean tent listening to (but not feeling) the rain come in. It soothed me into a nap and, by the time I woke, the storm had passed the our dinner was nearly ready. I had chosen lobster instead of steak, and Bob gave us a little demonstration on how to remove the meat from the lobster. I must admit that having my dinner stare at me reminded me of the reasons I hated dissecting animals in high school biology. But I was undaunted and got as much meat out of my little guy that I could manage. Dinner was delicious and ample, with lots of sides and dessert.
Afterward, we could have gone into Freeport for a free concert down at LL Bean, but one of my camp mates suggested a walk down to see the pier and peninsula that jutted out from our site, so we wandered around the camp ground before rejoining the group and campfire for awhile, swapping stories about our normal lives as it got dark. It had been quite a long and active day, and I was ready to retire to my tent for the night.
