Date of Trip: July 13th – July 15th, 2007
Camping Group
Our camping group included 11 children and 8 adults. We camped two nights at the group campground loop of Glacier Basin at Rocky Mountain National Park. Friendship, group meals, and gear sharing are some of the highlights of camping together. Special thanks to our friends who invited us, reserved the camp site, and organized the meals.
The Maggiolina AirLand: A Roof Top Tent
For the last couple years we have considered buying a Maggiolina AirLand Roof Top Tent.
Finally, we did. Last year, we camped in the van with the kids sleeping in the front seats. But as they continue to grow, there is not enough room for them. We like the idea of traveling by car, avoiding hotels, visiting relatives, and camping a couple weeks a year. The Roof Top Tents are attractive because they are easy to set up, they have a ceiling lift to store at the top of the garage, and of course they are a little unusual.
Lessons Learned: Roof Top Tents are not considered Tents by Some
The kids did sleep the first night in the Roof Top Tent. The next day the camp host came by and noticed we had a ladder propped up against a tree. When asked, we assured him we were not climbing trees (which was against the rules). Then after some thought, he returned to ask if we were sleeping in our Roof Top Tent. We were asked not to sleep in the tent because this is a tent-only group campground. So after discussing whether we should put the tent on the ground, we decided to take an offer to sleep in a friend’s tent. In the future, we will verify we get the correct reservations when using our Maggiolina AirLand.
Sprague Lake Hike
Most of us hiked to Sprague Lake on Saturday Morning. We saw sun, clouds, and rain as is common in this country. Since the sole fishing pole we own is broken, it was very nice to have friends with fishing poles. We learned that sand walks were built into Sprague Lake so the fly fishermen can walk to the middle of the lake and fish. See the photo. The Park Ranger presented an interesting talk on beavers and showed us an abandoned beaver dam.
Castle, S’mores and Skits
The kids built an elaborate castle with rocks in our campsite. The adults were given tours of the courtyard, emperor’s and king’s quarters, knights’ quarters, wizard’s quarters, dining room, great hall, dungeon, kitchen, and more. S’mores and skits were a highlight each night. The final night skits were presented by all including “Important Papers”, “The Doctor’s Office”, “The Candy Shop”, “Echo Canyon”, and “Star Wars”.