Harrison Lake Trip

From The Extended Group

Revision as of 07:29, 20 January 2006

The Harrison Lake Trip was a trip undertaken by many group members in the later summer of 2004. Being the only such trip in group history, it has earned its place in group lore.

Origin

It is unclear who first pioneered the idea to go camping, but the idea had been tossed around all summer as a novel activity to try. It can be supposed that group members had gone camping while with family or other friends and theorized the situation would work well among the group as well. Locations were thought of, and Canada came out as a clear winner, possibly because the legal drinking age of 19 appealed to some group members.

During planning sessions in Terry's Basement, Harrison Hot Springs was eventually selected as a good location, due to proximity to the hot springs of its namesake. It was later found out that the area was an apparent hotbed for Sasquatch/bigfoot activity, but this was unknown during the planning phase. Group members planned ahead and permission was granted by the parents of Terry and Lukas to borrow the two Subarus from their respective families.

The Trip

The morning of the trip, cars assembled in the parking lot by that one Park By Terrys and group members were accounted for. Terry and Lukas were the drivers, as well as Jamie, Brett, Owen, and Kevin. Rama requested to be picked up on the way, and so accommodations were made with 3 in one car and 4 in the other. After fueling up, the travelers set of on I-5 northbound. Stopping at the Bellingham Little Caeser's pizza (theorized to be the last Little Caesar's left in the continental United States) for excessive amounts of cheap pizza, the group pressed on towards the Sumas border crossing.

Fueling up once more on the relatively cheaper American side, the cars went through border security, where they were questioned by somewhat rude, snitty, Canadian border officials. Upon getting by them the group made for the town of Harrison Hot Springs. Nestled in the mountains, the group finally happened upon the town which was similar to Leavenworth in decor, situated right next to an enormous lake.

The group stopped in town to buy groceries (including several extremely cheap Cuban cigars) while others stopped to throw a frisbee in the city park. It was here that Brett erroneously suggested that the lake was shallow enough that it could be forded all the way to the island on foot. This was later found to be false as the maximum depth of the lake is around 900 feet.

Arrival

With supplies purchased, it was decided to go search for a campsite which were known to exist around the lake. Taking off on a small dirt road, several campsites were stopped by, although all of them showed signs of a burn ban, which reduced morale, since no stoves had been packed. It was decided to continue pressing on northbound along the eastern shore of the lake on a rough road that went up and down and through several huge puddles.

Finally a campground was sited along the shore, where the two vehicles decided to stop. It turns out that despite its unimpressive exterior, the campsite was actually quite nice on the inside. It was here where the group finally encountered Darcy, the government appointed caretaker of the campground. After sharing some amusing stories, he informed the group that a burn ban was still in effect, but it was expected that if the rain continued, the burn ban would be lifted. Camp was rapidly set up in the fading light, and it was decided to cook a dinner of canned chilli over a large citronella candle.

Night One

Afterwards, several group members cracked open the adult beverages they had purchased, including several "fruity drinks". Although no one had more than 4 drinks, some mayhem erupted, with Brett as "exaggerated versions of themselves" and Owen repeatedly accusing him of "faking it," which eventually culminated in Owen throwing a can of SPAM at the table. Meanwhile, Jamie was giggling uncontrollably and falling into the tent and Terry being heard moaning loudly from inside the tent. People went to bed in the steadily increasing rain. The hard ground proved a poor mattress and many had trouble sleeping.

The partitioning of the tents followed a shaky compromise: the smaller of the two tents had experienced some leakage earlier in the day, leading it its initial moniker of Wet Tent, while the larger of the two tents, Dry Tent, had been spared this treatment. Most of the campers thus piled into Dry Tent, while Brett, Jamie and Lukas braved Wet Tent, which by nightfall had mostly drained.

However, at the time, Brett's tonsils and adenoids were in "full bloom" meaning they nearly restricted his airways, causing unusually loud breathing and implausibly loud snoring. This prompted some to rename Wet Tent "Brett Tent," and was generally found to be intolerable by Jamie, who in addition to suffering Brett's breathing abnormalities, was subject to Lukas' frequent night-time annexations of much of the tent interior with sporadic body movements.

The Hot Springs

The next day, it was decided to do something to get out of the rain, since it was starting to pour. It was decided to go back to town and try to find the hotsprings to sit around in and buy some more supplies. As the campers were leaving camp, it was here that Darcy made his now legendary request for pork steaks and Creamo. It turns out the "springs" themselves were owned by a luxury hotel which was on the site, but the waters were piped out to the public pool.

Despite disappointment for this arrangement, there was enough support to carry through with the plan and a hasty path was beat to the pool, where in the midst of a rainstorm, the group ran inside and paid $8 a piece for the privilidge of sitting in the heated mineral water. The water was quite nice and the group sat around for close to an hour, noting that Brett's mop of wet hair gave his head the appearance of a northern fur seal. Members of the group then left to go buy groceries next door, while Rama remained at the pool to "get his money out of it" (see Rama being Rama).

Night Two

Upon re-forming, the group headed back to the campsite in the woods to spend another rainy night. By this time, the burn ban had passed and a fire was allowed to be built. Fortunately, Darcy decided to pay the group back with a large wheelbarrow full of dry wood as well as a large plastic tarp to cover tents with. The group went out for a swim in the fading light of the day and returned to the fire to make dinner. With no more alcohol, the group gathered in the larger of the two tents to talk about things. As the rain became heavier outside, it was decided to retire to our respective tents.

By this time, however, Dry Tent had developed several massive leaks in its superstructure (the names of the two tents were thus entirely inaccurate by the second night, and continued to be used for the sake of irony). With the addition of Jamie, conditions became insufferable for some, leading Kevin, Owen and Rama to sleep inside the nearby Subarus. In the most unpleasant experience of the night, Rama hit the horn on one of the cars, waking everyone in the campsite. Coupled with relentless rains, this made for a tumultuous night, although it is worth noting that Lukas experienced none of this unpleasantness, peacefully sleeping in Wet Tent the entire time.

Breaking Camp

The next morning, it was decided to go to town to an A&W restaurant for brunch. Large burgers, fries, root beer and "poutine" were purchases by all (except Rama, who would go to the convenience store next door and buy a microwave burrito). Greatly refreshed, the group returned to the campsite and commenced breaking camp, which was more difficult than it appeared since it was raining heavily, and everything was wet. After several "labor disputes" (which included indignation over Rama's lack of work in place of tossing around a hatchet), the belongings were wrestled into automobiles and it was time to leave. As we left, Terry created the Country Music phenomenon known as Anchorage Alaska, United States, which some (Kevin and Brett) found hilarious while others (Owen, Rama) found infuriating.

Unfortunately, Darcy would accept only Canadian currency, so everyone was forced to search for any money they might have, finally finding enough to pay for the $20 charge. It was then that the group "high-tailed it" out of town. This time, the border crossing went smoothly with the more polite American border patrol, and the group was quickly in Bellingham, soon again eating vast amounts of cheap pizza. The remainder of the trip occurred without incident and the members returned home, happy to once again take a shower and sleep in a comfortable bed.