You are here: Outdoor Adventures at Wind Creek
Elijah Lofgren
Dr. Antlitz
ENGL 1013-3
November 9, 2006
It's a cool Friday afternoon in the middle of November. Fall camping season has arrived and the Harts, Paces, and Lofgrens are driving into Wind Creek State Park. Tucked away in the heart of Alabama, Wind Creek is situated on the edge of beautiful Lake Martin in Alexander City. Anna Lofgren enjoys the park because, “It has a really nice and big group camp site, a silo to climb, and a lake to walk by.” The Harts, Paces, and Lofgrens are eager to go camping together because they enjoy being outdoors with their friends. It's become a tradition and according to Rob Pace, “It's just the thing to do in the spring and fall.”
Piling out of their vehicles, adults, teenagers, and children each help unload the camping essentials such as tents, sleeping bags, coolers full of food, and camp stoves. Careful to avoid a place that could end up as a puddle of water in the event of rain, the adults locate a suitable flat area for pitching the tents. Children pitch in to help clear away the large brown pine cones and set up the tents. The clanging of hammers echoes as tent stakes are driven into the ground.
After a simple sandwich lunch, Miriam Lofgren starts gathering people to play volleyball. Soon the action begins. “Zero serving zero. Service!” yells Rob as he swings and hits the ball high over the net. JP Lofgren lunges for the ball, but despite his valiant effort, he fails to hit the ball back over the net. After retrieving the ball, JP rolls it back to Rob who calls out, “One serving zero. Service!”
Miriam Hart remembers that the game never fails to be punctuated with amusement whenever Anna does her trademark volleyball move. As related by Anna, “I see the ball coming and lung for it. I'll hit the ball and then my foot will just keep traveling, sliding on the slippery surface. Next thing I know, I'm on the ground in the splits. I try to pop back up as soon as I can, for I've got to be ready for the next ball that comes over the net!”
A competitive spirit keeps volleyball exciting and fast paced. Eventually, James Hart serves a line drive straight down the middle and scores the winning point. After exchanging high fives and affirmations of “Good game”, the players scatter.
Tired out from the volleyball game, most people are ready for a more relaxing game. Jubilee Lofgren shouts, “Who wants to play Nine Hole Golf?” After a chorus of, “I do”, the first card game of the day begins. Children and adults alike have boatloads of fun playing many other card games including Rook and Dutch Blitz. Groans from the losers and the rejoicing of the winners punctuate the end of each game. Rob remembers hearing “Lavonne Hart yelling with glee when winning a game.” The games would continue forever, but growling stomachs serve as reminders that the competitive card games must soon come to an end.
Supper time arrives and suddenly a bunch of children and teenagers begin clustering around the campfire. Hot dogs, carefully held on roasting sticks, sizzle and drip juice into the fire. S'mores are created as marshmallows slowly change from pure white to golden brown or, in Jubilee's case, charred black because she enjoys catching her marshmallows on fire.
As the day comes to a close, the light decreases, but the activity does not. Teenagers, young children, and adults are each busily engaged in their favorite night-time activities.
Contagious excitement is emanating from one corner of the camping area. A group of people are preparing to play the traditional game of Capture the Flag. A favorite game of the teenagers, Joel Hart describes Capture the Flag as, “the best activity ever.” After persuading as many of the adults as possible to join the game, the team captains choose a team from the people willing to play this long, high intensity game. After a bit of discussion, everyone understands the rules and where the boundaries are located. Next, each team hides their flag, just a white plastic bag, somewhere on their side of the boundary line. After everyone is ready, Joel calls out “Game is starting!” and the race to capture the opposing team's flag begins.
Miriam Hart yells, “I got you!” Anna has just been caught on the opposing team’s side. Miriam brings Anna to jail and takes on the role of jail guard. Joel and Rob strategize on how to free their captured comrade and capture the opposing team’s flag. Eventually, Joel makes a daring raid into enemy territory and come running back, almost flying it seems, with the opposing team's flag. “Game over!”, the cry is passed along. Although there is some disappointment over losing, the fun and excitement of the game is relived as stories of daring escapes and captures are shared.
The campfire, a staple of camping, is brightly burning. A group of people, mostly adults, is clustered around the campfire keeping warm and enjoying long conversations. In addition to serving as a conversation venue, worship songs can sometimes be heard over the crackling fire. Victoria Lofgren enjoys hearing “the sound worship with many people playing instruments for Jesus' glory.” JP and James play their guitars, Rob accompanies on his violin, and Miriam Hart plays her flute, together blending their instruments into a melody of sincere worship.
The giggles and shrieks of young children playing nearby provides a lively backdrop for the adults gathered around the campfire. Miriam Lofgren gives out glow sticks to the reaching hands of eager children. Tossing and waving their neon green, yellow, and red rods of light, the children are thoroughly enjoying themselves. With help from willing teenagers, the children attach short pieces of string to their glow sticks. String doubles the fun by allowing the children to twirl their light sticks around to create dizzying light patterns. The glow sticks serve a double purpose, providing hours of enjoyment for the children, but also allowing the adults clustered next the campfire to keep track of their children.
Time marches on and JP and the other “early birds” head off to bed, leaving just Joel, Miriam Hart, and a few other “night owls” sitting around the warm fire. Eventually even their eyelids start drooping, and the last few yawning people give up their places next to the campfire and head to their tents.
One by one, tired people start drifting off to sleep. For those still awake, the paper thin walls of the tents permit the sounds of the night to be heard. The fire crackles faintly as the last few logs are consumed. Two tents down from the Paces, the rhythmic beat of JP's snoring exits his tent and hurries to the ears of the other campers craving sleep. A child's small voice comes from the Pace's tent, “Mommy, I thought I heard a zipper unzipping and zipping – then I realized it was Mr. JP.” Rob silently tries to convince himself that he does NOT need to 'go' when it is 2am and there is a several hundred yard hike between his warm sleeping bag and the bathhouse. Despite the nocturnal noise, most people are sleeping as the first rays of morning light start streaming through the cracks in the green leaves of the trees.
Not everyone is sleeping, however. Driven by the desire to see the beautiful sunrise, Miriam Hart and Anna make their way to the edge of the lake. The sight, breathtaking to behold, does not disappoint them. Miriam describes the view. “The lake in the morning is clear and calm on most camping mornings. At first it's rather dark, and then you see a bit of purple mixed with the blue, then pink, and before you know it...the sun bursts out, and it's just beautiful!” The orange glow from the sun makes the lake shimmer with the expanding light. The sky becomes a perfect gradient of orange with deep shades at the horizon giving way to lighter and lighter shades until just a pale blue remains.
Back at camp, more people start to awaken. Lavonne Hart describes the sound that everyone hears as, “the delightful bird chorus at daybreak – the kindest of alarm clocks!” After awakening, the first order of business is preparing food to feed the hungry campers.
Wandering around the camp, JP begins his observations of what each family is busy preparing for breakfast. He likely finds the Harts making pancakes because, as Lavonne Hart says, “My children think it isn't camping without pancakes on the griddle at least one of the mornings!” Observing the Harts eating pancakes, JP notices a most peculiar habit. The Harts enjoy eating pancakes with a nice, thick layer of peanut butter spread on top. Not enticed by peanut butter pancakes, JP is drawn back to his daughters' cooking.
The smell of freshly cooked bacon and eggs wafts through the campsite. Anna has bacon sizzling on a frying pan that is waiting to be used by Miriam Lofgren to cook scrambled eggs. Attracted by the smell of breakfast, Jubilee emerges from her tent and makes her way towards the enticing aroma. After a hearty breakfast, everyone is ready for the events of the day.
“We’re going to the silo!”, the word is passed along. People hurry from tents, picnic tables, and the camp fire and start walking down the road towards the silo, eager to not be left behind. The white silo, situated at a point just on the bank of the lake, towers upward almost reaching the height of the surrounding trees. Climbing the yellow spiral metal staircase that loops up one side of silo can be an arduous task, but the view from the top makes the effort well worth it. Across the lake, the trees form a collage of different shades of green. To the right lies a large expanse of blue water bounded by a tree lined bank, obscured only by a small island with eleven tall pine trees. In the distance, a motor boat speeds across the water leaving waves and a trail of foaming white water in its wake. A sailboat glides smoothly through the water. The chipped yellow paint on the metal railing encircling the top of the silo is engraved with the names of people who seen the same beautiful view in years past. After a leisurely walk, everyone arrives back at camp.
After a while, the call rings out like a bell, “Dinner's ready!” Those simple words stir people to action. Suddenly adults, teenagers, and children alike are all massed around picnic tables eating their fill of hot dogs, taco salad, or taco soup.
The adults enjoy one last evening of conversation by the glowing campfire. Teenagers play their last games of Rook and Nine Hole Golf. Children shake and toss their dimming glow sticks. The night gets late and everyone reluctantly heads to their sleeping bags for one last night.
Suddenly, the last day has arrived. Each family takes down their tents, packs up their gear, and heads home. Memories have been made. A thoroughly enjoyable experience, Miriam Lofgren describes camping at Wind Creek State Park as, “a relaxing, game filled weekend of camping at a beautiful lake.”
Works Cited
Hart, Joel. “Interview.” E-mail to the author. 20 Oct. 2006.
Hart, Lavonne. “Interview: Camping at Wind Creek.” E-mail to the author. 20 Oct. 2006.
Hart, Miriam. “Re: Followup Interview Questions about Wind Creek Camping.” E-mail to the author. 25 Oct. 2006.
- - - . “Re: Request for information about, Anna, Splits and Volleyball.” E-mail to the author. 30 Oct. 2006.
Lofgren, Anna. “interview thing.” E-mail to the author. 21 Oct. 2006.
- - - . “Wow!” E-mail to the author. 30 Oct. 2006
Lofgren, JP. “Re: Interview about Camping at Wind Creek.” E-mail to the author. 23 Oct. 2006.
Lofgren, Miriam. “Fw: Interview about Camping at Wind Creek.” E-mail to the author. 20 Oct. 2006.
Lofgren, Victoria. “Re: Interview about Camping at Wind Creek.” E-mail to the author. 21 Oct. 2006.
Pace, Rob. “Re: Interview about Camping at Wind Creek.” E-mail to the author. 19 Oct 2006