By Cameren Brown, Courier Staff Writer
Our very own Camping Club took its first trip among the (semi) wilderness! The club was formed earlier this year in November by the club leader Nickolas Alcazar and teacher Mr. Malcolm, the club supervisor. The club consists of about 9 members, myself included. We planned to have a trip as early as December but realized that the weather conditions would certainly not be ideal for camping for several days. Through many delays, we finally decided on last weekend.
A sunny Saturday at 8am we met up here in the student parking lot, where I and a few of my friends waited for Mr. Malcolm to arrive with a van, our vehicle of choice since only 6 of us (not including the chaperones) were going. As everyone else arrived we packed up the van, hopped in and took off. Our destination was Stanislaus camping grounds, over in Oakdale and after a 2-hour road trip which included getting lunch, and stopping by a goat farm to pick up some firewood, we had arrived.
The site was relatively filled, but we reserved a nice spot with a view of the vast lake. After setting up camp we took a hike along the trails, finding extra loose sticks and branches for the fire and potential spots for fishing. The weather was interesting. The day started out sunny but soon enough turned cloudy, covering the sun for the whole day until about seven, where the sun then glistened across the water as it set. As night approached we started the fire with a few of our main logs, then later keeping it alive with the supply from the hike. This turned out to be an especially good idea as the cold sprang on us as soon as the sun fell, along with plenty of wind. We began cooking dinner as one of our members fished over the opposite side of the lake. He ended up not catching anything, but we had chili to make up for it. After finishing the food, we sat around and told campfire stories, watched the stars, and hunted for bugs until making s’mores with more stories and turning in around 11:30.
After waking up at another early 8am on Sunday, we made breakfast, repacked everything, and left for home, arriving back here around ten. Overall it was a very fun trip and a refreshing weekend of not being cooped up inside all day. Our next trip is scheduled sometime in May, where we plan to book a river.
