camping with friends and hiking alone

I remember going camping with my family as a kid and having those few experiences where we were situated within close proximity of a group of young adult campers who spent their time laughing loudly, getting boozed up, and shouting at one another like they were the only ones in the whole wilderness. My parents would grumble loudly about those "obnoxious kids" who were ruining everything for the people who actually went camping in order to enjoy nature. In my eight- or nine-year-old mind I heartily agreed with my mom and dad. I may have even rolled my eyes exasperatedly and joined them in muttering under my breath, "Yeah! Obnoxious kids!"

And this is, I think, how I grew up with the vague idea that going camping with one's friends ought to be regarded as somewhat edgy or even rebellious. I don't know if that mindset had a direct effect on the fact that it took me so long to do so, but, this Friday as I stood over a camp stove preparing the fixings for an incredibly dense and starchy burrito, it struck me that this was the first time that I had ever gone camping with a group that was neither family nor church-affiliated. Just me and my pals. And beer, too. We had beer. And somehow we managed to be non-obnoxious. What fun.




The brief camping trip didn't entirely satiate my weekend thirst for nature, so on Sunday I drove out east of San Diego to Cleveland National Forrest and hiked the Big Laguna Trail. Although I would categorize my experience as mostly pleasant, I don't recommend this hike for hot sunny days (of which last Sunday was one), as the vast majority of it is out in a meadow and completely lacking in shade. The trail also diverges and splits off in several parts, so it's entirely possible to do what I did and intend to take maybe a two-hour hike and find yourself completing a four-and-a-half-hour one instead. In sunny, 85 °F weather, such a combination leads, most naturally, to utter exhaustion.