Pin-Ups and Pizza 6

Pink Think: “No shirt. No shoes. No problem.” – sign at Bullfrog Marina Boat ‘N Go, Lake Powell, Utah

[This is Part 3 of a 7-part series on tent-camping at Lake Powell. Here’s my intro, part 1 and part 2.]

Lake Powell – Day 3

I feel like a kid again, going to the marina for an ice run. We have promised the kids ice cream, and they want to look for souvenirs.

For my part, I like to use the real bathroom and just get back to “civilization,” even for a moment.

Today, I choose to buy a rootbeer float, even though I normally don’t drink soda. As I sip my drink, I watch people as they get out of their boats. Lots of exposed skin, bikini tops, short skirts, all the way to African robes and biker vests. The men in biker vests have Australian accents.

(I would have taken photos, but I didn’t think most people would appreciate having their photo appear on some stranger’s blog. On second thought, maybe some would have.)

I feel positively middle-aged.

Think food and gas is expensive? Here, ice is three dollars a block. Gas for the boat cost about $250.

***

Camping at the lake, you have to be creative cooking a meal. Thanks to my kids’ solar ovens they built at school, we can have pizza, beach-style:

In the face of ants, the wind, a yellow lab named Louie (my in-laws’) who likes to eat entire loaves of bread, bag and all, and an impending storm, we hurry and gobble up our pizza and tossed salad. Mmm, good.

***

We clean up our pizza dinner and race back to camp to beat the storm. A rare thing, to get back to camp at twilight having eaten our dinner already. A lightning show is taking place past the ridge above us. We watch for a little bit, until it rains in earnest, then huddle in our tent and play a few hands of UNO.

I sleep through rain clear until dawn, and gusts of wind threaten our tent. Every time I wake up and the tent is still up, a feeling of relief washes over me.

Next: Odd Fish

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