2013 Campground hosting : We're off to a great start!

Yesterday, we got up ready to get to work. The ranger arrived around 8:30 AM and said that since the crew needed our work pickup truck, we could have the day off.......cool! What a deal especially since it was my birthday. One of the park helpers told us about a bakery in Monitor that makes wonderful cinnamon buns so we headed off for coffee and treats. It was a pleasant little bakery in the orchards right off Route 2. There was a water feature and lots of pretty lavender in bloom From there, we went into Wenatchee for a couple of errands before heading back to Leavenworth for brats and my Starbucks birthday coffee. We did some wine tasting at one of our favorite wineries before going back to the lake. It was quite warm with a 40 mph breeze off the lake. The Ranger was headed out with the johnboat to tow some folks who had been blown into shore a long way from the beach. Today, we watched a canoe and a small pontoon boat only get a couple of yards from shore before capsizing. Thankfully, they were in the swimming area and the water was only a couple of feet deep.

This morning, the ranger came by with our camper check in list. 79 campers coming in plus the ones already here will make for a full house of 98 sites. Campers are frustrated with the burn band when the a campground only one mile away can have fires. They don't have the wind and the campground is on Federal land where we are on state land and it's Washington State that has issued the ban. It rained lightly Wednesday early evening and people came right over to ask if they could have a fire since it was sprinkling. It will have to rain for several days before the forest floor gets wet enough to risk campfires. The current big forest fire is probably 50 miles away to the south east near Malaga, WA. There has been lightening at night but no strikes near us like last year. The other fire at Lake Chelan isn't effecting us, either, though some who are very sensitive to smoke have said they can see it in the air when the wind is from the North.

After our noontime coffee break at the store and a couple more hours of work, the park assistants came and took our vehicle for their errands so we spent the next hour picking up litter on the beach. The wind is pretty harsh and cold today which drives the litter up into the woods.

We walked our evening rounds, answered questions and sat outside for a few minutes but it's quite chilly. No TV or newspaper so Sonny brought at least 30 videos to watch when we aren't reading or doing crossword puzzles.