part 3, Vacations

Thankfully, the back packing vacations only lasted a few years. On the last trip I went on, Daddy had what he thought was a brilliant idea. He had done some work at Cal-Tech and came across these discarded ‘tubes’. They were made of a heavy plastic and about 5 feet long and about 2 feet in diameter with these silver bands to close them. I remember hearing they were used for chemicals and such, so they were airtight. He had the idea that if we could somehow store our stuff up in the Sierra’s, it would be just a quick jaunt with only our food and clothes to carry up. So, he rigged up a toilet and shower out of these tubes and some PVC pipe and packed all of the tents, sleeping bags, cooking supplies and whatever else he could think of that would make Camp Ellingson the envy of all who hiked by. The pack mules never had such a load as they did with those yellow tubes strapped to either side of them! What a sight they must have been to those who weren’t familiar with the antics of the Mayor of Shadow Lake! Those tubes were the talk of hills! We did have the camp to envy. People would stop by and ask for a tour of the camp they had heard about from the bottom of the mountain and from all those along the trail coming from Camp Ellingson. There were about 12 in our party that year, as we had collected friends and family alike to join us. We had 2 showers and a Men’s room and a Ladies room! In the backcountry!!! Unheard of! I have to admit, that year was uniquely fun and memorable! My nephew, Dale, who was 6, (that made me 12) came and he could run around without a shirt and the mosquitoes didn’t even know he existed! He didn’t have to wear spray or anything! Whatever....
On the last day is where Daddy’s plan had it’s brilliance! He had found a cave and buried the 6 tubes filled with all our camping gear underground and planted bushes in front of the opening. Gosh it seemed like a good idea, even to me. We walked out with just the clothes we brought. We sailed down the hill to Agnew Meadows, our stuff just waiting for the next vacation! Well......gratefully, Daddy made a trip up alone the next Spring to check things out. All of our stuff was gone. Either it was stolen by one of the dozens Daddy bragged to about the ‘idea’, or those bears I never saw are living the life of Riley somewhere!
Mamma and I never had to backpack again, Thank the Lord! Daddy would go himself a few times, but we were never forced us to participate in the ‘fun’! As a side bar, he had once decided that when it was his time to die, he would just go back up in the Sierra’s and never come back. He thought that would save a lot of money in the funeral costs, as he was disgusted at the cost of Mamma’s funeral! We finally convinced him that the cost of searching for his lifeless body in ‘them thar hills’ would far exceed the cost of a pine box and a fern cover! He had a funeral!
In the later years of their life, Mamma and Daddy vacationed in the fall as their anniversary was November 3. They would go camping, but in the camper and stay in a motel one or two nights for a shower. How magnanimous of him! They would go to the Tetons and Sedona, Mamma’s favorite spot in the world! He always took the pictures and each picture was Mamma pretending to point to whatever picturesque spot Daddy chose. He always had her wear her most colorful outfit as to contrast the scenery! They always had wonderful stories of those trips, Mamma talking about the food she ate!
On the trip in 1977, as I sat playing with Ryan and Nathan on the floor, the doorbell rang and my brother-in-law Leon was at the door. Odd, I thought. He said his usual ‘Hi!’ and then gently told me he had my mother in the car. ‘WHAT?’ I queried. My mother was on vacation. Well, it seems there had been a little accident and Mamma had broken her leg. Here’s how the story goes....
On about the 3rd day of vacation, they had stopped for dinner in one of those little cafes along the roadside. You know the ones, little hole-in-the-wall place with food to die for. They had dinner and boysenberry pie alamode. Mamma was in a particularly playful mood having had a great meal and the promise of a hot bath! The camper was on the other side of the road and she, being in that playful mood, ran across the street ahead of Daddy. As she crossed the road to the other side, before Daddy could cross, a big truck drove by. As the truck passed, Mamma was nowhere to be found. Where could she have gone? He had the awful thought that she had been struck by the truck, but he knew he had seen her safely on the other side of the road before the truck passed. Where on earth could she have disappeared? He looked and called and yelled. Nothing! It was pitch dark by now and he had a terrible feeling of dread come over him. ‘Dolly!!!! Dolly, where you at?” ‘Dolly!!!’ He finally came across a crevice just a few feet from the spot she ran to across that highway. ‘Dolly!’ he yelled again. He heard just a hint of sound coming from the deep crevice by the side of the road. He knew instantly she was down there. He climbed down the 6 feet or so to find her lying in a heap. She had broken her left leg and hurt her right arm. She was helpless. The sides of the hole were slimly with a moss and he had no idea how he would get her out. The next few moments, he says, he has no memory of. But they were out and on the side of the hole. We know that God in His own way lifted the both of them out. Now what? He laid Mamma gently down and ran for help. The break in her left leg was high up on her chin, but they put the cast as low as they could so she could bend her knee to get on a plane home. They flew home, and that’s how Mamma landed on my doorstep that afternoon.
Daddy had to fly back up to Acadia in Northern California, the sight of the fall, to drive the truck home. The next few weeks were hard for Mamma as the leg break was one thing, but the sprain in her right arm kept her from doing anything for herself. With the left leg broken and her right arm hurt, crutches were useless. So, my husband and the boys and I moved in and took care of her and Daddy, much to Daddy’s dismay! He didn’t like to have his routine dislodged. He kind of lost a bit of control. That coupled with the fact that Mamma made his lunch everyday, which consisted of about 8 separately packed little bits of this and that. I didn’t quite coddle him the way she had done for 40 years. He got a hearty sandwich, fruit, a thermos full of chocolate malt and whatever else looked like it would be good for an afternoon snack. He certainly wouldn’t starve. Mamma did a lot of things for 40 years that just wouldn’t even occur to me to be even in the realm probability! Let’s keep in mind that she worked full time, made breakfast, that jam packed lunch and had dinner on the table every night at 6:30. After she died, he had no idea how to even turn on the washer and used the dishwasher as storage. What was she thinking? Whatever...don’t get me started.....
Well, after a few weeks, she was on the mend and we went home. From then on, they stayed in motels. Finally, a vacation for Mamma!