Legalectric

Camp-hosting is something I’ve wanted to do for years, and we finally got around to it, two weeks in Myre-Big Island State Park. It’s hard to carve out the time, although working on site is doable, as it is in most of the state parks we’ve been to. T-Mobile service is almost everywhere, and I’ve been officing in campgrounds since we got the pop-up, here, there, and everywhere.

A couple months ago I splurged and got a trailer more suitable for longer trips and longer stays, one that’s got the best of both worlds, a 2012 Starcraft AR-ONE 15RB. It’s self-contained for a quick stop on the way with none of the pop-up set-up hassle, and with a drop down bunk for that tent feel. It’ll take a bit to get adjusted, but a lot less than it took to get the pop-up set up right with all the necessary accoutrements.

This year, though, ugh, with all these dockets going, we’ve only gotten two short trips in, one for a couple days in May here in Myre-Big Island State Park to test the R-Vision Cassette before we sold it, had to make sure it really wouldn’t work for us, and it was just too small (loved the kitchen in back, however). Cute but way small. The good news is that it sold pretty easily:

And we got a short trip in June to Mirror Lake State Park in Wisconsin, perfect for a quick jaunt to Madison, and it ended up being our last trip on our ’97 Palomino Yearling pop-up — we had 4 years and 170 days in it, for sure got our money’s worth out of it. That dear pup went pretty fast too, and now it’s headed out to Idaho and back:

But this year has been so nuts, I’ve had to cancel FIVE trips, and no way was I going to cancel out of the camp-hosting gig. And here we are, back in Myre-Big Island, right next to the proposed site for Freeborn Wind — how convenient!

First day was beautiful, just perfect, and that night it poured. Sadie was SO upset, and it rained and rained, with INTENSE winds, trees down, and DOH, we forgot to put the awning up, and spent 40 minutes in the rain holding it steady so we wouldn’t lose it (THANK YOU, ALAN!), it was following last Friday’s storm that flooded South Dakota and made a mess here too:

And then a nice day, and we got to dry out some, stroll, waddle, and hike around the park, and in the evenings deal with helping folks stopping by for the night get registered and in the right spots. It started pretty empty, but filled up fast, especially these sites along the lake (with the best phone/internet service), even over capacity, with folks setting up in a picnic site, and we had to move them to a campsite.

Mona & Greg came down for a couple days, that was great, we haven’t seen them in way too long. My favorite thing about camping, other than getting out on the road and into the woods, is outdoor cooking, and oh, did we have meals to share in excess, and good company makes it even better:

And their puppy Eddie is growing up — what a cute little guy. He and Sadie are now fine, no barking or snarking, though Sadie just doesn’t play like he wants. She never has, she just didn’t have that puppy socializing time and doesn’t know how to interact with animals or people very well. Here’s Eddie waiting for mom, seriously focused:

Then last night, pouring all night long, heavy rain, and one intense BOOM! that seemed just overhead, and sent poor Sadie almost through the canvas. She was shaking, hyperventilating, and drooling, and it went on until almost sunrise. She’s sleeping it off, but I’ve not been that lucky yet. The sun came out, and it’s a quiet weekday in the park.

FYI, the DNR has the visible beginnings of an energy program. Lots of the State Parks we’ve been to have solar arrays, Nerstrand Big Woods, Big Bog, and Tettegouche:

They don’t have solar here yet, but they do have an electric vehicle for the cleaning crew, a cute little cab over with a flatbed on back, and they have a Nissan for staff — with a clue if you can’t figure out what model it is:

DOH! How cool is that?

Back to work… Freeborn Wind calls. So does Sadie, somebody wants dinner. There’s a beautiful pink sunset out the windows… the joys of self-employment.

A quick reminder:

Minnesota DNR page on Chronic Wasting Disease

In the STrib:

Chronic wasting disease seen in SE Minn. deer

If the preliminary diagnosis is confirmed, it marks the first time the disease has been found in Minnesota’s wild deer herd.

By DENNIS ANDERSON, Star Tribune

A deer killed by an archer in southeast Minnesota last fall is believed to have been infected by chronic wasting disease, the first wild whitetail in the state to be stricken.

Preliminary tests show that a doe felled Nov. 28 near Pine Island in Olmsted County carried the disease. Very little of the animal has been eaten by the hunter or his family, the Department of Natural Resources reported Friday morning, and authorities will pick up the butchered meat for further testing.

CWD is not believed to pose a danger to humans, though hunters and others who eat venison and elk meat are warned that an animal’s brains and spinal cord should be avoided.

The deer was killed about three miles from a captive elk farm near Pine Island that had been shut down recently after CWD was identified in its herd, which subsequently was “de-populated,’’ or killed in its entirety.

DNR big game coordinator Lou Cornicelli said Friday there is no way to determine how the wild deer became infected.

Before it was shot, the animal appeared thin, the archer recalled, but otherwise behaved normally. CWD can gestate in an infected animal for as long as four years before clinical signs of the disease are detected and the animal dies.

The archer has asked state authorities to remain anonymous.
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