Maupin 2009

We had tried to get in a quick warm up camping trip before the big Maupin extravaganza, but it just didn't happen. So Maupin, Father's Day weekend, would be our maiden voyage of the season.

After some confusion and good natured ribbing about how we'd get there, we finally assembled all together (The Pickle and a few other buses) at a Fred Meyer Parking lot just of I-5 and soon we were on our way through the forests of Oregon, up and over the pass near Mt. Hood and then on the downward slide to Maupin, gateway to the Deschutes River.

A couple of years we've made the trip.. the conditions were the same as this year. We start the day cool and cloudy on the West side of the Cascades and then it even begins to lightly rain as we head into the mountains.



But then on the other side, the rain stops and clouds thin.



Then the closer we get to Maupin, the sunnier and warmer it gets. Here's a view of the squareback that decided to make the journey.



And then you get there and it's filled with buses and people and good spirits.



So we drove in and set up camp and began the task of unpacking. I forgot a few things this year.. some chairs and a few other items, but it really didn't matter.



At least I didn't forget the hula hoops that Paige made for all of us. They turned out to be some great entertainment on the short weekend trip.



I like camping with about 70 other buses and people in Maupin because there's not much of an agenda. Some tie dyeing here, some hula hooping over there... most of the time is spent walking from bus to bus to see the different models of VW's and mostly what each owner has done to imprint their own personality on these 30 plus year old vehicles.



Even my wife has a good time although I'm sure on the first trip she was a little skittish what with all these people. But now she blends right in.



Friday night was spent at the pot luck and listening to music and then the big event on Saturday was the 2nd annual beer tasting. People brought along fine NW beers for everyone to try. We must have had 40 different beers. Mostly IPA's and some of the tasters had to bow out gracefully.





The weather was really perfect. Not too hot as it had been in past years. Nice and cool and then warm depending on whether the sun passed behind a cloud or not. It was a bit windy, but nothing really blew away that I could see.



But as always, the days there pass away much too quickly and before you know it, it's time to pack up and head back to the wet side of the mountains.

Here are a few more pics to give you some flavor.





Wilson was there of course and even rescued Hal's bus with a part.





These are only the buses in just a small part of the huge circle campground.









And my favorite picture from the trip.. a quick catch of Kili's legs.



But we're not done yet. On the way back, we took the route along the Columbia River Gorge and we stopped in at one of my favorite places.. the Full Sail Brewery and Pub.



It was Father's Day, don't you know, and I couldn't think of a better way of celebrating that, then with my two daughters and an ice cold Full Sail Ale.





All in all it was a great first trip of the camping season and I'm looking forward to many more. Next stop.. Champoeg State Park.