Well, here we are on the last day of 2021, a fitting occasion to reflect upon the year that’s about to end. A year that began in pandemic and that is ending in pandemic. Deja vu. A year of untold hardships and challenges and grief for so many people. And yet, a year not without its delights, too.
At the start of 2021, I launched Buckeye Bonhomie on Facebook and Instagram to chronicle my adventures #InAroundAndBeyondTheBuckeye, to highlight the beauty and culture and goodness I encountered, and perhaps, just perhaps, to bring a modicum of joy to the lives of others during an otherwise difficult year.
On the brink of a new year, I’m adding this Buckeye Bonhomie blog to my social media portfolio. And, while a picture can, indeed, tell a thousand words on Instagram, sometimes I want to add a little bit more. This is the place where I’ll do that with posts and pictures as well as with the occasional podcast and video, too.
Looking Back
As 2021 began, I had just completed the first semester of the school year as a facilitator for our virtual learning program. I worked from home, monitoring students’ progress as they navigated through curriculum on two different online platforms. I’m not going to lie: it was tough for the students….and for me. I wasn’t teaching. I was facilitating, and that was a difficult adjustment to make. Nevertheless, my students and I muddled through, and we made the best of learning from home.
I did not leave my house often. In fact, I could go weeks without stepping beyond the boundaries of my own yard or seeing anybody in person other than my immediate family. I ordered my groceries online and picked them up in the store’s parking lot. Zoom and Google Meet became lifelines to friends and family. Dear colleagues kept a running text thread, checking in multiple times daily, sharing triumphs and frustrations, in order to keep each other sane. Virtual happy hours, virtual book clubs, virtual game nights became the rage. Strange times, indeed.
I needed a break, a touchstone, a reordering of the status quo. I needed to return to my happy place – my camper.
Camping Roundup
As is the usual case (just like I’m doing now), at the start of 2021, I looked back at 2020, but I also began to look forward. I planned our camping trips for the year, plotting routes and picking sites in campgrounds. Anticipating our travels, I knew it was time to retire my 2008 Nissan Pathfinder; with over 220,000 miles, she was tired. So, in March, we purchased a new tow vehicle – a 2021 RAM 1500 truck – all decked out in “patriot blue,” with shiny chrome running boards – necessary accessories for this short girl to haul herself into the driver’s seat. You see, I’m the tow master: I do all the driving and towing when we go camping.
We love the Ohio State Park campgrounds. We have our favorites that we return to year after year, but we also like to try at least one new state park campground each season. Our first trip of 2021 took us to Delaware State Park. Even though this campground is not far from home, we had never camped there before. We couldn’t wait to get out in nature, so we booked an early spring weekend. It was sunny but cold. BRRRR! Nevertheless, getting away for just two nights felt like we had been gone forever, and it was just what the doctor ordered.
Before the end of the school year, we enjoyed another weekend at one of our favorite Ohio State campgrounds – Alum Creek State Park. A short 30-minute drive, this state park is our “home” campground. I love it because most of the sites are spacious; greenery between the sites adds privacy along with shade and beauty. I saw the first cicada of the brood that burst on the summer scene. Soon, we’d see – and hear – them everywhere!
I felt more comfortable making plans to travel beyond the Buckeye now that we had a new tow vehicle: Our first trip after school let out in June would be to head south to Savannah and Myrtle Beach. I learned of an RV resort – Creek Fire Resort – on the outskirts of Savannah from the Adventure Bandits who I follow on YouTube. If you like to camp, you should follow them, too. They’re fun-loving, and their videos and campground reviews are great. Here’s their review of Creek Fire. We’d never been to Savannah before, so, since we were going to Myrtle Beach, I thought this would be a fun addition to the itinerary. It definitely did not disappoint other than that it was hot! hot! hot! But, can one really expect otherwise from Savannah in June? We’ll definitely be back. We didn’t have enough time to truly explore Savannah, but what we did see has us hankering for more!
From Savannah, we headed up to Myrtle Beach State Park. We’d camped here years ago when we had our popup camper, and that experience was memorable, so we thought we’d return for some sand, sun, and surf. This time, though, we had our 29′ travel trailer, not our small popup. Let’s say it was quite a challenge to back our RV into its site. Thank goodness for a kind-hearted neighbor in the site across the street who helped guide me into our spot. Campers are great people! We parked ourselves for ten nights, and it was wonderfully relaxing and rejuvenating. Ours was a beautifully wooded and shaded site where I could sit outside under the awning in the early mornings with a cup of coffee listening to a symphony of birdsong. Delightful. We could walk from our campsite to the beach in about 10 minutes. We didn’t have to drive, and we didn’t have to cross any busy streets because the state park campground fronts the beach. Ahhhhhh! The best part is that we paid for our full hookup campsite for ten nights what some folks pay for two nights at the condos just down the way. This was a fabulous start to our summer camping season.
We made a pitstop in both directions on this trip to break up the drive. We stopped at the same campground both times, and, in fact, we stayed in the same site both times. It was truly a gem. Stony Fork is a Recreation.gov campground near Wytheville, VA. We stopped for two nights on our southbound journey and one night on the return. I could stay at this campground for a longer time, and it could be the destination instead of a stopover. It was beautiful, tranquil, and just what I needed to decompress from the end of the school year.
I might add that my new “pickemup truck,” nicknamed “RBG,” performed magnificently on its inaugural outing through menacing mountains. She handled the peaks of West Virginia, usually a white-knuckle drive for this tow master, like a champ. I felt safe and in control behind the wheel with RBG blithely maneuvering up and down the mountains and around all the twisty-turny bends, our travel trailer firmly in tow.
We camped at another Ohio State Park – Rocky Fork State Park – for the first time this year. While our full hook up site was spacious and shady, the park itself was crowded, and we were plagued by biting flies. I’m not sure I’d go back again, especially since there are so many other state parks that we love.
One of the best finds this camping season was Atwood Lake Park. In all the years we’ve been camping, it’s crazy that we’d never heard of Atwood Lake or the Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District campgrounds. Another tip of the hat to the Adventure Bandits; we learned about Atwood Lake from their video. We stayed at Atwood for a week over the 4th of July, and we liked it so much, that we booked another ten-night stay in August for the trip that rounded out our camping season for the year of 2021. Our hope is to get on the waitlist for the seasonal site lottery for Atwood and make it our “lake house” from here on out. Wish us luck! I hope we hit the jackpot!
One thing is for sure: RVing popularity soared during the pandemic year. Plenty of folks – seasoned RVers and newbies alike – hit the road with their campers this year. And why not? It was a safe way to travel with social distancing built in, a way to take one’s own bed, bath, and kitchen along on the adventures, a way to return to some semblance of normalcy. Camping made it possible for us to rest, relax, and rejuvenate while still being able to safely experience and explore sights #InAroundAndBeyondTheBuckeye.
Buckeye Bonhomie 