On the move again (5/4/14)

Today was our first opportunity to “break camp” and see how well we learned from our orientation. We had a great breakfast of French toast using some great multigrain bread, coffee & OJ. We tried to get the car packed between showers and stepping around the multiple puddles and deepening mud. Barbara did a great job preparing the inside of the trailer for travel while I spent most of my time preparing the outside for hooking up and moving out. Hitching up the trailer for the first time by ourselves went well. Just a few minor hiccups, but nothing that was critical and we feel confident that this will get easier each time. On the way out of the campground we had the pleasure of “emptying tanks” for the first time. Another procedure that went well and again will be easier the more we do it. We decided to not bother going to the Northern Cascade loop due to the fact that they are still clearing snow and also that the elevation gains and losses might be challenging to us novice towers. Better to be safe than to overextend our skills. Instead, we took advantage of the fact that today was Sunday and we could get through Seattle with “light” traffic. The tow down went well (despite more rain) and Barbara even tried her hand towing for a while! She did great and will increase her towing distances as time goes by.  We arrived at Dash Point State Park in Takoma at about 1 PM and found the entrance office empty with a sign stating that the campground was full. Luckily, we were patient and tracked down the campground host who told us that the campground had emptied out during the morning. I guess that the campground was full during the weekend and no one had gotten around to changing the sign. We found our site, backed in and set up. And then the rains began again. (On and off and on and off and you get the picture) Enjoyed a good meal, started planning tomorrow’s trip, played some games and then, ready for bed.