Camp stories

On last year's camp out one family left their car windows slightly ajar to prevent food from spoiling (their storage container was the van). They awoke to find the raccoons had eaten all but a few marshmallows. This year they had a different campsite. Late at night Shari bustled in the dark to make certain all the food was safely contained. They awoke to a raccoon fight and were puzzled that the rest of us hadn't had the same problem. As Shari prepared for breakfast she discovered the cause; the Costco chocolate muffins were left out and the raccoons had been quarreling over them. Only three muffins remained untouched. We decided the raccoons must have been female.

Every year we are amazed at the hours, loud "kaa - kaa", and how long these birds can carry on.  Last year they began at 3 am and didn't stop for most of the morning.  This year it was a mother and her chicks with early morning feedings.  They were more respectful and did not carry on all day and night. Between our 5 mile hike, and 14 mile bike ride, we were a lot more tired, so the crows were present but not overwhelmingly annoying.  I've heard the phrase "eating crow", but the most common phrase around our campfire was "I'm gonna take a BB gun and shoot those crows!"