Darkness had fallen by the time we pulled into camp. Immediately greeted by Ron and Dario, talking over eachother, regarding the “situation”. While still at the office I had received the text from Dario advising us that they had taken over our campsite, swapping out with theirs, just next door, but we had no idea of the drama that would ensue.

We sat in the truck, bemused, while listening to tales of illegal parking between sites, conflict with the park rangers, and free firewood. Finally pulling into our site, several camp neighbors came over to add to the stories and the evening progressed into delightful and entertaining lore around the campfire.

Deschutes River State Recreation Area. The last time we had visited this scenic campground on the gorge we were chased away after just one night by 98 degree temperatures and stifling humidity. This weekend proved to be October camping perfection with sunny, warm days and clear, pleasant nights. The steelhead were running and the river was flooded with fisherman, Jim included.

Hiking the middle and river trails, the scenery was outstanding, with the fall leaves providing a dramatic contrast against the fading grasslands.

The park rangers returned to our campsite regularly, making sure to recount the rules regarding two campers in one site, while harassing other campers if they chose to do something so heinous as to park in front of friends site for a few minutes. I will admit they keep a tidy camp but those boys certainly need to loosen up a bit!

Inevitably, the seasons will continue to change and we will, once again, spend our camping weekends in long underwear and rain gear. But for this camping trip on this weekend, it was pure camping nirvana. With a bit of drama added in for good measure!