Stoneman Lake 8.18 — Casually Camping

Kato's First Stoneman experience featuring the NEW TRUCK TENT!

This past weekend Casey, Kato and I headed up to our favorite camping stop (at least it's mine, is it yours, Casey?(Yes it is mine as well ;) - Casey) at Stoneman lake! During the week Casey had picked up his new GoldDog roof top tent so we were DYING to try it out. Our schedules made it a little tough for a full weekend getaway but we were able to escape for one night!

We got kind of a late start because originally I didn't think I could go so Casey had planned for it to be a boys weekend for him and the pup, but when I got out of spin class at 6pm my endorphins were flowing and I said "what the heck I'll crash their party!" #needy. So I called Casey up on my way home and thankfully they hadn't left yet. Kato had been at daycare all day so when I got home he was tired out and I quickly showered while Casey went grocery shopping to grab a few last things (only the essentials, of course, pizza and beer). We hit the road around 7:30 and were greeted by the most beautiful sunset on our way. Always a good sign. The drive is quick, only about an hour and a half to two hours and thankfully we know this camp spot like the back of our hand so showing up in the dark is no biggie.

We got there and Casey set up the tent while I cracked a Truly (aren't boyfriends just the greatest?!). Just kidding, I did a little more like setting up the chairs and lights and attempting to pick up the glass around the fire ring that someone had smashed a bottle on…

Side note: DON'T BRING GLASS CAMPING PEOPLE. And if for some reason you just CAN'T live without something in a glass bottle, please be respectful and make sure you pack it out without it breaking!! People bring their dogs to these sites and walk around in their bare feet and it's so frustrating that people can't be responsible and we have to constantly worry about our pup getting glass in his foot.

Anyway, the truck tent took Casey about 15 minutes, maybe twenty, to set up. It was a TOTAL game changer! Usually, it takes us so much longer to get our tent up, all the bedding in and everything situated so it was amazing being able to get it done so quickly, especially since it was late and dark already. The quick setup allowed us to get right down to business – setting a fire and cracking a beer (or another Truly in my case ;) ).

We will definitely have to give the new GoldDog tent a second go-around because I only brought one thin blanket (it was cold for us thin blooded desert dwellers - 58 degrees!!) and we were parked slightly sloped so we were sliding downhill all night .. BUT this was probably the best night's sleep I've had while camping! (Casey may disagree because I hogged our only blanket until about 4 in the morning and Kato kept him up all night being a watchdog…). We attempted to get Kato to sleep in the annex down below, but about 30 seconds after Casey and I climbed up into bed he started crying and wanting to scratch at the annex #needy. Even with Kato sleeping up with us we had SO much room! Something about being off the ground and on an actual mattress makes you feel like you brought a little piece of home out into the woods with you.

Kato let us sleep in until 8am (it's honestly a miracle) and we spent the rest of the morning lounging around camp and it couldn't have been more perfect. It is a quiet area so we were able to let Kato wander freely and he did amazing! He came back when we called and everything. He did have one slight scare when a man came through on horseback with another horse in tow, but other than that he had a blast. Usually, when we go camping/to the lake we have a stake that we put into the ground that his line is attached to, so it was nice for him to be able to be free.

We had recently bought a little grate to cook things on over the fire and we finally got to break it out and made Pizza for breakfast! DELICIOUS. We had a hard time getting the pepperonis to get crispy like they do when you bake it so if anyone has any ideas let us know! We tried both just right on top and under a layer of cheese to try and bake it in more.

A storm rolled in quickly around 1pm, but thanks to the new truck tent packing up was cake. Except for when Casey accidentally left his car keys in the tent and we had to unpack and repack…. But I guess if that's the worst thing to happen during our trip then I would say it was another successfully casual camping trip by Lisa and Casey. We will be back Stoneman xoxo.