Dry Camping on the Beach Part 2

"What should we do? Should we call it and leave?"

"No we should stay and make our shelter better. Looking up the beach towards the North East I don't see any storms coming."

Upon deciding to tough it out, we decided to move camp to a different location with more tree cover. From there we could set up ridge lines to make a tarp shelter. Cold but wanting to get out of the wind, we moved to the new location so we could set up camp.

Our camp and gear

Through the strong North wind we built our shelter. We finally were protected from the elements and best of all we could relax. Even though it was windy, the sun had come out and brightened our surroundings. Taking a brief walk to look around revealed the surrounding landscape; a long spit of sand as far as the eye could see with large lava plateau mountains behind us. To the North East you could see the storms wrapping around the island a quarter mile offshore and headed back out to sea. They were volatile dark rain clouds rolling, spinning as if sent through a storm drain just offshore. It seemed as if the storms were divided by a window. They seemed close enough to touch. 

Entering the dunes

Massive rainbows all day. Also notice the storm gliding by just offshore. 

Deserted desert

Sunset from camp

Heading over the sand dune back to camp, I sat down and relaxed the rest of the day. Gio determined to make the campsite better spent the day planning out the garden he was going to put in.

"Text Josh to bring tomato plants and other starts. Also tell him to bring another rake and shovel. Let's go get river stone to build rock walls too."

Gio's building site for his garden. 

Until sunset it was a mellow day as we hid behind our tarp. However, things began to change quickly. Peering out from behind the tarp we could see the storms beginning to hit the mountain side from the North East. It was going to be another wet night.

Not wanting to set up my hammock, I decided to sleep under the tarp shelter on the ground. I layered myself in all of my clothes - jeans, shirt, flannel, and a windbreaker. Soon it was raining hard enough that the tarp roof needed a gutter. 

Sensing that the rain water was coming in, I placed a plastic table over my makeshift bed to act as another roof. Feeling like I was adequately prepared for the storms that night I fell asleep. 

Like the previous morning. We all woke up early due to an uncomfortable night in the rain and wind. We felt defeated. Our tarps were leaking and beginning to tear. Thinking that we couldn't feel any lower, the truck got stuck in the sand. As our clothes soaked in rain like a sponge and the wind tore into us, we laboriously dug the truck out.

Staying dry

Wet and windy 

Soaked and cold, Robo said, "I think I'm going to bail. The weather report doesn't look good and they have flash flood warnings for the area. What's the point of being out here if we are cold and sitting behind a tarp."

"You know... Young people nowadays think an adventure is going to be this romantic, easy thing," Gio said. "Well it's not. Adventures are often like this. Sometimes you get uncomfortable but that's what makes it an adventure."

The thought sunk into my chest as I too started to pack up and leave with Robo. I thought to myself "Maybe I'm not as adventurous as I thought."

As we loaded the truck, the last thing I saw was Gio digging his garden fervently in the pouring rain. Robo and I left with our tails between our legs as Gio stood his ground like a brave soldier in the rain.

Five miles later, we exited the washboard road that we were so excited to be heading down the day before. Turning back one last time I saw a dark menacing cloud enveloping everything around it. Ground, mountains, sky, and the camp where Gio sat. 

Dry Camping on the Beach Part 1

"You know... Young people nowadays think an adventure is going to be this romantic, easy thing," Gio said. "Well it's not. Adventures are often like this. Sometimes you get uncomfortable but that's what makes it an adventure."

60 hours earlier. 

The time had come. We finally hit the washboard road that signaled our camping destination. As the trucked bounced like a pogo stick due to the bad shocks, nothing could pull our spirits down not even the sign that said five more miles of dirt road. The sun was setting, the windows were rolled down, and the dust that blew in made us further realize that the Christmas camping trip we had been looking forward to was beginning.

The truck bed loaded with ice chests of food, tarps, rakes, shovels, stoves, and tables made me think about the Baja camping trips I got to do when I was younger. What we were doing was essentially the same thing. We drove to the dry side of the island. The side that is more of a desert and gets considerably hotter and gets less rain than the north shore.

Surveying each campsite slowly, we decided on one that had only a few tourists at it. Upon unloading our truck and the arrival of our friend Robo, the tourists realized that their territory was being taken over and decided it was best to move a little further away.

While setting up his tent in the fading sunlight, Robo called out, "We could see some bad weather tonight, it might rain and get windy."

Gio remarked, "It never rains out here. The storms always blow off shore and talking to the tourists, they said the weather has been incredible. If it does rain it will blow through quickly."

As Gio and Robo put their rainflies on, I was busy covering my hammock with a tarp in the spindly mesquite trees. Not wanting to cut the rope I brought into smaller pieces, I had to create a spiderweb of rope in every which direction to hang my hammock and tarp. Satisfied with my work, I crawled into my hammock and fell asleep.

10pm

The howling wind cut through the hammock's material and chilled my body. Laying in my hammock, I was torn about getting up. I could scramble in the dark through the mesquite to fix my tarp, or I could make a mad dash to the truck to grab my comforter.

Deciding upon grabbing my comforter, I placed it in my hammock as it started to rain. It wouldn't have been a hard rain except for the wind that made it so. Instead of rain drops falling, they were sailing horizontally. Crawling back into my hammock determined to fall asleep, I curled up as my hammock was being tossed around as if it were in rough seas. 

2am

Waking up to the sound of the wind beating the tarp like a drum and the incessant swinging of the hammock, I realized that I was also getting damp. The rain was beginning to leak through the tarp and onto me. Peaking my head out to see how Gio and Robo were fairing. I saw Robo's headlamp sprinting back and forth through the darkness. I laughed to myself because I wasn't the only one uncomfortable.

Gio sensing that we were up hopped out of his tent and said, "How are you guys fairing? I'm having to keep my feet against the tent to keep the rain from getting me wet!" 

"I'm fine" I called out, "I'm just a little damp."

Robo said, "I'm pretty wet, my rainfly isn't working, Wyatt seems to be fairing better than you and I Gio! This is going to be a long night!"

6am

Falling out of my hammock like a person that is leaving the bar in the early morning, I made my way to the picnic table like a zombie. Seeing Robo and Gio looking the same way made me feel a little better. We were cold and defeated as the tourists around us packed their tents up to get out of there. It was only the first night and we were supposed to be there for a week.