Thursday, September 2, 2010

Mascal Camping: SG Hill Meets Nature (part 4)

Note this is fourth and final post in the camping series

I gingerly made my way back down the rocks after deciding against rappelling. The conversation on top of the rocks was a fear-incuding unforgettable moment. Let's recreate it here:

me "What's the weight limit for the harness?"
him "Down...you go down"
me "No, I know. What is the limit? kilograms?"
him "Down down down."

Keeping in mind I had now nearly capsized a kayak and absolutely shredded a pair of pants on the way up the hill, this sequence was enough to send me skipping back down the rocks where the next activity awaited.

Raft-Making

For making our rafts, we had the following supplies:

  • 5 inner tubes
  • 4 bamboo poles
  • a bunch of rope

The beginnings of our raft-smithing were thwarted by a 5' snake in the water. We were told it was a water-only snake...and then it slithered on land.

Once the coast was clear we put our heads together and came up with possible designs:

  1. A snake-like design, with parallel poles for the frame
  2. A triangle

I was, and continue to be, a proponent of the triangle. Who doesn't love the symbol of equilateral goodness and strength?
Triangle-Framed Raft

The raft was soon completed and Team Green set to paddle back to the campsite, which was at least 1 kilometer away. During the paddling of that 1 kilometer, the sun turned to rain. Heavy rain. Here we see the view from a dry tent of the team coming in.
Rain Strikes Team Green's Raft

This trip was eventful and memorable for many reasons. In any sort of company getaway you'll have the inevitable result of coworkers getting to know each other better. If you're going on a getaway with me, however, you're in even more luck -- because you get to know what I look like with any sun exposure.
Sunburn!

Note The raft photos were taken just 1 hour and 3 minutes apart. We have a saying in Michigan -- if you don't like the weather...wait 10 minutes.

It's much more true here.

1 comment:

  1. That burn looks painful.

    Are you in the raft in that picture?

    ReplyDelete