F 8

Thanks to Bridget's reservation skills, our Elkmont campsite was F8, the best in the campground. It's at the edge, down the hill from the road leading to the Elkmont houses.

Over the years, Bridget, Helen, and Steph have acquired a good selection of canopies and tarps, so even though we had rainy weather, we had a large dry area that did justice to the site. At least half the tent campers had additional canopies or tarps, even drop cloths, over their tents in an effort to keep them dry. I always enjoy checking out the campsites, tents, and tarpage.

This is a morning view from the back of the campsite. One evening around dusk, we saw a small bear on the bridge and two more up the road. None of us got good pictures, though, so you'll have to take our word for it. One of the little bears wandered through the bathroom area. We never did see the mama.

We have friends who do elaborate campsite cooking, but that's not for us. One night we had a delicious Caesar salad straight from the bag.

And every night there was "meat on a stick" over the campfire. Note to vegetarians: the Morningstar Italian sausages work best wrapped in foil and placed on the campfire. I stopped at three large grocery stores trying to find veggie hot dogs, with no luck. Except for the basic "burgers," the selection of veggie sandwich items seems to have decreased over the past year.

Even though we had lots of rain, there was a dry time every evening for a campfire, with most of the rain coming at night. We were able to hike every day with just a few drizzles.