Yurt X-Country Adventure

Back in October with the cold weather approaching, I was feeling down about the prospects of our adventures coming to a close until next summer.  I had kicked around the idea of a winter camping adventure but was a little trepidatious.  Good thing I checked on a yurt rental then because I snagged the last weekend night before April.  Fast forward a few months and we were anxiously looking forward to our Human Rights Day adventure camping in the Yurt in Harriman State Park.

Winter camping proposed a few challenges but we were up for it.  First of all, we all had to cross country ski into our yurt.  Kris and I had skiis but Abi and Tal had to borrow and learn to ski.  Leah and Eva were a little small so they were pulled behind in a pulk, a kid sled.  Then we had to pack our gear in, again in backpacks and sleds.  This necessitating packing a lot lighter than I normally do.  Everyone dressed in layers and slept in their base.  Finally winter camping means a midnight trek to the potty can be really cold.  Solution: a honey bucket.  The kids were totally grossed out at first, but everyone used it.  

We skied into the Cygnet Yurt inside Harriman State Park.  It was equipped with bunkbeds for 6, a woodstove for heating, propane stove for cooking, propane lantern, and a picnic table.  After we set up we cooked and ate our usual camping dinner, hot dogs, salad and beans.  We played card games and talked until bed time.  We tried to settle everyone down for bed by watching a movie on our iphones.  Eva however was wound up in our new surroundings and was not going to sleep.  Kris stoked our stove up until we were toasty and finally everyone went to sleep.  Not to long after though, Eva was awake and in our bed for the rest of the night.

The next morning Kris had to crawl out about 5 am to get our fire stoked up again and then we could snuggle in for a few more hours of rest.  We cooked our scrambled eggs on the propane stove and rounded out our breakfast with muffins and hot chocolate.  After getting dressed and packing up our gear we skied it back to the truck before embarking on the skiing portion of our adventure.   We skied up to the warming hut and then around the near edge of the lake.

Abi and Tal caught on quickly and skied right along.  Leah and Eva liked to stop and switch between the sleds pulled by Kris and I.  The sky was blue, the sun shining and the weather warm for winter.  Soon we had stripped off hats and coats.  We climbed back into the truck tired and sweaty but we all agreed that this was an adventure worth repeating.

Janurary 19-20, 2014