Good morning on this Good Friday! ☦️

It turns out that things were in a place in the office that I could get away for Easter Weekend at 3pm before Good Friday and I took full advantage of it even though it meant setting up camp in the rain and the mud though by late evening it stopped and got fairly decent.

Mostly cloudy and 36 degrees at the Rensselaerville State Forest. 🌥 Breezy, ️21 mph breeze from the west-northwest 🌬 with gusts up to 31 mph 💨💨💨. The current wind chill is 25.

So far the wind hasn’t been as bad as they are warning ⚠ about but I’ve tried to stay in more protected areas. Some breeze last night especially earlier on in the evening 🍃 but nothing too major. More just damp in the evening.

That said it’s cold ❄ but it’s still early April. Next week is going to be a lot warmer but the woods will be bone dry ☀ and the fire risk super high. 🔥 Plus next week I might have to work and it’s not a 3 day weekend.

The biggest change though is my choices for camp food 🍲. Cookies and beer are out, as are lumps of shredded cheese, hot dogs and crackers. In is water, apples and carrots 🥕 for snacks and for something more substantial brown rice, onions, peppers, asparagus and tofu. 🧅Oh do I like asparagus whenever they had it at various events but I never really cooked it for myself. Tomotoes, broccoli and peppers. 🍅 Salmon probably for tonight. 🐠 Eggs 🥚 with all of the above minus carrots and a banana 🍌 this morning for breakfast. So tasty.

I am not missing the alcohol or the cookies 🍻 that much. It’s kind of nice not to be drunk all of the time and to wake up without a hangover. They used to be okay in my twenties but they got worse in my thirties and would be awful in my forties. 🤕 I feel like I have so much more energy ⚡ and aren’t so fully stuffed 🤰🏼while camping. It’s also nice to go to bed with a clear head and look at the stars.

No fire tonight 🏕️ due to the red flag 🚩 conditions though honestly the ground is still quite wet and soggy with all the rain and snow 🌨 that is left on the ground but it’s not worth the risk especially as I have the propane heater and lights I can use. Last night’s fire was so smokey 🔥 💨 from the wood being wet with things so soggy around here. Tonight I might go for a night hike to look at the stars with no fire to supervise.