Camping Trips

Well- it is day 10 of my husband son being away doing camps in NY and North Jersey. First they went to a Boy Scout camp and had a wonderful time. Their troop came in 1st place for an athletic competition with all the other kids there, and they also came in 1st place for the best hot dog competition! Somehow they made a stuffed hotdog. I have yet to hear the details on that! Now they are canoeing and camping on the upper Delaware River. This is a camp through a Methodist Camp in North Jersey. My husband is in charge of the group - 8 middle school aged kids, 2 teenage counselors and 1 other adult pastor. Last year he had a blast. He said he let the kids sleep in everyday if they wanted while he read and relaxed by the campfire. The kids put in long days paddling on the river and having fun. It was a real laid back time, except of course when the actual canoeing was happening. He said they were awakened one early morning by coyotes chasing some deer through the campsite. That's OK- as long as they didn't stop to browse and as long as they weren't bears!

I was just reading about the population of coyotes in Pennsylvania. The U.S.  Department of Agriculture says that the population of coyotes in the northeastern states has really grown, probably because they are filling the ecological niche vacated by several large predators, such as the eastern timber wolf and the eastern mountain lion that have been extirpated from the northeastern states. The lynx in Pennsylvania has also been extirpated and the bobcat has become rare. - The big questions about the growing coyote populations are - will they threaten children or livestock or pets? Will they spread rabies? - I am sure there are other concerns too.

I remember seeing the round face of a bobcat looking down at me from a high embankment when I was driving to a friend's house in Pa. What a surprise! When I looked back again, it was gone. And I remember walking in the woods on the mountain and feeling like someone was watching me. When I glanced around quickly, I saw a coyote duck behind a tree. I know someone who saw a mountain lion in her backyard and someone who saw a timber wolf that was road kill along side the road by the woods. (both in northern Pa.)

Well- I am hoping if the campers have wild critters explore their campsite, they will be deer or raccoon - not the other ones. -- I know that memories are in the making right now for them all. I pray they enjoy God's creations on this trip and each other's company too. I know they will have a blast!