"Meditation is my meditation" - But still, camping is pretty great!

Hi! I missed you. I've been gone for a while: camping for 8 days.

I'm totally listening to Enya right now and sitting in my pyjamas writing this blog post and thinking about meditation and the great camping trip I just got back from.

People often say that running is their meditation. Or knitting or yoga. Or whatever. Some of my friends in my meditation sitting group want to make a shirt that says "Meditation is my meditation". I don't correct people when they say then Zen out on kneading dough or getting a massage, but I prefer to keep my meditation separate from my other activities and just focus on mindfulness as actual meditation. I can see why people say working on their car is like sitting on the cushion - it's an all-encompassing task that requires all of your focus. So much, in fact, that you get lost in it and can think of nothing else. It can seem like a meditative state, especially if it keeps you calm. 

During sitting practice, lots of thoughts arise and fall away. The point, in insight meditation, is to observe them, the sensations in your body and around you, and the feeling tones of those thoughts and sensations. Some meditations feel clear and energizing. Others feel sluggish. Others, irritating. Not getting caught up in fantasies, memories, or planning is hard. Really hard. It's not about flicking this switch and your mind becomes this clear, boundless white space. I had that misconception when I first started sitting. 

Anyway, what I'm trying to say is that I've been trying my hand at a couple of different things: fishing and crocheting, and finding them "meditative". I'm not actually practising mindfulness during these activities, but I sure feel calm and focused. I never understood the appeal of fishing until I tried it. Same with crocheting. Many of my friends fish, knit (or crochet) and I've been happy to watch or tag along and read a book or chat. But when I finally decided to get a hobby or two and faced my fear of things being too hard and that I wouldn't be a pro the first time I tried it, I realized how awesome having something to focus on besides introspecting and thinking can be.

See, I've gone from this:

To this:

I had to start over 4 times. I tied knots or twisted the other ones. I've even done a few more rows since I took the second picture. 

Crocheting was a fun fireside activity, although I needed lots of lantern light to go by. It was relaxing in the evening after hot, long days in the sun. It feels nice to make something tangible, even if it's going to be the most oddly-shaped dish cloth in the world. 

On to the camping trip! I kept my phone off because there was no service and to preserve the battery (turning it on sucks half the juice). I took a few pictures.

First, we camped on my sister's lawn in Vernon from Saturday to Monday. We had barbeques, visited my best friend, went fishing at Mabel Lake (great for swimming, but not so great for fishing without a boat), at the dam at Shuswap Falls, and under this awesome bridge:

I think it's a panda!

My bro-in-law casting his line

After a couple of trips to Surplus Herbys to buy rods, tackle, and a fishing license for me, we set off for Keremeos. Traffic was bad going into Penticton, but we made it by mid-afternoon. We found the town surprisingly empty, especially after the infamous Sober Riders camp out on the weekend. There were a few trailers and tents scattered amongst the many camp sites and we were thrilled to find our favourite spot at the Buckhorn site empty. It's right on the edge of the camp site, very private and right on the river. It's also free! We fished at a couple of different spots and I caught a couple of little guys I threw back. Unfortunately, thunderstorms were in the forecast, so we only camped there 2 days before having to pack up in literally 10 minutes in the pouring rain. 

Here's the red bridge you go over to the road that leads up the Ashnola River:

After Keremeos, we drove into Princeton to stop for gas and ice. The attendant asked if I was from the area and I said we were looking for somewhere to camp and fish. She said Allison Lake was 18 kms north, toward Merrit. We drove up there and explored the site, which is $11 per night. It's all raked gravel and right off the highway. The lake and picnic area is on the other side of the road. We decided to stay the night after not finding anywhere else suitable to hunker down. We couldn't find the turnoff for Kump Lake and found Robertson Lake too remote and run down. There were 2 camp sites there that no one had maintained for a long while and a dishevelled, pieced-together boat launch. There was nowhere to fish from shore.

We fished in Allison Lake in the evening and caught many small trout. Luckily, the lake has a 10 hp limit on boats, so the fish don't get disturbed by the wake. The lake was warm and nice for swimming too. It was lovely fishing in the evenings before bed. You could see fish spotting and jumping all over the place. 

The campsite has cold tap water with a boil-water advisory, so we heated it to do dishes with but it was fine for bathing. It was nice to rinse off after the hot, dusty days up in Princeton. 

We packed up the next morning and headed for Chain, Link, and Osprey Lakes to find camping and fishing spots. These lakes are along the Princeton-Summerland Road, by the Kettle Valley Railway. Each lake had a small, but full camp site with what looked like boat-only fishing. The lake was too reedy to fish from the shore. The bugs were bad, too. We found one spot at Osprey Lake, but it was on a slope and where two trails converged right at the entrance to the camp site. Not a lot of privacy either. And it was $12! A dollar more than the nicely maintained camp site we had just stayed at. We headed back to Allison Lake and stayed 3 more nights. 

So what did we do besides sit in front of the camp fire and cook delicious meals (ribs, tandoori chicken, fajitas, french toast...etc.) on our camp grill? Well, we fished and swam as I already mentioned but we did some other cool stuff like rock hounding. We followed the guides and maps in Rick Hudson's Gold, Gemstones, and Mineral Sites of BC and found sites where we found agates, quartz, fossils, and different geodes and mineral deposits. It was pretty fun driving up old logging roads, following the vague instructions in the book. We explored all over and saw some beautiful views. 

We also found the ghost towns of Coalmont, Granite City, and the mining town of Blakeburn.

Old, collapsed building in Blakeburn

Blakeburn

Blakeburn Creek where we found agates and malachite

Coalmont's Welcome sign

Weird sign in Coalmont

Granite City Cemetery

Colourful grave in the Granite City Cemetery

Nature is pretty amazing and you can see that clearly in rocks and fossils and the way they form. I don't know a whole lot about them, but I'm learning and I love it. 

After 8 days of socializing, exploring, cooking fabulous meals, swimming, fishing, and driving all over hell's half acre, we headed back to the Lower Mainland.

The traffic was easy, until we hit Bridal Falls. There was an accident a couple kms west (flipped trailer), and we spent 1.5 hours in go and stop traffic. It was nice to finally get home, do laundry and take a hot shower.

I wish the trip lasted longer, but it's nice to get back to work and routine too. I'd do it all over again in a second. Maybe next time I'll take 2 weeks. I'd like to get my annual fishing license and try some rivers around here.

And I'll finish off with the song I'm listening to right now. My boyfriend showed me this last year when I started to play uke and it's one of my favourites. Enjoy!