May 20-21, 2023
Our first real camping trip in the van!
We started our lazy drive to Cook Forest by visiting East Brady, where we visited a furniture store and a hardware store, which was surprisingly interesting with its layout, architecture, and cat! We also came across a beautiful scenic overlook that we just had to stop at!
Jeff and I then made our way to Cook Forest State Park, site 149. The campsite was PACKED, but it was a nice setting. There weren’t as many trees as I would’ve liked separating each campground, but at least there were trees.
After pulling into our campground, we unfolded the couch into a bed and relaxed a little. It felt like a mini vacation! I painted my nails and read a book while Jeff played a video game, something he rarely does.
After a half hour or so, we decided to take a hike to the fire tower. The Cook Forest fire tower feels a bit sketchy– it’s all wood and feels very wobbly, but the views are pretty from the top.
After returning back to the van, we heated up some pulled beef over mac ‘n’ cheese and relaxed for a bit before making some Jiffy popcorn (thanks, Dad!) and started a movie.
The next morning, we made pancakes and hiked to the fire tower once again.
We found a nice picnic area for lunch, and we made peanut butter rollups (a tortilla with peanut butter, rolled…fancy). Afterwards, we took the van for a drive along the Clarion River. It was BEAUTIFUL just cruising somewhere new with the van for the first time. It was on that drive that we saw many people canoeing down the river, and we decided we wanted to do the same!
We decided to rent a canoe from Cook Forest Canoe Rentals. It was the perfect end to our first real trip in the van!
-Anna
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