Tuesday, May 17, 2016

The Oregon Vortex A New Adventure

Home again and settled enough to put pen to blog.  This year we took our annual Mother's Day trip to Oregon.  IFAB Welding did a fabulous job fixing our trailer tongue so we could travel safely, the trailer pulled like a dream.

The tongue is NASCAR strong.

It was a long trip over 600 miles, the Blue Guppy pulled smooth without a hop or wiggle.  We left at night which made traffic and stops easier for us.  Alex and Remy slept the entire ride up, that was nice because they were both in great moods when we arrived at the KOA.

We camped at the Gold Hill Medford KOA and it was lovely.  It is a very quiet campground will a lot of long term campers set up in the back grounds.  It has a small pool, a creek running through, and sits next to a cattle pasture.  The area is green, lush, and while we were there wet.  We loved they had a fenced dog park for Remy to enjoy so off leash time.  It would be great if it were bigger with a tree and bench to sit on while the furry kids play.  This was the only thing I'd do to the campground to upgrade.

Rainy days require a bit more prep to keep camp dry and comfy.

We loved the trailer skirt it kept things dry and tidy.

Remy loved the berry bushes and enjoyed people watching. The playpen gave him his own area to enjoy.

If Remt could lounge in a hammock he'd be in heaven but his kennel will have to do.

We enjoyed the rural area and the cows outnumbered the people.


Breakfast each morning was eggs and fresh home cured Apple smoked bacon.

Our youngest Alex worked hard to come on a special trip to the Oregon Vortex.  For those with kids you probably have heard of it through Gravity Falls, for those who haven't it's a unique natural oddity.

The vortex is an erea where some of the strangest things happen before your eyes.  

Back in the 1800's this was the assayer's  office.  The vortex caused the gold to weight less cheating some miners when they came to weight in.  

This guest is standing level, the room around her is twisted by the vortex.

Alex kept pushing the water down the ramp only to have it roll back uphill to her feet.

Alex stood the broom on its own while we continued on our tour.  

The vortex messes with you, tall folks become small and small become tall.  Alex was over the moon tracking everything in her journal and snapping photos at every chance.  Watching Alex having fun made this little trip worth every minute.

Part of the fun camping is the food.  We enjoyed fried alligator and crab for our first night's dinner.  Fried alligator is always a favorite for the family and it went great with the crab we had caught earlier.

You don't want to overcook the gator or it becomes tough and chewy.

Cooking gave me the chance to use my Mother's Day gift, my new Dutch oven cook mate.  I love our Dutch oven it makes cooking at camp so fun and easy and now it got even better!  The break in my new toy I made buffalo pot roast.

The stand comes with a charcoal tray to heat your cookware.

You can move your coals up or down along the lid hook.

Load it up set your coals and let it cook.

Delicious buffalo pot roast and since I used parchment paper in the pot clean up was a snap.

A little wine and eating by lamplight...this is the life.

Alex having glow in the dark s'mores fun.

I'll leave you with my super easy pot roast recipe.

Buffalo Pot Roast

1 4lbs buffalo (or beef) roast
1 small bag of baby carrots
1 package of fingerling potatoes
1/4 chopped onion
Salt
Pepper
Garlic
1 can of beef gravy
1/2 can water

Line a 10quart Dutch oven with parchment paper the add all your ingredients.  Cover and cook under coals until meat and veggies are tender.  Enjoy!

Until next time stay safe and enjoy your camp!