Part 2, family camping

I have found a larger number of people reading my site. Some of you may not be familiar with the high desert, it is for this reason I would like to "paint" a picture for you. In the dry seasons, moisture from the Pacific Ocean is released from the air prior to the higher elevations of the mountains and the remaining dry air, climatic to the high desert, creating the dry desert conditions fall upon the high desert floor. The terrain is mostly rocky and mountainous and there is very little flat land, unlike what we would find in the lower deserts. Valleys collect more water than hills and mountains; therefore, in the rainy seasons the water run off is fast and creates sandy river beds among the rock formations. These conditions are perfect for the outdoor, back to nature, families for hiking, camping, and even off-roading.


The story continues,


As we arrived back to camp, it was extremely evident our camp was the epicenter of a painstaking operation. The children, myself included, decided the best observation point would be from a peak, approximately 2,000 feet above camp level and away our hike began.

From our mountain perch, we could see a number of rescue vehicles move down on our camp and their stay was longer than expected. With excitement, we, too, descended on our camp in the hopes of clarification of the day's events.
I arrived to our camp with the most unexpected greetings from my family and friends. It appears that every person in our camp had taken delight to their notification that the Sherriff's Department had some questions for me. My family, like most, loves to joke and intentionally place another member's emotional status in question. Then conclude the moment with laughter and the typical,

We're only joking.

Until my father approached me with the demand,

Go get your helmet on,

he said,

We need to depart immediately, on MY motorcycle!

I gave a little laugh and said,

OK, just a minute,

with that he gave a sharp response,

I said GO!

Ut-Oh

, now I am in big trouble.
If you have ever seen that "light-bulb", appearing above someone's head as they begin to get a clue, you would understand mine was shinning bright. This was never more evident when my father exclaimed that he would be driving, as opposed to our customary,

You go ahead and drive, 'Reach'.

Maybe I should have said something, earlier

, I thought to myself as I had a very good idea of the upcoming events.
We arrived to the predetermined "interview" area as the rescue teams were all shutting down their vehicles, and even the helicopter would be joining us. I remember thinking,

I wonder if I could get a ride on that helicopter- that would be cool,

as we pulled up to park. Now mentally picture the following: a single table, encircled by numerous rescue vehicles, countless law enforcement agents, and a helicopter with no occupants and the main rotor blade still in motion, and everybody is watching you. This is the time when a person's nerves turn cold.
During our little "Pow-Wow", everything became quite clear to all parties involved. I did play a role in this little adventure- as if you were thinking that I did not. In addition, I did learn some valuable information, and I was not the only one, during this little adventure. If you were watching this on Television, you would require a split screen view; because, each event was unfolding simultaneously with the other.
I was putting on my helmet to ride my father's bike, as an elderly gentleman was walking his dog up the path I was about to explore. As the motorcycle engine was warming, the gentleman and his dog became out of sight. It appears, the gentleman had exited the trail onto the first dried river wash, whereas, I did not and remained on track back into the hills. The other people of this gentleman's camp did not hear or see him return for a nap, when I started calling for help. A third campsite heard my calling and decided to see, from which camp, was a needing member. In their investigation, they approached our camp as we were on our day ride. As they approached camp site of the elderly gentleman, the "investigators" were informed of his dog walking journey. Ah- Haa! Now, we know who played what role. The elderly gentleman awoke from his nap and reported to the rescue agents, that he was unaware of any miss-doing or of any person requiring help. Now, I understood the request for extra vehicles into that area. This all happened, in the day, when the Sherriff's Department was more happy to see me OK, than to charge my family with enormous costs from such a mistake. I have not called for help, since; however, should I ever need to call, I do know that there will be somebody listening.
Moral of the story: Even though those officers did not give this child a helicopter ride that day, each one of those gentlemen remained one of my heroes.

Reach