Glenwood Jerky Review

Lets be honest.... All I have to say is jerky and I have your attention! Who doesn't love some good beef jerky! Jerky is one of the oldest snack foods there is, yet it's still a staple for so many of us!

As much as we all love jerky, I'll be the first to admit that not all brands and flavors are created equal.  There is an art to making jerky that tastes great as well as has the right texture! To much of just one seasoning, flavor, or just a few minutes to much or to shy in the smoker and the whole batch of jerky is ruined.

I often make my own jerky, but after all that work, I pull the meat off the smoker to realize how little jerky I have for all my hard work! Don't get me wrong,  I love making my own jerky but I can consume a whole batch of jerky in a few hours if I don't watch myself! (Fat person problems)

I recently had the opportunity to review a brand of jerky that is quite popular in South Eastern Idaho as well as many other areas! Glenwood Snacks is located here in St. Anthony Idaho! I have had Glenwood jerky for years, but I have not tried all their different flavors of jerky so I was pretty excited for this review.  The flavors I was able to taste were: Original, Peppered, Teriyaki, Smoke Pit, Sweet and Spicy, and 7 Alarm.

One thing I like about Glenwood Jerky is that they are gluten free, no added nitrates, and no added MSG's.  I know this may not be important to all of you, but my family is big on overall gut health as well as my family suffers from Celiac Disease and gluten intolerance.  My son who is 5 has Celiac Disease, while my wife and daughter have an intolerance to gluten.  Finding great tasting jerky that is clean and healthy is harder than it should be.  Which brings me to my next point!

Jerky does not need 100 ingredient! I LOVE that Glenwood jerky is not full of 100 different ingredients, chemicals, or perspectives.  The taste you get from Glenwood is from ingredients you can pronounce and recognize.  There is no guessing on what you're eating and putting into your body.

The video I am sharing is a video of my initial reaction and taste test of each flavor while I'll give a brief description of each one below.

I recruited some help in this review by having my family and a few of my coworkers taste test all of the different flavors of jerky, and then I had them rank them from their favorite to their least favorite.  These are the results I got back when I combined all of the feedback from the 10 different people.

Rankings:
1. Smoke Pit
2. Peppered
3. Teriyaki
4. Original
5. Sweet and Spicy
6. 7 Alarm

Now here is my brief on each different flavor in the order they were ranked by this review.

Smoke Pit -  Hardy, smokey, with a touch of sweetness.  I love the smoke flavor and tenderness of this flavor! The ingredients include molasses, tomato paste, brown sugar, honey, and apple juice. I have to say the way have blended these different flavors where you don't taste to much of one thing or not enough of another is a perfect combination.  It's a great southern taste of smoky goodness!

Peppered - This flavor is another solid staple jerky flavor that Glenwood does a great job with.  Perfect balance of pepper where you don't feel like they emptied a while bottle of black pepper into each bag of jerky, yet enough peppery flavor that it set's it apart from the original flavored jerky.  The Peppered and Smoke Pit were tied until the last person gave me their results which put the Smoke Pit just one score above the Peppered.

Teriyaki - The perfect balance of sweet and salty teriyaki flavor.  This one was great, I could taste the brown sugar immediately, while the salty teriyaki flavor had a constant presence.  When I had my family and coworkers taste these flavors, the Teriyaki had mixed results.  I had a few people who said they normally love teriyaki who said they didn't care for this one as much, while others who actually picked it as their number 1 choice!.

Original - Honestly you can't beat the taste of good ole' Original Jerky.  It resonates with you and is such a comfort food.  The Original flavor has a touch of sweetness, smoke flavor, and spices.

Sweet and Spicy - I had mixed feelings about this one as I thought it was sweeter than it was spicy.  I almost felt like it was a bit of a mix between the teriyaki and the peppered.  I personally would have liked a bit more spice with it, but I also had a few other people who said they loved it just the way it was.  Those who liked spicy food tended to say it needed more of a kick while those who were indifferent about spicy food said it was just enough of a kick to make things interesting.

7 Alarm - If you love spicy food, this one is for you! Out of the 10 people who helped me taste these different flavors, I had 2 people rank it as their top pick, while the other 8 put it either their second to last, or their very least favorite.  It was an either you loved it or you didn't type of a thing :) I myself loved it! I didn't put it as my top pick myself, but I felt it was a great flavor while also spicy enough to REALLY get your attention.  Some of the ingredients include Jalapeño, Habanero, Ghost Pepper, Carolina Reaper, and Scorpion Pepper!!! If you don't like spicy food, we won't hold it against you if you don't want to try this one.  If you do love spicy food, you may have just found your new favorite snack food!

Now to the fun part! Who doesn't want free jerky!!! I'm doing a giveaway for 3 packs of Glenwood Jerky! The winner will be randomly selected and I'll send them three packs of Glenwood Jerky! Just follow the link below to get entered! Also PLEASE SPREAD THE WORD ABOUT THIS GIVEAWAY AND REVIEW! The more traffic we get, the more giveaways we can do! If you help us out, then we can do more fun reviews and giveaways such as this! So please share on social media as well as tell your family and friends! Thank you all for the support!


a Rafflecopter giveaway
As well as my giveaway I also have a discount to offer all of my followers.  You can get .50 off a 16 ounce bag of jerky.  You can either click the Glenwood logo on the side bar on my blog post to take you to the website or go to: glenwoodsnacks.com/idaho-pursuit-store then use the password IDPUR50 to get into the storefront which will automatically give you the discount pricing.

Disclaimer:

As with all reviews on Idaho Pursuit, the following review is my honest opinion.  Glenwood provided me with these flavors of jerky in exchange for a product review.  I have purchased the Glenwood Jerky which is offered as the giveaway/prize for this post.  I am not sponsored by or affiliated with Glenwood Jerky other than this simple request of a review.  Glenwood did not give me any instructions or guidance on how to review the products so everything written on this post is based on my personal experience and opinion. 

How to Survive on Social Media

Embrace it, social media is not going away and it's influence on the hunting community is just going to become more pervasive.  If anything in the hunting realm of social media is inevitable these days, it would be that you're going to see something or someone on social media who you either absolutely can not stand or someone you want to slap upside the head... For a while, I started getting quite negative about social media because I felt it was filling up with nobodies trying to be somebodies at any expense.  You would have one person make a name for themselves and then hundreds of others follow and almost copy exactly what their social media role model had done.   After seeing this over and over, it got to the point where I had negative feelings toward many of the posts and people I would see on social media.  I realized I had to stop being so negative as well as I realized I didn't want other people's stupidity have as much of an effect on my enjoyment on social media.  Sooo, I made a short list as advice on how to survive on social media! Enjoy:

1. Be yourself! Regardless if it's Cameron Hanes, Michael Waddell, or some local somebody that has a following on social media, they all have the same message that you need to do what works for you.  Of course they have their sponsorships they push, of course they feel they are the coolest person in the world, but they in no way want you to be anything other than yourself.  If one of them inspires you to do something like they do, that is great, but also take that motivation and personalize it! In other words, even if you do exactly what "so and so" says, realize that doesn't change who you are.  It just means you are still yourself but now do things like someone else...

2. Don't do things for attention.  Let's be clear... Almost all of social media is the, "look at me" mentality.  You share photos or events because you want others to see what your doing, or what has happened.  You share because you feel what you experienced is worth sharing.  I am in no way saying not to share. What I am saying is, if you go out to experience something SO that you can share it, then you have lost your purpose and reasoning behind why we do what we do.  Experience the world and the outdoors out of a love for the world and the outdoors.  Experience life because you love what you get out of it.  If you go through life looking for attention and praise of others, then you'll be disappointed when you don't get as many likes or shares... This is what motivates those egocentric bucket heads to shoot high fenced elk then claim they are fair chase animals on public land... We have seen too many incidences of TV hunters breaking laws or Instagram wannabe's who poach just to get a little bit of fame... Don't be "That guy"

3. Have integrity.  All of us would love a sponsorship of some sort that would get us free gear or some other benefit.  A question you have to ask yourself is, at what expense would you be willing to gain that benefit?  If you do have a following, understand that you are being watched by all those who follow you.  If one minute you say one things because one of your sponsors tells you to, then don't be surprised if you get called out when you turn around and say something contradictory a short time later.  If you are willing to change everything you stand for just to gain a sponsorship or affiliation with a certain group or company, understand that a person is only as good as their word... Don't lower your standards in hopes of gaining fame.

4. Don't be afraid to unfollow or unfriend.  I'll be the first to admit, I know I have been unfriended and unfollowed by some.  As much as I want to have a decent following on social media, I also am not offended or upset if someone chooses not to follow me.  You have your standards, your style, and your likings.  Let those be your guidelines on who you follow.  Regardless of how many followers a person has, how many shout outs, or what criteria a person may have, if you don't agree with what they post then unfriend or unfollow them.   Think for yourself and follow who you want to follow.  Even if you unfollow the "popular kids" you will still have other follow you for your content.  You will also enjoy your news feed a lot more once you purge your friend lists of those you dislike seeing.

Once I took my own advice and started following these simple four steps, I really did start to enjoy social media a lot more.  I didn't get annoyed any time I got on and saw multiple posts of people trying to be someone else.  I saw less work out/gym selfies, more family posts, hunting videos, and less high school drama.   Take ownership of your life in every aspect and be yourself.  Don't let social media have a negative impart on your hunting or create an culture of competition.  Share because what you experience is worth sharing.  Regardless of how many likes you get, love the memories you create and live!  Remember you make far more friends becoming interested in other people's lives than you ever will trying to convince other to be interested in your's.

One of my best memories I've shared yet one with very few "likes"

Heather's Choice Meals For Adventuring

As outdoor enthusiasts we know that there are lots of companies who do a lot of the same types of things or make the same types of products.  The benefit of this is that we can have a variety to choose from as well as compare different products to see which one is a better fit for us personally.  When someone prefers one company or product over another, it is important to recognize that this is their preference and that their take on it may be useful for you to make a decision but it is still important to find which product works best for you.  This is exactly what happened to me recently when considering backpacking meals for my adventures! 

I'll be completely honest... I saw a review posted on Journal Of Mountain Hunting on Heather's Choice Meals for Adventuring comparing these meals to the typical Mountain House meals many of us hunters/hikers have used.  When I first saw the review I was skeptical (mostly due to the price of the meals) yet still interested and wanting to know more.  I started doing a bit of research on their website as well as checking into a few other companies as well. 

The first thing that peeked my interest is seeing that the Heather's Choice Meals were dehydrated rather than freeze-dried.  I have dehydrated a lot of foods and know that dehydrating is a great way to have light weight quality foods that still taste great.  

The second item that grabbed my attention about Heather's Choice meals were the ingredients... Check this out... Imagine a meal with these ingredients: wild caught Alaskan sockeye salmon, peas,carrots, potatoes, powdered coconut milk, dill weed, cayenne, white pepper, vinegar powder, and sea salt... Sounds taste right... Now how about this one: 100% grass-fed elk, onion, carrot, celery, zucchini, yellow squash, garlic, purple potatoes, thyme, rosemary, sage, marjoram, tomato paste, plum tomatoes, sea salt, and black pepper. 

The third item that really stood out to me was not until a few months after I first heard about Heather's Choice meals... My son who is only a year old was recently diagnosed with having Celiac Disease which is extremely rare for a child this young.  Long story short, our whole lives have changed quite a bit in regards to the food we have around the house.  My wife and I have been pretty good at keeping some food storage around the house in case of emergencies which primarily consisted of backpacking meals that I would rotate through during my hunting and fishing adventures... Well the unfortunate part with that is that many of the standard backpacking meals are not gluten free, and then those that are are typically spicy which is not ideal for my one year old son.

My heart not only sunk at the thought of how I was going to take my son on backpacking adventures, but also of the thought that in an emergency, my son wouldn't be able to eat many of the foods we had for such a situation... I started looking again at all of the companies and products I had researched months earlier and to my surprise, ALL of Heather's Choice meals are gluten free!  These meals are gluten free, dairy free, and follow a Paleo diet.  In other words, the person who made these meals has graduated with a degree in Evolutionary Sports Nutrition and went on to study at the Institute for the Psychology of Eating in Boulder, Colorado and has used all of her knowledge/education to provide meals that are healthy, tasty, and give it the fuel needed in every condition.  This may not seem very important to those who can have gluten or dairy, but to someone like me who needs to meet my son's dietary needs, this is HUGE!

With these factors, I decided to make an order and try out their meals.  I ordered two of their buckwheat breakfast, two different Packaroons, an Elk Sheppard's Pie, and a Sockeye Salmon Chowder. As soon as the package arrived, my 1 year old son and I devoured the Packaroons.  Over the next couple of days we quickly went through the meals we had ordered.  With the primary consumer in mind being my son, we were hoping he was old enough to talk and let us know how he liked the food.  As a typical 1 year old, he would act like he liked it, then he would stop eating it so we were a little confused on his take on the meals for a child that young.  I enjoyed the meals and felt that they were a great hardy meal that would be awesome while camping, hiking, or backpacking.

The Heather's Choice meals weigh 4 ounces and their snacks weigh 1.8 ounces.  The packaging is much smaller than your typical Mountain House Meals while carrying just as much, if not more, food in each pouch.  I would encourage anyone to at least check out Heather's Choice Meals and see what they have to offer.  Especially if you have dietary needs like my son, these meals are a great way to have high quality food while on your adventures!

Right now Heather's Choice is running a Kickstarter fundraiser to help raise money to purchase different equipment to improve their dehydration, expand their menu, as well as improve their packaging and thus reducing the cost of their products.  If you can help out and make a pledge it wouldn't only help out Heather's Choice, but it would also help out all of the Heather's Choice customers as well.  Please check them out and give their meals a shot! Please click this link to go and make a pledge if you can! https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/heathertkelly/heathers-choice-meals-for-adventuring

"Loaded for Bear"

This last Thursday my wife and I decided to call it an early weekend and take off to the mountains.  We have been talking about going camping for the last few weeks but we have been busy with family outings, reunions, weddings, and any other family gathering you can think of.  We knew if we didn't take time during the week to go camping we might as well not even try because of how busy our summer is this year.

Our Jeep loaded up next to the reservoir

So Thursday afternoon came and I got off work and hurried home to help get ready. We decided that we were not only going to haul our camper but we were also going to pack our canoe! Between my wife and daughter and I, we had my jeep loaded to the max with anything and everything we may possibly need for a simple over night camp trip. The thought came to my mind when we were pulling out of town, "we're loaded for bear". Meaning that we were ready for anything.  Little did I know how true that saying would later become!

Unloading our gear

We drove up into the mountains to one of our favorite spots to go camping.  Sadly this spot has apparently become quite a few people's favorite spot as well because when we showed up we drove from camp site to camp site looking for a spot we could get some peace and tranquility but we were having a rough time. We drove and drove until we finally found a spot far enough away from the others that we didn't feel like we were camping with strangers.  We were close enough we could still hear their campfire conversations but far enough away to be good enough for a one nighter.

When we finally got to our spot we unhooked the camper and unloaded the jeep. By this time it was already about 830 and I still hadn't had a chance to get some fire wood.  Before we could get everything situated I told my wife that I was going to hurry and drive back down the road we came in on and grab some fire wood.  When getting in my jeep I had the feeling I should take a moment and give her the pistol we had bought her just to be safe... Me being the man I am decided that everything would be fine and I would just be a few minutes... I drove down the road about 2 miles and found a tree that was perfect for fire wood.  Just as I was getting out I had another impression that I should at least load my pistol and strap it on my belt just to be safe... Once again I proved my manliness by convincing myself that I could see the tree I was going to cut up so there was no need to have my pistol.

Our camp before taking off to get fire wood

I cut up the tree into a couple sections and strapped them on top of my jeep.  I hopped in and headed back to camp glad that it had taken me less time than I had thought it would.  Just as I was about 500 yards away from camp I came around a corner into our clearing and spotted a dark colored animal trotting down the road toward my camper.  I slowly stopped my jeep to get a better look at the animal without dodging all the bumps in the road. Just as I stopped my jeep the animal stopped and turned broadside to me and then looked right at me.  As soon as it looked at me I knew exactly what it was... I was now looking directly into the eyes of a juvenile grizzly bear!  This bear was not a full sized bear and was a little on the skinny side which made me a little more nervous than if it was a well fed adult grizzly.

This is not the bear I saw but it is similar to the one I saw only smaller

The first thought that came into my mind when I realized what animal was trotting toward my camp was about my wife and baby girl at camp!  My heart sunk that I didn't leave a gun with her, and I suddenly got super nervous that something bad was going to happen to them... Before I could decide what to do next the bear turned back toward my camp and started running straight toward my camper.  I floored my gas pedal and took off toward the bear honking my horn and yelling out the window, "GET IN THE CAMPER"!  I was praying that my wife and daughter could hear me but knew that I was far enough away they probably couldn't.  I glanced at my speed odometer and saw that I was going almost 60 down a bumper dirt road with a tree strapped to the top of my jeep.  I was slowly gaining on the bear and it was still headed right toward camp.  At this point we were about 200 yards from camp and I was finally getting close enough to it I could tell I was making it uncomfortable it kept looking over his shoulder and glancing back at me as I was honking my horn and yelling.  Just as we got about 100 yards from camp I was within 40 yards of the bear.  The bear suddenly darted off to the left and jumped into the reservoir we were camping next to.  The bear hit the water at full speed and started swimming across.  My mind was still on my wife and daughter so I proceeded driving into camp. Just as I pulled up my wife and daughter were stepping out of the camper wondering what all the noise was.  I told her to get back in the camper and that I was chasing a bear.  I loaded her gun and handed it to her then I loaded mine and got back in my jeep to see if the bear swam all the way across the inlet we were camping next to or if it came back to our side.

Front paw print next to my 8' Taurus Pistol

Back Paw Print

Back Paw Print Close up

As I drove back to the spot the bear jumped in, my heart was racing with adrenaline thinking about what could have happened if the bear had not darted off into the water and ran straight into camp. All of the possible outcomes ran through my head while I was looking for the bear.  About 5 minutes passed and I hear a gun shot and hollering about 3 camp spots down from us.  I assume that the bear had made it that far before someone had seen it and able to scare it off some more.  I returned to camp and made sure my wife and daughter were okay.
 
Later that night we made lots of noise cutting up fire wood and cooking dinner.  We knew that this area had bears occasionally but we had never had an encounter like this. I could have easily taken a few picture with my phone during my interactions with the bear but with my wife and daughter back at camp, the only thing on my mind was their safety.  We definitely made sure that our dinner was all cleaned up, coolers were in the jeep, and all of our food was put in a safe place before we called it a night.

Camp Chef Cooking food

I learned two very important lessons through this situation. I learned that when you feel a prompting, no matter how dumb it may seem, be sure to pay attention to it and listen!  The second lesson I learned is that it doesn't matter what I have, what I'm doing, or anything else, my wife and daughter (and their safety) will always be my number one priority! Never again will I leave their side without first making sure they are safe and protected, prepared for anything they may encounter.  I know I have gotten crap about buying a camper and how I have become a softy by not sleeping in a tent, but I am so glad I have that camper for my wife and daughters safety.  I will always make sure to listen to the promptings I have from this point on. The bear may have never made it into my camp if I hadn't had seen it but I am glad to have re-learned these important lessons for life.

Sunset while camping

Upcoming post

Real quick I have to at least give you a preview of my upcoming post... My wife and I decided to go on an overnight camping trip on Thursday night which turned out to be one of our most interesting camping trips... Without going into to much detail I will just share a couple photos and then let you guys all wait until I get some time this weekend to write the full story! Enjoy

Front paw print

Back paw print

Paw print....

I will have to post finished this weekend so check back.... and FYI it is more than just "we saw a bear" or "a bear walked by our camp last night"....

Another Memorial Day to Remember

Last year I wrote about my Memorial Day Weekend tradition of camping with my family.  I mentioned how the weather usually never cooperates with our plans of camping yet we decided to tough out the weather and go camping anyway.  Last year my Memorial Day Weekend was summed up with the picture below of my tent and my Jeep in our camping area.

Camping Memorial Day 2012

Fortunately this year, the weather was a lot more cooperative and was actually one of the best years for weather we have had in a long time!  Last year my wife was about 8 months pregnant and misserable the whole time.  This year was probably one of my favorite times camping because I was able to share it with my daughter who is 11 months old now. 

The area we traditionally camp at for this weekend is not necessarily the most remote area but it is away from the majority of people.  We camp next to a little creek and spend most of our time hanging out by the camp fire catching up with all of our family members.  We also spend a lot of time with family members fishing in the creek catching small Brook Trout.  My daughter loved this part of the camping trip because she decided she liked the feel of squeezing a slimy fish in her hand. 

The look on her face should tell you how much fun she was having

Of course at her age, she puts everything she can touch into her mouth... everything.... yes including the fish...

The look on my face shows you I was grossed out while laughing :)

I think the nicest part of any camping trip is not necessarily in the location, the activities, the weather, or length of time of the camping trip but rather it is is who it is with and how you spend that time.  While I went up in the mountains to one of my favorite spots since childhood, this camping trip is special because it was the first one with my daughter.  When I would have liked to spend more time maybe shooting guns or fishing in the creek, I enjoyed the time sitting next to the creek with my wife and daughter picking flowers and playing in the grass. 

I don't want to make it sound like that is all we did, but I never thought in all my perivious camping trips in this location that I would spend a good portion of my time picking flowers and playing in the grass while camping.  We did get to enjoy some good fishing trips in the creek and we also spent a lot of time with family around the campfire.  Life does change when you have kids yet the change is more of a refocusing on what really matters rather than changing. 

 

We ended off the weekend by visiting my grandpa's grave site which has been part of our family tradition for Memorial Day weekend.  We usually take up something my grandpa would have liked such as a pine tree or some other outdoors item.  This year we took a shed antler from a deer and placed in on his headstone. 

I am looking forward to more camping trips with my wife and daughter this summer where I will be able to share with her some of my other favorite areas such as taking her backpacking into some of my elk hunting spots on scouting trips and other hikes into the mountains.  I know this trips may not be my most successful in sneaking around the woods looking for wildlife but as I spend my time wisely with my wife and daughter I have come to the conclusion that the man upstairs makes up for the less successful scouting trips in the end.  

Memorial Day Madness

As long as I can remember, my family has always gone camping on Memorial Day weekend.  Some of my favorite memories from childhood have to do with camping and fishing with my family on Memorial Day weekend.  Unfortunately, here in South Eastern Idaho, the weather isn't always cooperative with our plan to spend the four day weekend up in the woods.  This year, the weather report said it was going to rain pretty much the whole weekend.  In spite of the weather, our family decided we were still going to give it a shot. Friday afternoon rolled around and my wife and I decided to head up and set up our camp.  The weather was spotty with gusts of wind and occasional rain showers, but we had camped in worse so we felt good about heading up.  We got within a couple of miles from our camp site and the road was blocked by some fallen trees due to the gusts of wind.  The rain had picked up a little on our drive up so I decided to be a good Samaritan and clear the road while waiting for the storm to pass so that I wouldn't be setting up my tent in the rain.

Me sawing away at the fallen trees

After clearing the road, the rain stopped so we finished the drive and set up camp.  Pretty much every year we camp in the same spot right next to a small creek where we spend hours and hours running up and down the mountains, shooting guns, shooting our bows, and fishing in the creek catching our limit of small brook trout.  These fish are definitely not monsters, but they are some of the best tasting fish I've ever had!  After my whole family had showed up, we now had a camp with over 20 people hanging out having a good time! we sat around the camp fire cooking hot dogs and catching up with what was going on in everyone's lives. When the weather was good we would hang out by the creek catching as many fish as we could in hopes of having a big fish fry at the end of our trip. Unfortunately the good weather did not last long and the relaxing times next to the campfire soon turned into a few brainless men standing by the campfire getting rained on.  Like I have mentioned this isn't the first time we've been rained on while camping on Memorial Day, in fact, to quote the women of our camp I'll say, "It just wouldn't be Memorial Day weekend if it didn't rain on us!".  So we roughed it out the best we could the rest of the day Saturday, and hoped that we would wake up the next morning and have decent weather to finish our camping trip.

 Now would be a good time to remind those of you that know me that my wife is currently pregnant with our first child.  She is due the first part of July.  So for those of you who can do math and know anything about pregnancy, you will know that my wife is far enough along in her pregnancy to make this camping trip even more of an adventure than it already is.  Her biggest concern about camping this weekend was her comfort while sleeping in a tent while being over 7 months pregnant. It was my job this weekend to make sure she was comfortable and having a good time.  Me being the husband I am, (despite how much I love camping and fishing) I'll admit, this camping trip wouldn't have been any fun for me if my wife wasn't having a good time.  My enjoyment comes from sharing what means the most to me with the ones I love.  My favorite part of camping is by far spending time with my wife relaxing and fishing in the same places I remember fishing as a kid.  Sure enough, she was a trooper even with the weather being far from perfect.  So when we went to sleep Saturday night I was hoping for a day with better weather that would allow my wife and I to spend the day together fishing in the creek.  It was raining when we got to our tent and the temperature was dropping a bit so I turned on both of our Buddy Heaters we had and called it a night!

 

The next morning wasn't quite the way I had hoped the night before... When we woke up, the ground was covered with snow and our tent was close to collapsing due to the weight of the snow on top of our tent!  Once again, this is not the first time it has snowed on us while camping on Memorial Day, but what was different is that it kept snowing, and snowing, and snowing all the way until noon on Sunday Afternoon! 

Our Tent in the snow!

My Jeep and Tent in the snow!

Trying to warm up

My wife watching the snow melt

Sadly enough, we decided to head back to the house and finish our camping weekend with a big Dutch oven dinner at my grandparent's house.  As good as the food was, it wasn't quite the same as it would have been when camping, but given the weather I guess it was okay.  When Monday rolled around my wife and I woke up and felt that we got shorted on our outdoors weekend, so we decided to head back up to our camping spot and finish what we had started!  My wife and I got up to the creek and fished for a few hours.  We caught a few fish and had a blast doing all we could to enjoy the outdoors and get our minds off of work!  We had a blast spending Memorial Day together doing what we had planned on doing even though the rest of the weekend didn't necessarily go as planned.  We will be heading up again in a couple of weeks to give it another try and I'll be sure to write about it then!

Sarah creek fishing

Sarah with a little brook trout

Me cleaning the fish