🏕️ ✨ Camping in September | A Cozy Story for Relaxation and Sleep

0:02 Welcome to The Slow Life. I'm Jennifer Vino and I create, narrate and design the soundscape of this village of cosy stories to relax and unwind. Each week I share an original story. Read 2 times so you can relax even more during the second reading. I'm happy to announce my website, theslowlife.ca. It provides a space where we can connect and I can bring you all things cozy.

0:43 Let's settle in with some easy breathing at your own pace. With each inhale, let fresh air fill the space around your heart. With each exhale, feel the calm air spread through your body and flow out through your arms and legs, gently in through your heart, gently out through your body. And now let's begin. This story is called Camping in September and it's about it's still being summer, a waterfall all our own, and sweet, sweet camping cereal. The air feels different as we load the last bag into the car. It's still summer in the way the afternoon sun warms the skin, but fall seeps in around the edges on these September mornings.

1:55 This trip is our way of rounding out the last two months. Cozy nights spent outside campfires in the dimming light. A time to stretch in nature under the wide sky surrounding us. We're on our way, and the drive is part of the fun. The village falls away behind us, the streets curving into roads through the hills, then winding into the folds of the mountains. The trees grow taller, the canopy thicker as we make our way, the roadside grasses mixed with the dusting of yellow golden rod. We keep the windows cracked to let the air circulate on its own.

2:50 The road grows quieter. It feels like crossing into another place entirely, even though we know it isn't far. The campsite isn't full, but still has enough folks around to add to the experience. A few tents are scattered through the trees, some in muted colours, blending into the late summer woods. Others can be seen further off. We choose a space near the edge where the trees open just enough to glimpse the Ridge of the mountains beyond.

3:33 Stepping out of the car, the ground is soft with pine needles. The air smells like earth slowly cooling down. It will warm up shortly, like most days. Around this time, we set up the black goat tent we bought this past spring, its walls fanning out smooth and dark against the dappled sun. It will keep out the morning sun if we want, but for now we leave the flap open to air it out. It's easy to set up and we have it down pat by now. Inside, the sleeping bags puff as we shake them out. Laying them side by side.

4:22 We put the smaller things into place. Lanterns, bags of folded clothes and a backpack with a deck of cards and other small games. The food we leave in the car, out of sight and scent of curious animals. We duck through the zipper door, back outside and breathe in. The weekend is ours. We set up lawn chairs by the fire pit and unload the bit of wood we'd bought at the camps office. We sit for a few minutes, feeling like our home for the next few days is ready to settle into. Wanting to Snoop around, we follow the path that winds away from the campsite.

5:15 It leads through tall ferns and over stones covered with Moss, the air extra fresh beneath the still green trees. The sound comes first, a hushed rushing of water, soft and steady. Then the trees start to thin and a waterfall appears. It spills white over the rocks not too high up into a clear pool below. Prepped for this with bathing suits on, we leave our clothes folded on the rocks and step into the water.

5:56 It's warmer than we were expecting. We thought we might just get in long enough to say we did it, but it's comfortable and not a shock to the system at all. We make the short swim towards the falling water, reaching out to touch the cascade, letting it splash over us. It's a refreshing curtain that massages our shoulders, heads and backs. We say things to each other that neither one of us hears, but we know the context. Emerging from the falls, laughing, eyes squinting in the spray and the sun. We stay in the pool part for a while, still impressed with the waters warmth.

6:50 We lie on the sun warmed rocks until the afternoon stretches thin and the shadows lengthen. Time to pull our clothes back on and make our way back along the trail. The campsite glows golden when we return, the low sun still hanging on after hot showers in the newly built facility. We build a small fire in the growing dusk. The wood catches with a crackle, smoke curling upward with no breeze to night. Watching the flames mostly in silence, we let it settle into coals and stretch our legs towards the heat. The front office thoughtfully provided thin sticks sharpened enough for marshmallows, and we hold them just above the embers. The goal is usually to toast them to a beautiful brown, but sometimes we don't catch them in time before they get to the crispy phase.

8:02 Just as yummy in my opinion. We blow them out and slide the sweetness between 2 Graham crackers and squares of chocolate. The chocolate softens, the marshmallow tries to stay in place, and it tastes like summer. The sky continues to darken. Stars show themselves 1 by 1. The fire keeps us warm, and the night settles around us. We sit back and tilt our heads up, eyes scanning over constellations whose names escape us. The sounds change as night time expands. I like that we can hear the other campers close by, laughing over their own stories.

8:57 The fire winds down and so do we. We gather things up to store in the car and slip inside the tent, thankful for the convenience of the lanterns. We pulled the sleeping bags up around our shoulders, whispering, even though regular voices wouldn't disturb anyone. There's something about being in a sleeping bag in a tent that makes you feel like a kid camping out in your backyard. The blackout fabric will be appreciated come morning, and it muffles the outside world just enough.

9:41 And just as kids do, we chat and giggle with each other, continuing to whisper as if we'll soon be shushed to settle down by the adults still sitting around the fire. The talking from the other campers flows down around us and there are longer gaps in our own conversation. We say our good nights and look forward to our tiny boxes of camping cereal in the morning. My heart is full, my eyes are heavy and sleep comes easily. Camping in September, the air feels different as we load the last bag into the car.

10:36 It's still summer in the way the afternoon sun warms the skin, but fall seeps in around the edges on these September mornings. This trip is our way of rounding out the last two months. Cozy nights spent outside campfires in the dimming light. A time to stretch in nature under the wide sky surrounding us. We're on our way, and the drive is part of the fun. The village falls away behind us, the streets curving into roads through the hills, then winding into the folds of the mountains. The trees grow taller, the canopy thicker as we make our way, the roadside grasses mixed with the dusting of yellow golden rod.

11:36 We keep the windows cracked to let the air circulate on its own. The road grows quieter. It feels like crossing into another place entirely, even though we know it isn't far. The campsite isn't full, but still has enough folks around to add to the experience. A few tents are scattered through the trees, some in muted colours, blending into the late summer woods. Others can be seen further off. We choose a space near the edge where the trees open just enough to glimpse the Ridge of the mountains beyond. Stepping out of the car, the ground is soft with pine needles.

12:30 The air smells like earth slowly cooling down. It will warm up shortly, like most days. Around this time, we set up the black goat tent we bought this past spring, its walls fanning out smooth and dark against the dappled sun. It will keep out the morning sun if we want, but for now we leave the flap open to air it out. It's easy to set up and we have it down pat by now. Inside, the sleeping bags puff as we shake them out.

13:11 Laying them side by side. We put the smaller things into place. Lanterns, bags of folded clothes and a backpack with a deck of cards and other small games. The food we leave in the car, out of sight and scent of curious animals. We duck through the zipper door, back outside and breathe in. The weekend is ours. We set up lawn chairs by the fire pit and unload the bit of wood we'd bought at the camps office.

13:52 We sit for a few minutes, feeling like our home for the next few days is ready to settle into. Wanting to Snoop around, we follow the path that winds away from the campsite. It leads through tall ferns and over stones covered with Moss, the air extra fresh beneath the still green trees. The sound comes first, a hushed rushing of water, soft and steady. Then the trees start to thin and a waterfall appears. It spills white over the rocks not too high up into a clear pool below. Prepped for this with bathing suits on, we leave our clothes folded on the rocks and step into the water. It's warmer than we were expecting. We thought we might just get in long enough to say we did it, but it's comfortable and not a shock to the system at all. We make the short swim towards the falling water, reaching out to touch the cascade, letting it splash over us. It's a refreshing curtain that massages our shoulders, heads and backs.

15:20 We say things to each other that neither one of us hears, but we know the context. Emerging from the falls, laughing, eyes squinting in the spray and the sun. We stay in the pool part for a while, still impressed with the waters warmth. We lie on the sun warmed rocks until the afternoon stretches thin and the shadows lengthen. Time to pull our clothes back on and make our way back along the trail. The campsite glows golden when we return, the low sun still hanging on after hot showers in the newly built facility. We build a small fire in the growing dusk. The wood catches with a crackle, smoke curling upward with no breeze to night.

16:23 Watching the flames mostly in silence, we let it settle into coals and stretch our legs towards the heat. The front office thoughtfully provided thin sticks sharpened enough for marshmallows, and we hold them just above the embers. The goal is usually to toast them to a beautiful brown, but sometimes we don't catch them in time before they get to the crispy phase. Just as yummy in my opinion. We blow them out and slide the sweetness between 2 Graham crackers and squares of chocolate.

17:07 The chocolate softens, the marshmallow tries to stay in place, and it tastes like summer. The sky continues to darken. Stars show themselves 1 by 1. The fire keeps us warm, and the night settles around us. We sit back and tilt our heads up, eyes scanning over constellations whose names escape us. The sounds change as night time expands. I like that we can hear the other campers close by, laughing over their own stories. The fire winds down and so do we. We gather things up to store in the car and slip inside the tent, thankful for the convenience of the lanterns. We pull the sleeping bags up around our shoulders, whispering.

18:09 Even though regular voices wouldn't disturb anyone. There's something about being in a sleeping bag in a tent that makes you feel like a kid camping out in your backyard. The blackout fabric will be appreciated come morning, and it muffles the outside world just enough. And just as kids do, we chat and giggle with each other, continuing to whisper as if we'll soon be shushed to settle down by the adults still sitting around the fire.

18:49 The talking from the other campers flows down around us and there are longer gaps in our own conversation. We say our good nights and look forward to our tiny boxes of camping cereal in the morning. My heart is full, my eyes are heavy and sleep comes easily. I wish you sweet dreams.