77 Memories of Camping and Family

Today, I got some pictures in my email from my Godparents' daughter.

The pictures are from a camping trip we took in 1971 (I was 15) up to Mont Tremblant National Park, Quebec, Canada. Today, Mont Tremblant (MT) is a bustling vacation place, with many resorts and things to do and see.
When we were there, it was nothing but logging roads, lakes and forest. From the park gate, where a ranger had us read and sign multitudes of forms letting them know where we were going, for what reason, and how long we were going to be there (in case we didn't come out, they'd come in looking for us). The park was hundreds of miles long and wide, and from that gate, we drove 40 miles to find a good place to pull over and make camp.

The only living humans we saw, were on Monday mornings, and Friday nights as the loggers went in and came out. Other than that, we were on our own. My mom, dad, mom's friend "sis" and I were in our truck-camper, my Godfather and Godmother were in a pull-behind camper and my Godfather's brother and his family were in another pull-behind camper.

The story will have to wait, but I will share a couple of pictures from the trip (forgive the quality, this was 1971 after all!)

The picture at left is my Godfather, or as I referred to him, Uncle Al. He was a short, fireplug of a guy, funny as the day is long (only surpassed by his brother), and loved me like a son.

The fish he's holding is a Walleye. About the Walleye:

Walleye are also called walleyed pike, pickerel, jackfish, dore, and ol' marble eyes. The sides of the walleye are olive-green with gold flecks. The spiny dorsal fin lacks spots, but has a black rear base. The lower lobe of the tail has a white tip.

Strong fighters, walleyes stay deep and wage a determined battle. Walleyes are light sensitive. They have a layer of pigment in the retina of the eye called the "Tapetum lucidum". Because of their light-sensitive eyes, they bite best around dusk and dawn, at night, or in cloudy weather. Popular baits and lures include minnows, nightcrawlers, leeches, jigs, spinners, and plugs, especially minnow plugs.

This next picture, is of my dad, cooking over the hibachi in the rain! *laughing*

I'm sure he's having fun, and that truck-camper to the right is/was ours.

Sometime soon, I'll tell some stories about this trip.. it was one in a life time, and I'm sure you'll enjoy.

For now, have a wonderful weekend and we'll type back atcha on Monday!