IN: Indiana Meanderers

September Outing

Our September outing was held September 17-20, at Hoffman Lake Campground near Warsaw, Indiana. Our hosts for the weekend were Janet and Glen Gish assisted by Tammy and Ron Kline. They all provided us with absolutely perfect camping weather. We had sunny warm days for sitting outside and visiting or playing games with cooler evenings which were spent around some awesome campfires. We ended up with 10 members in 6 coaches at the outing including Scott Feichter, Glen & Janet Gish, Ron & Tammy Kline, Dorothy Michalak, Gene & Kathy Rieck, and Fred & Carol Thomas.

Wednesday we were a really small quartet of campers. Scott, Dorothy, Fred and Carol made the trip to Warsaw and of course the first thing we had to do was hit up Walmart for items forgotten. After everyone had arrived and had settled in Scott cooked us all a shish kabob feast over the campfire. He had chicken, beef, corn, onion, potatoes, bell peppers, jalapeno peppers and shrimp. Dorothy also added some zucchini to the meal and after eating in several different courses no one walked away hungry. Thursday morning we decided to take the leftover potatoes and onions from the night before and add more sliced potatoes to make a skillet full of fried potatoes. Scott made some scrambled eggs, bacon, and toast and we all enjoyed a nice outdoor breakfast at the campground. We drove to Plymouth to do some geocaching while Scott and Dorothy stayed back at the campground and relaxed. By late afternoon Klines had arrived and we visited until dinner time. Ron and Tammy had a delicious meal for us up at the shelter. There were hot dogs cooked on a grill at the campfire, chili, cornbread (brought by Kathy), and yummy chocolate cake (made by Janet). Everything was so good and Dorothy and I later agreed that we probably shouldn’t have had the second hot dog and definitely shouldn’t have had the second piece of cake! But we were SO hungry and it was SO good!

After dinner we rolled ourselves down to a really nice campfire and visited until bedtime. Friday was another gorgeous day to relax and explore. Klines and Thomases drove into Warsaw and went to the Warsaw Glass Company. There weren’t any tours of the glass blowing being given due to the COVID situation but we were able to shop in the gift shop and admire the beautiful pieces of hand blown and etched pieces of glassware. Then we stopped by Creighton’s Crazy Egg Café & Coffee Bar where Ron and Fred had eaten breakfast that morning. Nice little restaurant with a small gift shop and great food. They also sell cartons of double yolk eggs. Friday afternoon Glen & Janet arrived.

We and Klines rode our bikes for a bit and ended up at a garage sale not too far from the campground. Eventually it was time for dinner and we all decided to just eat down at the picnic tables next to the coaches. We had a baked potato bar with all the toppings including some leftover chili from the night before, Cesar salad, and key lime and pumpkin pies. After dinner we had the Meanders meeting during which we installed the officers who will remain the same as last year. And all I can say is if you don’t know who the officers are you’re not camping enough!

Saturday was another free day for just relaxing and visiting and enjoying the outdoors. Ron and Scott spent some time working on getting the stinky smell out of the Thomas’s water heater. That led to a trip to Lowe’s and Walmart for a plug which wasn’t found but a trip to Walmart is always worth the trip since we always end up buying something! Saturday afternoon we played a lively game of hillbilly golf. And that’s not the kind they play in Gatlinburg! It’s the kind where you have two targets made from PVC pipe that you try to hit with golf balls linked together with rope. Glen and Janet brought and set up the game, Glen was the official referee and score keeper, and we played in teams of two … no spousal teams allowed! After several games Ron and Carol were declared the “official” winners but we all received prizes which were fun size 3 Musketeers candy bars. Then we had a little time before dinner so we visited by the fire and enjoyed the afternoon. Dinner was back up at the shelter after Scott cooked our brats, hot dogs, hamburgers, steaks or whatever meat we brought to cook. Then we also had a pitch in so there were lots of side dishes and lots of desserts and as usual no one went away from dinner hungry!

After dinner we played card bingo for prizes that people brought and donated. Ron did an excellent job of calling the bingo game … he was quite lively, entertaining, and we all had a great time! We ended the evening with a roaring campfire to use up the firewood as we sat around and enjoyed each other’s company. Sunday morning came too fast and we met for muffins, cookies, and fruit outside the coaches with our coffee, tea, and miscellaneous drinks. We even had a campfire to warm ourselves as it was a brisk 44 degrees early today. Then we said our goodbyes until either November or next April and headed our separate ways.