Greenleaf 2016

I tried to post this pic at the end, but blogger won't let me, and it won't let me drag and drop. Anyway, this is where my dad was in boot camp during WW2. That insignia in the middle at the bottom of the sign was his division.  Camp Gruber created Greenleaf Lake for amphibious assault training.  You know....for things like landing on the beaches of Normandy.

Soft fall colors

Cabin 11 at last!

Playing dominoes

Dave playing a game before the fire.

The Feast... bacon wrapped roasted turkey breast, cranberry orange compote, and green bean casserole made with gouda and sour cream, topped with crispy onions out of a box.  Oh, and a lovely un-oaked sauvignon blanc.

The blazing fire on our last night in the cabin.

Trying to capture the sparkling water, but it was too bright.

We love that the cabins are built of native stone.

The 11.

I was mistaken about the counter space....There is even LESS than in tiny cabin 6!

From the sleeping area into the living area.

Sleeping area.

Our annual trip to our little cabin in the woods was as perfect as ever this year.

We finally got the cabin we've wanted, and it was just what we needed it to be.

There are some things about the cabin itself that we do not particularly like, but its location in the park, and its size, were perfect.

We don't like that the wood ceiling has been covered by what appears to be painted plywood.  We suspect that there were roof issues recently, and rather than going to the expense of replacing the beautiful wood, they just covered it up.  There isn't much money in the state, and far too little for the state parks.

I also don't particularly like fire place inserts (cabin 13 has an open heath), because you have to close the doors to get the fire really going and to keep the place from filling with smoke.  Cabin 6 has an insert that is all metal.  Cabin 11 at least still has one glass door (the other side has been replaced with metal).

Oh, and the counter space in 11 is EVEN SMALLER than in 6. There is about 18 square inches of counter.  Thankfully, the table is big enough to use, and the cutting board placed over the sink helped, too.

We got to go star gazing, and hiking, and we enjoyed many wonderful meals, and wine, and I got to make beautiful fires that heated the cabin all night long.

We read books, and read out loud to each other at times.

We enjoyed the silence, which is amazing, and we loved not being able to surf the internet or get text messages!!

Squirrels running across the roof, and gentle rain drops on Saturday morning, were wonderful to hear.

Our one foray into the world was on Friday, when we went to the Five Civilized Tribes museum in Muskogee again.  They always have a fine art show going this time of year.

Because it's Black Friday, there was no one there but us. Just like the last time we went.

Some years, we venture out. Some years, we don't.

Last year, it rained almost the whole time, so we just stayed in our snug little cabin and nursed the firewood supply carefully so that we had a small blaze going the whole time.  We hiked when the rain let up, but did not get much trail time last year, and no star gazing.

This year the weather was clear, and cool, and bright.  The sky was so clear at night that we could see the milky way.

The one hitch in the stay was that the water went out on Thursday some time over night.  When we got up Friday morning, there was no water, so Dave drove up to the office and they let him know that they were already working on it.

They had it back on within a few hours, so we were able to wash dishes and shower before going up to Muskogee around noon.

One thing we noticed was that not all of the cabins were full.  The big one we used to get, 13, was vacant until Friday.  So were cabins 1, 4, 8, 9, 14, and 20.  No, really..... there were VERY few people there for Thanksgiving.

NO ONE was in the camp ground down by the big building, and the usual crowd that rents the big building was not there. We think they're the ones who usually rent cabins 13 and 14.

Oh well, it made it quieter.

We made our reservation for cabin 11 for next year, we hope.

The girl who was working the office when I went in to do that had already rented it to someone else by mistake.  She SAID she fixed it, but her confirmation email was blank, so Dave is going to call tomorrow to be sure.

She must have made several mistakes, because she said that she gave our cabin to someone else because that other person's cabin was already taken.

The only way it could have already been taken would have been if she gave it to someone else the way she gave OURS to someone else by mistake.

The one who holds the cabin at check out takes priority!!

We miss the lady who used to work there who retired...her name was Gail Slease, and she knew it all.

The trip home was easy, and the unpacking and laundry are done.  Off now to make breakfast.

Dave will go to his dad's and I will stay home and do some cooking.

It's not a nice day today, so we won't be going to the nature preserve for our walk.

Hope you all had a good Thanksgiving and are having a good weekend!