as J is splitting the wood down into smaller bits, it starts to sprinkle again. so we toss the kindling into the tent to try and keep it less-wet, and toss ourselves in after. i think that's about when i stripped out of the soaking pants and shoes and wrapped a towel around me like a sarong instead, lol. we huddled in the tent and waited for the storm to pass, which it eventually did, or so we thought..... when it finally stopped raining again, we went out and figured that that HAD to be the last of it, so we raked the muck out of the way, grabbed the fire-starter log, and got things going. as we're lighting our fire, the younger of the two ladies from up the hill happens by, bedroll in hand. "there's a puddle in our tent, so we're not staying here tonight." we offered our condolences, and quietly agreed to ourselves that they were just not cut out for camping if you allow yourself to be deterred by a little rain, lol. well, we had just gotten the fire going, i had salvaged my used-to-be-dry shirt from the bottom of the tent, where it had gotten semi-soaked, and put it on, standing near the fire to dry out. just as i get my shirt completely dry, and i'm beginning to warm up..... it starts to sprinkle. i look up, it slacks off for a sec, then starts again. in that steadily increasing volume that means it's not stopping anytime soon. i heaved a sigh and headed for the tent, lol. J said he'd be right behind me, he took a few to throw several more dry logs on the fire, since we only had the one fire-starter, figured we'd best keep it going, lol. we were hoping on steaks for dinner, but we got none, lol. we had nothing but beer all day, tho it was not a bad thing. i was cold when we got in the tent, so i slipped under the sleeping bag to get warm, and the air mattress was so comfy, and the rain on the tent.... zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz..... yeah, i passed out, lol. the next morning, i woke up to the sizzle of something on a camp grill, and eventually dragged my butt out to see what was what. J had thrown the steaks on, they were just about done, he said my timing was perfect, lol. couldn't find plates, so we improvised and carved it up on the small cutting board and ate like animals, lmao. mind you, during the entire night, sitting next to the table, on the wet, wet ground.... were my pants, shoes, and extra socks. good thinking, eh? yeah, we so didn't do any hiking. we ate, commenced to packing up, even left our spare wood for the next campers for that site. took the scenic route, toured the other areas of the campground to check for more secluded sites, lol. the drive back was peaceful, we took the long route out to Front Royal, then back through Culpeper and down to Fredericksburg. i got a few texts from both Bobby and Dan as my signal went in and out on the way down Skyline, all very sweet. i love my boys. i got home with only a mild burn, from riding back in the truck, lol. the drive home was uneventful, but i realized how much i miss being out there in the country like that. big porches, tin roofs, the old lightning rods on the roof..... looks like if the boys want this, they're going to have to come south with me.