“One sees great things from the valley; only small things from
the peak.”
Gilbert
K. Chesterton
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| Beautiful Clark's Hill Lake |
What
would normally have been a vacation for us for Master’s Week, April
3 – 11
th, 2020, was still time off but not for the
Master’s this April. All was different this year because of the
Novel Coronavirus that was discovered back in December 2019 in Wuhan,
China. Since then, this virus has spread across the world and has
created a pandemic like no other we have lived through. This has
changed the lives of everyone across the world in one way or another,
and in our little corner of that world; one of the things it did, was
to postpone the Master’s till November. So in the state of having
“Social Distancing”, we decided to go to Clark’s Hill Lake for
some R and R.
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| That is my Joe with our rig for the week. |
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| Our campsite with the lake right there. So beautiful. |
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| The beach with not a soul on it. The first time ever. |
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| The great playground with not a soul on it. |
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| Our camping area |
We
made our reservations about two weeks prior to our vacation for a full hook up site and
at the same time, Jeannine reserved a two bedroom cottage. Pointes West had
closed all their bathhouses due to the Coronavirus so the only way to
camp there was to get a full hook up site and meet their requirements
to have a bathroom on your campsite. We were good to go since we had
a sink and toilet with us and a shower at Jeannine’s cottage so we
were ready for camping. The beach was closed as well as all primitive
camping and all playgrounds so we would have to make our own fun.
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| View from our camp site. |
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| Our set up and one exhausted Teddy, our dog. |
We
reserved our camp site in section 2 and our site sat right on the
banks of Clark’s Hill Lake. We had a flat camp site and we were
able to back our conversion van up to our picnic table. Beyond the
table, our site slopped down with a grassy tree lined area right up
to the shoreline of the lake. That was the perfect place for our
hammock under the tall pine trees and a great place to put our canoe near the
water. The campsites are spaced well and during this time everyone
spoke to each other but at the same time, kept their distance. It was a great way to
get out, keep a good distance, and not feel isolated. We met many
wonderful people.
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| Cabins that can be rented that have either two or three bedrooms. |
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| Teddy enjoying a nice ride on the canoe. |
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| Excitement got too much for him. |
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| Large anchor overlooking the marina that was also closed. |
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| Boat rental was closed for now. |
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| Teddy's daily ritual. |
We
got to the lake on Friday, set up, and had a lovely relaxing two days at our
campsite. Our neighbor, Brock and Stormy were lovely and we enjoyed
talking with them and telling stories. Also the camp host, Richard
was very friendly and very helpful. We had lovely leisurely rides in
the canoe and even did some fishing. Joe was thrilled when he
caught a couple fish the first time out which we grilled and
thoroughly enjoyed one night while we were there.
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| Prince, Heather, and Jeannine |
Jeannine
and family arrived on Sunday, and for the next five days, we spent
our days at the cottage and only slept at our campsite. They were
the only people on one of the peninsulas so it was perfect. No social
distancing issues there. The weather was perfect and wonderful for
relaxing outside watching the kids ride their bikes, going for canoe
rides, fishing, and taking walks. Azzy caught her first fish which
was a huge bass and we were all so excited for her. She was beyond
thrilled.
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| Looking out to the lake |
The
cottage they rented was a nice two story log home with two bedrooms,
two baths, a kitchen, dining area and living room. There was a loft
with a sofa sleeper and a sofa sleeper in the living room. On the back side of the cottage, was a deck with chairs and table set up to relax while looking
at the million dollar view of the lake.
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| Me relaxing and enjoying the day. |
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| Teddy relaxing and enjoying his day. |
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| The girls having fun in the lake. |
Outside
there was a grill and a fire pit where we had a fire most nights. Roasting marshmallows was a real treat for the youngins. Near the fire pit, were tables and plenty of chairs for our use. There
was easy access to the lake for the kids to swim and for us to put
the canoe in and out. I’m sure these cottages are usually more
full than they were now so even if there were more people, they are spaced out so you can still have
privacy at each place. Pointes West is currently not taking reservations now until
the Novel Coronavirus has settled down out of precaution and for everyone's safety.
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| Thistles |
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| Looking up to the Heavens. |
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| The lake was like glass that day. So pretty. |
The
days felt a little longer there and the sky appeared a little brighter. There were tiny woodpeckers beating on a pine tree in search of something to eat
and Cranes swooping down over the water. Beautiful butterflies happily fluttered around us. Fox squirrels running
from tree to tree, fish jumping out of the water, and cherishing the quiet sounds we
many times take for granted. The sounds of the birds singing, trees
rustling, kids laughing, fire crackling, and the water kissing the
shores as waves gently lapped in. The stars seemed more brilliant
from this peninsula with nearly any light noise. We
enjoyed an evening looking at the stars and seeing the satellites cruise over us. It was just magnificent. God has given us many blessings.
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| Time for another swim |
We
had a lovely week with our family and that time will be cherished for years to come. We had a blast and if you get a chance to spend time there or just get away and camp out, please
do. It will refresh your spirit and give you time to realize what
is really important to you. It gave us time to slow down, reflect, catch our breath, and be thankful for everything we have,
especially our family and our health.
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| Darren doing a repair job with Prince helping. |
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| We found this old cemetery on one of our walks. |
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Azaleas in full bloom.
I realize this isn’t my normal post but under the circumstances, no traveling is in our cards for now. I will be posting about places we’ve been before so please note, we are not traveling. Georgia is on a stay at home order till April 30th.
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| Our beautiful Kaley came out to visit. |
Our
love to all and we wish everyone good health and happiness. Stay
safe.
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| And too soon our vacation is coming to a close. |
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| Full moon lighting up the pine trees. |
Bye
for now.
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