2013 - Trip 4 - Ringing Rocks Campground

 Weather threatened the area all week with scattered heavy thunderstorms popping up each afternoon due to the high humidity and temperatures.  On Wednesday, we debated about the trip or not and decided later that evening to still give it a go, as Thursday rain and Friday rain in the forecast gave a little hope that we might see better weather for the weekend.  Ringing Rocks Family Campground is owned by the brother of the Colonial Woods owners, so we were pleased to find out it has many similar rules and features for our camping with the kids.

Friday arrived with good weather in the morning with the afternoon threat of a shower or local thunderstorm.  Doylestown Airport weather indicated "KDYL 281402Z AUTO 24006KT 10SM FEW015 SCT023 24/20 A2954"  So, some low clouds, light winds, about 75* this morning.

Setup went well and we ended up getting a bigger site than we originally booked.  The rain and weather caused a group of people to cancel as they had planned on tubing down the Delaware river on Saturday.  So, the campground offered to space people out a little and we made out rather well.  If we were on site 7, while on the edge of the playground area, we would have had neighbors tight on each side of us.  Instead, we ended up with a larger site and no direct neighbors!  That gave the kids a little more space to play and some more 'buffer' space from any noise.

All setup on our Site, ready for the chance of rain.

Evening came quickly and we went for a walk around the campground before coming back for some light dinner.  The kids played a bit and then they were getting tired and wanting to go to bed.  It is easier to get them to bed in the camper than it is at home!  The whole evening we made it thru with out rain,... Then around 10pm we could hear some rumbles in the distance.  We had a steady rain and mild thunder for about 45 minutes and the kids slept thru it!  Must have been the fact that rain hitting the roof of the camper is loud! But, it does drown out the rumbles of thunder which they don't care for.

Saturday morning promised better weather and it looked like the entire day should be rain free.  The humidity was down and the sky was clear, perfect day to fly, or go hiking!  We made omelets with the kids and then got everyone ready with shoes and hammers to head over to Ringing Rocks Park.

Ringing Rocks Park is located right around the corner from the campground and features a small parking area with some picnic tables, hiking trails, waterfalls, and the more famous boulder field where you can strike rocks with a hammer or other hard object and get some of them to ring.  They have different tones, but many sound like a bell when struck.  A good wooden handle hammer is recommended, so we had a mix of three composite and two wooden hammers with us.  I didn't particularly take note of any sound difference, but the kids were ecstatic when they struck one with a "BBBOOONNNGGG" sound rather than a Bink, or Tink Tink.

One interesting insect we saw crawling over a rock!

Down at the waterfall

 The kids at Ringing Rocks....... ok,... I'm a kid too.

Caught in the act!

Madie rockin with her "Whammer Hammer"

While at Ringing Rocks, there were some warbirds that flew over and some other planes in formation,... possibly the warbirds, as I only caught the edge of them passing over the treeline.  I found out later, that Sky Manor was having a fly in and these were some of the planes flying nearby.

After lunch at the camper we decided to go to the pool and relax for a while.  The pool is very nice and was redone completely in the past year.  The girls had a lot of fun jumping in and out of the water and swimming all around.  I took some good GoPro video and photos that I still have to download and edit.

Becky and our Tadpole Madie

Bella jumping in

Madie in the air!

Ally Jumping in

The kids were having a good time playing around the campsite and then it came time for the afternoon hayride.  There were so many kids that flocked to the pavilion next to the tractor that we had to wait and get on the second trip!  I don't know where they all came from!

Ally, Madie, and Bella

Ally with the Tractor

Becky and I

Sunday morning we managed to get up early and Becky went out for a run.  Soon the kids were up and getting their breakfast while I packed up things around the outside of the camper.  The plan was to pack up everything and close up the camper, then go hit the pool!  Since we didn't have to be off the site till noon, we thought we could all cool off in the pool after packing everything up.  About 10am or so, we were ready to lower down the camper and pack the van.  Bella needed some time to "chill out", so she stayed with me to pack the van while Becky and the other two girls went to the pool.  By 10:45, the puzzle of stuff was packed in the car and  we all were relaxing in the nice temp of the pool.

So, all in all, the trip was a great trip and we are glad that we didn't cancel due to the threat of weather.  From now on, if it's booked, we are going!

We have a few busy weeks ahead but then we will be off to Frontier Town in Maryland!

Stay tuned!