It is time for our annual trek to
Knoebels Amusement Park in Elysburg, PA. Becky and I have been going there for all of our married life, and a few years prior as well. This year the kids will get to go on a lot more as they have hit some serious growth spurts this past year! Just the weekend before, we also found out our neighbors were going to Knoebels and had a reservation at the main campground. Soon after talking with us, they called back and said they changed their reservation and would be at Lake Glory too! So, all of us began talking and planning, hoping to get some organized meals planned before we left. Due to work, they couldn't get to the campground before dark on Friday, so we took their ground tarp and tent to get it setup for them.
Thursday I had off of work and since we had the camper packed already from our last trip, it was a steady packing up of the van after breakfast and then we began our journey. The ride up the Turnpike was smooth and so was going out route 80. Not a lot of traffic or construction, which for the State of Pennsylvania is rare. We arrived at Lake Glory Campground and checked in at their new front office, wow, what a difference compared to the small shack like office they had before. They have been doing a lot of great upgrades to the campground and this was a huge improvement that they needed. Our site was very nice, shaded by the trees and tucked in with a nice spot of grass behind where the kids could play. Setup went rather smoothly,.... then we found some nails. Luckily, none in or at our camper tires or van, but there were quite a bit of rusty short nails found on our campsite.
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| Just one of the many passes full of nails and screws! |
Bella began picking them up and putting them into a cup, and before you knew it, the cup was full! We walked a few times back and forth, picking them up, and after we thought we got them all we went to the camp office to let them know. They were surprised to see them all and a bit taken back. The woman at the counter offered to go home and get her own magnet on wheels, like the roofers use, and bring it back to our camp. Sure enough, about an hour later after her shift, she came over and began running it back and forth. To our amazement, she picked up at least twice as much as we found!! Many just below the dust and dirt. She was very apologetic and patient, and went all around the two sites we had making sure she got as much as she could.
Thursday night we were out for a walk around the campground, when the wind shifted and you knew rain was coming. Before we got back to the site it started a steady drizzle, then increased to a downpour! Luckily, with our site in the trees, we were protected from some of the wind and heavy rain but everything got a good washing!
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| A decent Bass caught at the Lake |
Friday morning the kids were up and excited to go spend the day at the park. During the week you can purchase All-Day ride passes instead of ticket books, which makes it nice that I don't have to count out three sets of tickets at each ride! Before we left though, we setup the huge ass tent the neighbors have. Wow, that thing is big and spacious!
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| Riding the Whip!! |
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| Ally and Bella are getting to BIG! |
The park wasn't very crowded once you got passed the line for the ride passes. The kids were able to go on nearly all their favorites and a few new ones too. We arrived at about 11:30 am, and rode all day till 7pm, when it was clear the kids were fading fast and it would be best to head back to the campground. Here are a few shots from our fun today!
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| Sky Slide! |
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| Hand Cars! Madie's Favorite |
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| Getting some flying on! |
Later that evening, just after 8pm, the Kennally's arrived in the dark and were glad we were able to setup their tent earlier in the day. We had some short time around the fire before everyone turned in for the night.
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| Those silly neighbors! |
Saturday morning we all had a large group breakfast. Pancakes, Eggs, Sausage, Fruit, Juice and coffee, it was a nice spread. We even managed to have all the kids sit together on the one table while the adults had a chance to sit at the other, that was nice.
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| Camp Breakfast before the park |
Off to the park, Dan and I drove while the ladies and the kids rode the Shuttle Bus. This way we could have the van to leave in the afternoon whenever we needed and the kids had fun riding the bus. Since there are no ride bands on the weekend, we used tickets that we had left over and another new book, and once gone, that would be it and we could go back to the camp and go fishing. All the kids had a good time riding together one the various rides and since there were now the 4 older ones and the 2 younger, it was a nice match up for going on the rides, no one was left to ride themselves.
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| Clowning Around |
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| After the first pass, they weren't all smiling! |
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| The Whip! |
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| MmMmm.... Smores! |
Sunday morning came to fast, but it was another very nice morning. Clear skies and comfortable temps, we were able to pack up steadily while playing or doing something with the kids here and there. We decided to make sandwiches and have everyone eat while I hitched up the camper, that way we could most likely make the run all the way home without a rest stop or food break. Once on the road, we fueled up at a nearby station and then began the homeward trek, with only Ally and I staying awake for the ride and the rest of them sleeping away.
Summer is OVER...... Phew! That went fast! Only three more weekends of camping scheduled this fall.
