Cabin Fever? No Way! Family and Fun!

In early April my husband Frank and I stayed in a 3800 square-foot cabin with my son Dan's family of six. It was the first time we had been together in over a year due to COVID-19 isolation. This vrbo rental worked out very well for visiting, catching up, and indulging grandkids. The lodging was described as "Mountain Cabin/Pine Flat Lake/Kings Canyon/Sequoia National Park/Yosemite". The location was about a three hour drive south for Frank and me and about a five hour drive north for my son. Add on some delays and interruptions for a non-functioning vehicle (Frank and me), or for a nursing baby, potty breaks, and car-sickness (Dan's kids) and we arrived within minutes of each other.

Tuesday, April 6th: True to my traveling nature, I packed too much stuff. The back seat of the Toyota Rav 4 was occupied by eight banker's boxes stacked four across and two high filled with groceries, gifts, and games. The hatchback housed a huge borrowed ice chest, two suitcases, a bin of LEGOS, a tub of gears, and crafting supplies . We never did use the fat cream plaid back pack for hiking but best to be prepared. We were to be gone four days. After Frank had bought ice for the cooler and taken Snoopy to the kennel, we loaded the car, and climbed in at 12:20 pm – a mere 20 minutes later than our planned departure goal time. Frank went through the start routine for our car – I was about to say "turned the key", but this car has a push button –  and we were assailed with a loud eh-eh-eh-eh-eh assault rifle noise and no comforting sound effect of an engine turning over. What could it be? Frank had just run errands minutes before. Could it possibly be a dead battery? Nah. It did not have the typical silence or click-click-click of a struggling starter motor. I guessed perhaps it was some sort of safety feature. We had not hooked any of the seat belts in the rear seat and yet we'd placed the weight of the eight boxes there. Frank hooked up a charger while I unloaded those boxes, one by blessed one, to check my seatbelt theory. No luck. Unloading the hatchback was not possible since it refused to open at this point. We called Dan to tell him we'd be delayed. He wisely told us to call AAA and they would diagnose the problem and even deliver and install a new battery if needed. Yup. That was it. We called. AAA came, diagnosed a dead battery, and installed a new one. We were on our way a bit after 1:00 pm. Crisis averted.

Frank and I drove straight through non-stop, neither of us having any desire at this point other than to just get there. As we neared the destination at Pine Flat Lake and rounded a bend, our road surprised us by opening out into an impressive view of Pine Flat Dam. I grabbed my cell phone and hastily grabbed the following photo through our front windshield. Flowing beyond the dam is Kings River, where we would attempt fishing at some point.

We arrived closely after Dan, so close in fact that Carrie saw us behind them and called us on my cell phone to tell us we'd just passed the entrance gate. A quick U-turn a few yards down the road remedied the situation. Then came the double gate challenge. The property is in a free range grazing area for cattle. At the base of a long winding hill to the property at the top, are two hinged cyclone fence gates with a lock at the interface where they meet. Someone needed to get out of the car, open the gates, let the car pass, re-lock the gates and then get back in the vehicle.

This gate and lock was no real challenge, just a minor obstacle, but then came the dirt road, narrow, winding, with hairpin turns, and shared with the occasional cow. I kept my face averted from the steep drop off on the passenger side of the vehicle and prayed that we would not meet another vehicle or cow competing for the same few feet of width. At the top of the hill, nearer the cabin were two bright yellow (yet barely visible) wires that comprised an electric fence. Each wire needed to be manually unhooked for the car to pass and then manually re-hooked once clear. The cabin was a few yards beyond this final wire hurdle. The cabin is the red structure at the top of the hill indicated within the yellow circle of the next photo. This photo was taken looking uphill from the river bed of the Kings River where we would be fishing the next day.

We parked our cars side by side on the designated artificial turf area and eagerly climbed out. After many hugs and kisses and the casual “Hi, Grandma/Grandpa”, the kids scampered off across a bridge to explore inside and out what was to be our home away from home for the next several days. A walkway spanned a koi pond with many (~ ten to twelve?), big ( ~12” to 16” long) fish. We did not realize the extent of the fish population here because they always swam away and hid beneath the wooden boards whenever there were footsteps overhead. It was only when we stood off to the side and waited quietly that they came out to be viewed. The cabin owner supplied us with a plastic jug of fish food so the kids could have fun feeding them. Nearly three year old William later informed us that the pellets had not tasted very good.

Although in the opening paragraph I'd provided a link to our rental, which contains many photos, I like to review the rooms in the context of the memories we created in them. The dining room was the place for eating, meal prep, talking, and playing games. Coincidentally it had a grandfather's clock identical to the one in our own living room which Frank had built himself shortly after we were married and had moved to California from the Boston area in 1976. He worked on it on the small deck outside our second floor apartment until the residents below complained of sawdust sifting down through the slats onto their patio below. These same  people complained of my playing my full pedal board organ above them. Imagine that. Frank and I bought a house and moved within six months.

Our arrival day was Vivian's 7th birthday and pizza was her choice for her birthday meal. Crust preparation strategies varied: Dan tried the toss and stretch method, Vivian was developing the press and spread method, and William specialized in a two-fisted pound-the-lump approach. Our meal plan was that each family provided their own breakfast, lunch and snacks and alternated dinner preparation – Dan & Carrie, Tuesday/Thursday and Frank & Diane, Wednesday/Friday. Behind Dan is a long deck that ran the length of the rear of the cabin with an extensive view of the valley and river bed.

After dinner Vivian opened up one of her gifts from Grandma and Grandpa, Atlantis Escape, a logic game for one involving problem solving to arrange 3-D escape routes from the sinking city of Atlantis. She was suckered in immediately even taking it to her bedside to work on before going to sleep.

But it was not her only gift of the day. The morning of her birthday there had been a celebration at her home with many more presents (some not shown) and balloons (strings only showing). Note the cake in the glass dome stand indicated in the yellow circle, baked by her mom and I am pretty sure decorated by Vivian and her siblings. Carrie definitely displayed motherly love not only to have made the cake, but also to have ridden five or so hours with it wedged between her feet on the floor of the passenger seat of their car. There had been a minor moment of dismay when we realized no one had brought matches. The flame from a gas stove burner and a sacrificial candle proved to be an adequate workaround. We were pleased to be all together that night to sing Happy Birthday and watch Vivian blow out her candles. 

Our first night had arrived and sleeping arrangements were figured out. On the first floor, the cabin had a lovely nursery arrangement with a crib alcove adjoining the master bedroom; Dan and Carrie and Irene slept there. William had a room with a double bed also on the first floor, just one bathroom doorway away from his mom and dad and distanced from the front door. 

Frank’s and my room, also on the first floor, had a double bed by a double window. It was the closest room to the front door with the side benefit that we would hear William should he decide to go outside in the middle of the night. We could also hear something else. The frogs by the koi pond outside our window were quite vocal. Any city person can tell you that the country, contrary to myth, is not quiet. Those frogs were loud, loud, LOUD. The windows had blinds that could be closed for a privacy, not really necessary since there were no nearby neighbors. Out of habit I closed them anyway for changing into my nightgown. The frogs silenced. I opened the blinds, emitting shafts of light. The frog chorus rose again. It was laughable how the window blind signal was like an on/off switch for those frogs; the scenario was reminiscent of a crime movie where the opening and shutting of a window shade was the trigger for an illicit activity to begin. 

I was spared the frog chorus.  The evening of the first day Vivian came up to me, took my hand and coyly asked, "Grandma will you sleep with me?" I agreed but Dan and Carrie gave me sidelong looks as if to say, "Are you sure?" Vivian and Lillian and I slept in a large room upstairs. A chunky beam in the center of one of the dormers was spiral wound with mini lights that we left on all night. It made the room feel like a fairy-tale suite. Vivian slept with me in the big bed. Her preferred position was rolled up like a taco oriented sideways across the foot of the bed. I adapted. Lillian perhaps was wise to her sister's habits. She chose to remain alone in one of the twin beds on her own. They were both as good as gold. They awoke before me and left the room quiet as mice, careful not to disturb me, and allowing me to sleep later.

Wednesday, April 7th: The plan for the day was to go fishing after a leisurely breakfast. The rental cabin had two fishing rods out on the front porch for guest use. We were to try fishing at the river. (The thought had crossed my mind that surely they did not intend for them to be used in the adjacent koi pond.) Instead of taking two cars, Frank elected to stay home to further recuperate from the harrowing experience of driving that winding road up to the top of the hill or the less traumatic but still slightly nerve wracking experience of the nocturnal frogs. I rode along with Dan, Carrie, and the kids. (We would be back for lunch and so Frank would join the afternoon outing after kiddo naps.) Dan drove to a shop about 20 minutes away that advertised selling bait for fishing and also got advice on where to fish. He bought a small container of worms and we headed for a parking area a short walk from a spot on the shore of the Kings River. The fishing would be a new experience for the kids. As it turns out, the new experience began sooner, on the road to the riverside location.

We knew because of the double gates that the area was for free roaming cattle, but soon learned it was for free roaming horses, too. A line of them began to mosey across the road but then sociableness must have gotten the better of them and they stopped – directly in front of the car.

They began to surround us. One peered in the driver's side window by Dan. Another walked further along side the car to the passenger window behind Dan where William was in his car seat. Emboldened by curiosity or enticed by the scent of fish crackers, the Pinto poked his head in to explore further. Initially fascinated, William then freaked out.

I said to Dan, "Close the window!" Too late. Dan might have captured, choked, or decapitated the horse. I said, "Pull forward." He could not because horses were in the way. "Back up!" was my next bit of unsolicited front-seat driver advice. This Dan did do, but the lead Palomino kept following while nibbling on the hood. Finally losing interest, the horses ambled the rest of their way across the road. Dan did not hesitate to drive on by before the next mini-herd got curious and repeated our experience.

Following the advice from the shop owner who'd sold Dan the worms, we finished our drive to a small parking area and walked upstream several yards toward the dam to a spot along the river. Carrie stayed in the car for a while to nurse Irene and would join us a bit later. If we looked directly up the hillside, away from the river, we could see the cabin. In the following photo the yellow "X" approximately marks the spot where we fished. The large deck on the back of the cabin faces the river. Frank standing on the back deck could see us if he knew where to look. The koi pond is on the opposite side of the cabin.

Dan baited the hook with the worm and began teaching the kids and me how to cast. That is really me in the second photo holding the fishing rod. You can tell by my wedding band on my hand near Dan's elbow and my shoes between Dan's calves. There is absolutely no evidence of me baiting the hook because that I definitely never did. But I did cast twice with moderately suitable success.

Then the kids all took turns casting, first Vivian, then Lillian.

William took a turn, too, though truthfully, his interest lay more in the worms. Vivian's take on the worms was her dedicated campaigning that "... couldn't we set them all free?" Nobody caught a fish. Whew. We had no way to transport it back, minimal knowledge as to how to gut it, and absolutely no desire to cook it. Vivian might have even wanted to keep it as a pet! That is moot point and the topic never came up since all the fish stayed in the river.

I attempted a few selfies with my two older granddaughters. The youngest, Irene, at less than three months was not too sure about this stranger called Grandma. It would take time for her to like me but I plan to work on it. My selfie with Vivian did not go too badly, but when I tried to add in Lillian, all went cattywampus. In jockeying for position with the cell phone and the kids the camera went off excluding everyone from the photo. At least it was not a total waste, since it captured what a lovely day it was with the fluffy white clouds drifting across the beautiful blue sky.

I noticed this curious contraption strapped to a tree. It is a recycling bin for fishing line. There is a nationwide effort to keep the line from endangering animals and polluting the waters since it takes years for the strong monofilament to decay. There is a website about these containers which I found by googling "Reel In and Recycle" since I was curious about the contraption on top. I learned a few interesting facts from the embedded YouTube video: e.g., the Boat US Foundation maintains a database and keeps track of how much line is retrieved from the bins. I did not however find the answer to the top add-on metalwork; my best guess is that the screen is to prevent perhaps squirrels, birds, or other small critters from exploring within the pipe and getting trapped. I think it is a local customization.

After the river-fishing, we went home for lunch and naps for "the middles", as Carrie refers to William and Lillian. With the birth of Irene, they graduated from being "the littles". Vivian broke out a new game her parents had given her for her birthday. It is called "Guess Who?". By asking questions, you eliminate candidates from an array of 24 people to guess who your opponent picked as their person. Vivian caught on the the logic pretty quickly. Frank and I enjoyed playing with her and also later watching her teach her younger sister how to play.

After naps, the afternoon outing was fishing again, this time at Pine Flat Lake, not the Kings River. I learned that because river fishing has a current, the fisherman must repeatedly cast, since the hook and bait drifts downstream. On a lake the fisherman attaches a bobber to the line, casts, and then just waits for a fish to nibble, if it ever does. In the next photo the bobber is the red and white ball near the tip of the rod. We fished from the shore of the lake rather than from a boat out on the lake. As we approached the lake we saw the boats moored at the Pine Flat Lake Marina. Our approach road terminated at the boat launching ramp, but we were able to veer off to the right, park, and then walk to the edge of the lake. We set up in a spot on the shore about in the middle of the fourth photo.

Walking to the fishing location on the lake shore was no problem for the kids but a non-trivial task for Frank and me. The level of the lake was quite depressed and consequently the shore was steeply sloped. We had to navigate rocky terrain to get there. I clung to Frank fearful I would slide into the water or turn an ankle in bracing myself to avoid a slide. Frank's concern was that he might fall on a rock or mini-boulder and break his other hip. Once we got close to the water's edge there were some interspersed sandy spots, still a slipping hazard but no problem at all for the kiddos.

Dan chose to buy minnows as bait rather than worms. That is what is in the styrofoam cup by his right foot, not coffee. Anyone who went to take a sip would be surprised.

All took a turn with baited rod and bated breath, hopeful – or not – they might catch something – anything. Carrie, both at the river and the lake, fished with Irene strapped to her chest. When the other three tired of fishing they amused themselves by tossing rocks into the water. After that Vivian opted for a mini-nap in situ. By the way... her shirt informs, "I'm really a unicorn."

Frank and I left a bit before Dan's family for two reasons. We knew it would take us longer to negotiate the rugged terrain – rugged by senior citizen standards – to return to our car. Also I could get an earlier start getting dinner on the table. I had brought pre-assembled manicotti from Costco and served it with steamed broccoli. I also had macaroni and cheese as a backup in case the kids refused the manicotti. But they ate some of both like champs. I'd brought sixteen manicotti total so we had some for the next day, too.

That evening the kids, and Dan, got very involved in assembling and creating masterpieces with a tub of motorized gears I had brought. They sprawled out on the hardwood floor between the kitchen and living room by the double doors out to the huge deck. After spending hours with those gears throughout the trip, it would have been a hard sell to not take them back to SoCal with the kids. Car space was at a premium, so I offered to take this set back home with me, then buy and send another set through Amazon; but that was not necessary. They crammed that tub in somewhere. Maybe Carrie rode home with it between her feet like she did Vivian's birthday cake.

The living room had soft comfortable couches to lounge in and a beige and burgundy lattice design sisal rug.The kids watched few TV shows during some loosely imposed quiet time. We opened gifts here that I had brought. Vivian, Lillian and William have close birthdays 4/6, 5/11, and 4/13 respectively. In addition to birthday gifts I had made project bags for each family member which I stuffed with small gifts like coloring books, small cars, puzzles. Lillian's contained a mouse rattle and cloth book. Dan's and William's had coordinating father/son construction themes. Lillian's was made with fabric scraps from her quilt. Carrie's had a runner's theme.

I also brought an activity I thought the kids might enjoy. I had sewn some Christmas ornaments and brought along the polyester filling so the kids could stuff them. The interest level was minimal but non negligible. Then William pulled a whole wad of stuffing out of the bag and happily declared "Snow!" When I reached to grab it from him, it tore. Viv and Lil got involved and we began tearing and tossing the bits of white fluff in the air like a blizzard or snow storm. The exuberant exercise lasted only a few minutes and was as fun as a spontaneous pillow fight; the recovery – not so much fun. Although the white tufts could be gathered off the upholstered furniture, hardwood floors, and clothes fairly easily, the chunks of stuffing stuck to the sisal rug like velcro. The Roomba the cabin owner supplied was ineffective. It took a few hours, spread out over the next couple days to manually peel it off bit by bit. Ahh... lesson learned but still enjoyed.

Thursday, April 8th: The scheduled activity for our second full day at the cabin was hiking in Kings Canyon National Park about 35 miles to the east, where we first went to Big Stump Grove. Sequoia National Park is immediately adjacent and to the south of Kings Canyon National Park. We entered at the west most entrance and made our way to the Big Stump Trailhead.

Big Stump Trail is a 2 mile loop; Frank and I did not go very far when we acknowledged that the ups and downs and irregular surface from roots was not our cup of tea. We did go part way along the path and take a photo of us with three of the grandkids. We found it interesting that there were tee-pee like mounds set up for controlled burns. I do not know how they contained sparks from these ignited cones.

Frank did a bit of advanced scouting to see if we wanted to continue on the trail at our own pace, certainly not grandkid speed. We chose instead to leisurely meander our way back and hold down the fort at one of the picnic tables where we would gather for lunch.

After lunch we drove four miles north from Big Stump Grove to see the General Grant Tree. Per Wikipedia

The General Grant tree is the largest giant sequoia in the General Grant Grove section of Kings Canyon National Park in California and the second largest tree in the world. Once thought to be well over 2,000 years old, recent estimates suggest the General Grant tree is closer to 1,650 years old. The tree also features the third largest footprint of any living giant sequoia, measuring 107.6 ft (32.8 m) in circumference at ground level.

There is a ½ mile loop trail around the General Grant Tree. At the entrance to the loop is a downed hollow tree through which visitors can walk. We parked both our cars in the nearby lot. Lillian is enamored with hikes and probably doubles or triples the trail length by running back and forth exploring en route. The same is true for super energetic William. Oldest Vivian still loves their family outings but is of a different opinion about hikes. She jumped out of their car and crossed the parking lot to join me. Taking my hand, she warmed my heart and brought a smile to my face by saying, "I'm with you Grandma. Let's get this over with." 

When we returned to the cabin, the owner's pets provided more entertainment. Charlie, an exuberant dog, raced around and had the kids screaming with glee. It is clear from Frank's pants the "Charlie was here." The woman was a zoologist by profession and shared her reptiles with Lillian. Lillian was tolerant but unimpressed by a small lizard but she really was happy to get up close and personal with the bearded dragon.

Above where all the animal activities were happening was the long deck of the cabin; it had an expansive view across the hillsides toward the river.

On this deck was an air hockey table that provided hours of great fun. Frank and I and Dan played with each of the kids and cheered them on, and when the kids left the table for a bit, we challenged each other. Even as a spectator I enjoyed watching the kids. They would try to distract each other to get in a shot.  "Oh, look, a bird!"  "Do you see that squirrel?" And I overhead mischievous Vivian instructing not-so-gullible Lillian, "Now Lillian, you are not old enough to have the skill set to keep the pusher in front of your opening. You have to keep it off to the side when it is not your turn." Yeah – nice try, Viv!

Friday April 9th: In the morning of our third full day at the cabin, Dan and Carrie opted to take all four kids to Project Cat Haven, a sort of wild feline preserve nestled on a hillside among the trees. The location pretty much repeated the route we had taken to Kings Canyon National Park the previous day but only about two-thirds of the distance there. Frank and I elected to stay behind, not up for the hilly hike. We organized some of the games, gifts, and activities scattered about and got a head start on some packing of our own. Also, when the raucous air hockey battles were quieted for a while, the deck was a great place to just relax, sit, reflect, catch our breath, and enjoy the view and ambience. The crew returned in time for a late lunch and naps for "the middles". 

After naps, Frank joined Dan, Carrie, William, and Irene for another river fishing adventure, this one a bit more downstream farther from the dam than I had been with the six of them Wednesday. Frank reported that William tired of the fishing after only a few casts and preferred to wander about. Frank tried to follow him closely, paranoid and not as relaxed as Dan and Carrie about William's capabilities. The rocks along the riverbed again provided a challenge – not for the three year old but certainly for the seventy-two year old hobbling in pursuit. Frank described them to me as reminding him of the rocks strategically spread between two fences of one of the high security buildings where we had worked. The rocks are scientifically sized so that if an invader jumped the outermost fence and tried to make it across the rocky zone to the inner fence he would be likely to break an ankle or at least be slowed down considerably.

I had a fantastic time staying back at the cabin with Vivian and Lillian. While I prepped the chicken to cook for dinner I played on my iPhone favorite songs they requested. Their current favorites were From Now On and This Is Me from The Greatest Showman (2017). I played those two over and over and over while we sang and danced to them. Eventually even they got tired of the same songs and I played them others from my iPhone. Let It Go from Frozen (2013), Shake it Off from Sing (2016)...etc. When they were not singing and dancing, they were coloring or doing puzzles at the kitchen counter, keeping me company. It was a precious memorable time. When all had gathered once again, we had a dinner of baked chicken and pierogies.

I read books to Vivian and Lillian that night together. The MONSTER at the end of this Book is favorite of Lillian's. Even though it had been over a year since Frank and I had gotten together with Dan and Carrie and their kids, I remember that book as being one of her favorites even long ago. I always read it with a lot of exaggerated frustration and passion, and it just tickles my heart to see her laugh and smile and revel in it. Seeing those kids these few days has been awesome!

Saturday, April 10th: And so time is coming, not only to the end of the book, but also to the end of the visit. As is typical, the more involved you are in having a good time, the less religious you are in hauling out a camera to capture it. Check out Carrie's blog post to see another view of all the activities. Here are some group pictures, taken on the final day to prove that yes, indeed, we were all together. Frank and I are with the four grandkids in the first photo and in the second picture we are posed with Dan and Irene, the youngest addition to their family. The third photo is me with the three granddaughters, left to right, youngest to oldest: Irene, Lillian, and Vivian.

Monday April 12th: Frank and I picked up Snoopy from his stay at The Ranch Pet Resort and Spa recently renovated from the lowly, formerly named, Livermore Kennels. The entry is beautifully landscaped and the reception room is spacious with elegant decor. The facility is closed on Sundays, hence Snoopy had to "suffer through" an extra day of special attention.

In the car on the way home, Snoopy looks like he could use a rest from his fun time. The same can be said for Frank and me. When are we going to do this again? Huh? Huh? Soon I hope!