The smell of petrichor seeped through the window. The three littles ranging from two to six sat in car seats while my eldest, my friend, and I, along with the beagle, Aspen, who jumped from lap to lap sat in the front in the F150 with all our gear in the bed. We drove through the quaint Victorian town of Ferndale and past the sign that read, Capetown Petrolia, up a winding road. I put Get This Party Started on by Pink! We sang songs for about twenty minutes from the sign until we lost service and resorted to country blues CDs. We pulled off the road when it began to drizzle and questioned heading back to avoid the rain. We quickly decided we would bear through it and drove over the mountain to the coast where the fog rolled off the sea. The wind blew through fields of tall grass. Petrolia has one store/ post office, a cluster of homes, and some beautiful gardens. A skateboard ramp repping the tag “P Town” and other artist-like homes are sprinkled off the roads.

A little way out A.W. Way campsite is on the right of the road south. It is first come, first serve but there are many campsites. A.W. Way is $30 a night campground compared to the coastal campsite which is $8. We chose this one to avoid high winds. We settled on the far side/ inside of the loop, where there was easy river access. Rolling mountains surrounded the campsite. There are no redwoods in the area due to humidity and a lack of fog, said one of the trail signs near the entrance by the showers and bathrooms. We unpacked the bikes first and the kids chased after one another making the half loop around the site. The large Costco tent will fit us all. When the kids came in we had them collect pinecones and twigs to help start our fire.

We were soon greeted by our neighbors and their kids. We instantly connected and were encouraged to step out of our shells and socialize.

The mother of the neighboring kids told us after taking us in fully, “It’s easy to get caught up in the time-lapse of being a mother, we forget to forgive, and most of all we forget to forgive ourselves.”

Down on the riverbed, we found a small pool with salamanders, tadpoles, and river snakes. The kids used a net to catch and release the critters. My two-year-old played easily in his floaties with the other kids in this small pool. Further down, east, there is a bridge and a trail that we never found but got lost along the river looking for. To the west there was a bigger pool where we brought the kids and found many of the other campers lounging in. The rushing of the stream into the bigger pool was enough to quickly float the littles down a way without being too aggressive or pushing their heads underwater. I wish I had brought water shoes. I laid with the baby on the rocks and I was elevated.

If there are so many moms in the world, I thought, and this is how they feel when they hold their child, then there must be really good energy going into this world on a constant basis. 

We cooked chicken and boxed fried rice one night and the other night we made burgers. We had fruits and circus animals for snacks. Marshmallows and graham crackers for dessert. Bacon and muffins for breakfast. Top Ramen and hot chocolate after heating up some water. We always pack too much food but often forget one of the kitchen supplies- salt and pepper, dish soap, sponge, cutting board, etc.

The second day we picked up the ecstatic fifth kid from Lost Coast camp and we were met up with another friend. The wind picked up and even though our tent was staked it was pulled right out of the dirt causing it to collapse. We parked the car to face the wind and that protected our tent enough- along with a few more stakes. At night we sat under a billion stars calling out the spaceships, satellites, and exploding stars. We played Cards Against Humanity, the family edition and told scary stories that lead to old memories and funny outcomes. The kids fell asleep easily and it wasn’t freezing throughout the night, even though I’m sure it can be near the Autumn.

On the last day the park really seemed to fill. Schools, dirt bike groups, and lots and lots of families loaded into the sites. The campsite supports a good amount of people and it seems that it attracts a fun and heartfelt crowd. Leaving Petrolia we stopped by the store and loaded up on fresh snacks. We made a longer stop on the coast and collected shells and driftwood. Our camping trip was easy going and we were happy to escape the hustle and bustle of Humboldt city life.