A Camping Trip By Bridget Andersen | Short Story

When I say the words “breakfast burrito,” I bet that an outdoor camping trip in the wilderness doesn’t come to mind. My story begins with three friends trying to spend more time together. After several months of heavy duty school, sports obligations, church requirements, and other pressures in their lives, they decided it was time to take a break. One friend wanted to go to Busch Gardens so that she could scream out her frustrations and enjoy the roller coaster rides. Another wanted to go to the beach, where she could relax in the sun and play in the waves. Yet another friend, who was a girl scout, knew the tranquility and solitude of a camping trip. She wanted to go camping in the quiet wilderness of southern Virginia. Therefore, the group of friends put their minds together and came up with a plan for a wonderful camping adventure. They imagined it would be just like the old days when they camped in their back yard, ate kitchen-cooked food, and had the luxuries of the house at their disposal. They looked forward to a fantastic camping trip of friendship and fun.

As the day finally came, it was time to depart. Having spent most of the previous week packing their clothes and supplies, it was a miracle that they could fit all of their provisions in the car. They had even considered strapping a friend to the roof in order to fit in an extra food cooler. Because the trip was going to be long and they wanted to be entertained the whole way, so they also brought their cell phones, DVD players, and snacks to keep them satisfied.

When they arrived at the campsite, they expected to see lodges and cabins that had air conditioning and plumbing. What they actually found was far below their expectations. There were no cabins: only small, flat, gravel surfaces on which they were suppose to set up their tents and a charred fire pit, full of leaves, camper trash and other debris. However, this did not dampen the girls’ spirits; they just got to work unpacking their various supplies from the car.

The only trouble that they encountered while setting up camp was pitching the tent. The Girl Scout borrowed the tent from her brother, who was a boy scout. On his many trips the instructions for setting up the tent became water stained and ripped so that the words and diagrams were incomprehensible. None of the girls had much experience setting up a tent so they just had to try their best. When they were done, the tent could stand by itself, but it looked nothing like the tent on the front of the package in which it came. There was also a piece of cloth leftover for which they could not find a use. The girls dismissed these observations and figured that if the tent stood, it was good enough for them.

After setting up camp, the three friends decided to go for a relaxing hike to a nearby lake, where they would go for a canoe outing. Unfortunately, one of the campers had forgotten to bring a water bottle. She also happened to be in horrible physical condition. Because of her condition, the short hike to the waterfront became very challenging, as the two campers urged and eventually supported their friend. After resting for a short while at the waterfront, the girls found enough energy to push off the canoes into the water. While doing this, one girl accidentally stepped onto a muddy rock and fell head first into the water. She rose from the lake looking like a wet dog, but she was still good-natured with a smile on her face. The three friends sat there and laughed until they were having trouble breathing. Then they went out on the water. For a while, they explored the shores and docks around the lake. However, due to their exhaustion and poor paddling skills, the canoe flipped over. Again, the friends found some smile in this experience and had fun climbing back into the canoe.

Eventually, the friends decided that it was time to finish their canoe outing, and they made their way back to camp. After an afternoon of fun on the water, they had built up quite an appetite. On arrival at the campsite, however, they were in for a very big surprise! The local camp raccoon, “Joe Raccoon” as he was widely known, had outsmarted them by sneaking into their camp in broad daylight while they were away on their canoeing trip and getting into their food, bins, and buckets! As they looked over the supplies, they found half-eaten fruit pies, opened containers of coffee grounds, missing popcorn kernels, sandwich makings thrown about, and tons of empty candy wrappers. At one point, one of the campers happened to catch a brief glimpse of Joe Raccoon as he scampered away from the campsite with an enormous belly, fingers full of goodies, and wearing a mischievous grin. The girls sat in a circle in great dismay wondering what they were thinking when they had decided to go camping. Without food, empty-stomached, exhausted, and frustrated, this camping trip was turning into a not-so-fun outing. Moreover, it was only early afternoon.

Even after they arduously cleaned up the campsite, they were still soaked from their dip in the lake. Since the girls had packed a surplus of clothes, they decided that they could risk using up another outfit in order to get dry. However, when they got inside the tent, they all screamed at the sight to behold. There were bugs and spiders of every shape and size crawling around in their sleeping bags. Lions and tigers and bugs, oh my! They had forgotten to close the tent flap when they left for their canoe trip! Rather than going into the tent, they decided that it would be better to remain in their wet clothes than face the creepy crawlies. Eventually they drew straws to decide who would sweep out the tent. What a horrible decision the canoeing trip was turning out to be!

They were hungry and miserable and decided to cook dinner over the fire with the supplies that Joe Raccoon had left behind. Maybe their clothes would dry off beside the fire too? They had planned on making spaghetti and meat sauce. None of them envisioned how hard it would be to cook it. They had to make sure that the grate that they placed over the fire was the right distance away, that the heat from the fire was evenly spaced out, and that they did not spill the hot water on themselves. After a while, they finally succeeded in putting the noodles on the fire and letting it stew. However, none of them had ever cooked spaghetti before and they did not know that you have to stir it continuously. As a result, when they took the spaghetti out of the pot, it was clumped at the bottom and burned in such a way that it was inedible. The girls had to satisfy their hunger with the Cheerios and fruit that they had planned on eating in the morning. They finished their meager dinner in silence and then grumpily went to bed. Yelling and snapping at each other the whole time. This camping trip was causing more stress than they had originally planned.

The next morning two of the girls woke up to find that it had rained in the middle of the night. Their tent was completely soaked, and they were practically swimming in the water that was lining the bottom of the tent (they forgot to put their rain jacket on when they pitched the tent). However, after they got over their frustration with the dampness, they opened their tent and smelled the tantalizing aroma of ……..Potatoes, oh for the love of potatoes! After being hungry and cold all night, the warm, delicious scent of the potatoes was like heaven to their noses! Visions of mashed and baked potatoes danced in their heads. They quickly went in search of the source and found the remaining girl (who was the Girl Scout) cooking hash browns on the fire. She had set up a table that was already filled with scrambled eggs, cheddar cheese, sour crème, salsa, and warm tortillas. The Girl Scout greeted them and told them that she was making one of her traditional camping foods: breakfast burritos. They nodded and sat down in folding chairs by the fire. They sang and laughed around the fire while the Girl Scout finished roasting the potatoes. The fire crackled and gave off warm waves of heat that the girls savored.

When the girl was done cooking, she put the potatoes on the table, and the girls filled their own burritos with the main ingredients along with sour crème, onions, and salsa in order to make it more flavorful and sat down at the campfire again. At first, the other campers were wary. What if the burritos ended up being a mistake like the rest of their camping trip? But as they watched the other girl dig in, the warm smell of the food overpowered their sense of caution, and they each took a bite. The burrito was fantastic!

The potatoes were cooked to golden-brown perfection, and the eggs were simmered just right so that the combination was incredible! The breakfast burritos awakened their five senses. They could see the golden brown potatoes and the yellow of the perfect eggs. They could feel the nice crispy warmth of the tortilla in their hands and the soft feel of the potatoes and eggs as they took each bite. They could still smell the scent of the potatoes, but now it was joined with the satisfying smell of the eggs and onions, mixing together to create the ultimate aroma. They closed their eyes and heard the sound of satisfaction as the other girls enjoyed their own burrito. The burritos tasted like no other food on earth. The combination of all the ingredients created the perfect blend of flavors. Each girl gobbled up two burritos in a flash. Once they were full and content, they all sat around the campfire and eventually took a nap.

They woke up and started packing up their things. They had much less to pack, thanks to Joe Raccoon. Once they were done, they set out on the road again. While driving home, the friends reflected on their short camping trip and decided that it wasn’t that bad. The breakfast burritos that day had definitely brightened the trip! Plus, it was a good experience for them. Next time they went on a camping trip, they would know what to watch out for so that they would not make the same mistakes that they made this year. They even considered coming back next year to the same place! If they did, then they would certainly remember to eat breakfast burritos!

Breakfast Burritos*:

Things You Will Need:

1 box hash browns

Salt and pepper

Garlic powder

8 eggs

Oil and butter

8 oz shredded cheddar cheese

Sour cream

Salsa

14 flour tortillas

A pan

A spatula

Procedure:

Put oil in a pan to prevent the food from sticking to the sides. Place hash browns and butter into the pan and cook them over the fire until they start to brown. Flip them every once and in a while to make sure that they don’t burn. Scramble eggs and add to hash browns. Continue to cook and flip until all solid. Add salt and pepper to taste and cook until done. Place in heated tortilla. Add cheese, sour cream, and salsa in the burrito (optional).

*I received this recipe from:

Carrie Clark, leader of Girl Scout troop 2659