Chilling Out Lakeside
Chilling Out with Bandit
Throughout our nomadic travels since living in our bus there are certain instances and experiences that define who we are. Sometimes we are fortunate to capture these moments with a picture or a video. When we do, we are forever and instantly reminded of the emotions, sights, sounds, and sometimes even the smells of that moment.
This picture of no different. When we look at this picture of us sitting on the bank of Lake Nekoosa with our little traveling pup Bandit, so many special thoughts and memories flood our minds and hearts.
It’s like this picture was taken just the other day in my mind.
It was a warm August afternoon. The anticipation of sitting at the water’s edge and relaxing after taking the 78 steps down the staircase to get from the log cabin to the lakeside whole carrying Bandit was worth every step.
It didn’t matter to Bandit whether or not we were sitting next to the picturesque lake lined with beautiful pines and hardwoods, or if we were sitting on the on our sofa in the van. Bandit was sitting between us and there was no better place in the world for him. He loved to be loved.
For us though, this was a trophy moment. This is the kind of moment we had talked about while laying in bed at night. We had planned and dreamt of moments like this since before buying the bus and our van to build it and travel.
We were in the middle of a confusing and misunderstood pandemic. We were caught between the desire and drive to travel and explore, but the cautious need to isolate and protect ourselves from potentially other infected people.
Our van life friends invited us to spend some time with them at their isolated cabin in the woods that sat on a large lake. It just seemed like a great place to travel to and sit still while we tried to navigate the twisting river of Covid.
A sit by the lake on a hot August afternoon was the prescription for the day. Looking out across the clear blue water, past the cattails and lily pads. 200 yards across the water to the other side of the bank lined with majestic pines and mature hardwoods. At any moment, we could picture a Menominee or Objibew (Chippewa) lean out from behind a tree to catch our gaze.
Being out in nature like this, miles away from the nearest towns, it is easy to imagine what the land and environment were like 200 years earlier. The people and tribes that lived, hunted, and worked the land in peace and independence.
This moment of sitting on the bank of the Nekoosa river will forever be in our minds and our hearts as we shared the moment with each other and with our nomadic traveling pup, Bandit.
