Dear Fellow Foodies and Camping Aficionados,
Gourmet Girl Gail here writing from Pismo Beach on the Central Coast of California. We’ve been doing some serious local camping most of the summer, and one of our recent excursions was to Lake Cachuma, a reservoir in the Santa Ynez Valley on the Santa Ynez River off California State Route 154.
The Gourmet Girls have many wonderful tent camping memories at the lake, including camping out during a lunar eclipse and waking up in the middle of the night to a gang of raccoons stealing eggs out of Denise’s soft pack cooler. Such intelligent and devilish creatures! Needless to say, there were no eggs for breakfast the next morning.
I grew up spending time at lakes in Vermont and New Hampshire during summers and fall. Lake Elmore was one of my favorites, and I would sometimes borrow my parents’ tent and bicycle out to the lake for some R&R. Simply looking at this photo is calming!
Lake Cachuma is equally as peaceful a spot, although the terrain is much different. One afternoon we took a spin around the lake in a pontoon boat.
You have to be fairly steady on your feet to maneuver this dock.
Travel by boat is by far the best way to see the lake and wildlife on the shores.
Now that our COVID summer is coming to a close, we’re looking forward to some fall camping along the California coast. In the meantime, we hope you are getting out in nature and feeling rejuvenated. Our summer excursions have been a life-saver during these challenging times. What restorative ways have you found to keep up your spirits and experience a reset? Let us know in the comments here.
Have a good rest of the summer. Be well, stay safe, and wear a mask. Just like raccoons!
All our best,
Gail, Denise, and Lindsey
#gourmetgirlsonfire