I remember when at Priest Lake we spent lazy summer days, tanning on
the docks, frog hunting, gazing up at the stars while laying on our
backs, hiking, camping, swimming, all things and more that we used to
do while residing at The good ol’ Outlet Resort. The old red pumper
truck, that when left unattended would overflow. Sitting on a large
rock that was split in two from a day & time when lightning struck.
Often times we could smell the stench of skunk lurking nearby while
running between trailers in the dark.
I babysat for The Carper Family, along with other families during the summers as a means to have spending money or to buy school clothes. The Carpers trailer was closest to the boat shed. I listened to 8-track tapes of Roger Whittaker many a time. I was world champion playing solitaire! And with rabbit ear antenna I could get some reception to watch TV sometimes. One night in particular I watched The Shining, fell asleep & when I woke I left the kids, ran across the field back home, & crawled into bed. The parents were fetched & all was well. And to think I now have 5 kids of my own now! (Side note: I don’t watch scary movies)
Back in the 70’s the only fear while walking the dogs back out on the trails in the woods, or on the old log roads was running into a bear. Only once did see a bear crossingLake-shore road while walking the dogs, but thank goodness the dogs didn’t see the bear and the bear didn’t see us. I did an about face and went back home.
We rode little 90cc & 100cc motorcycles through the trails, while wearing shorts, and once in awhile flip flops. Berdadish Rd. had the most awesome kelly humps. If there were two of us riding on one bike the person on the back would hang on tight, hoping not to fly off while hitting potholes. Gas was inexpensive back then and it didn't take much to fill up the little tank as we would do at The Outlet, then be back out for a few more hours worth of fun.
The Outlet Resort was a much different place during the summers I spent there. As kids we were allowed to sit in the bar, to play pool at the pool tables. Even when I was 21, with my oldest son who was then six months (now 22 & in The Army) I brought him into the bar with me, sat at the table, had a drink & handed him a lime that he gnawed on while the rest of us & a bar filled with people went about visiting having a few drinks. We would walk into the Outlet store from the beach or the docks to buy more suntan lotion, or ice cream bars while in our bathing suits. Our mail was mixed in with everybody else’s at The Outlet too. We would go in and sift through the pile of mail to see if a friend from back home had written a letter.
One day each weekend a few of us girls from The Outlet would hike the Wood Rat Trail to Hill’s Resort to clean the cabins & chalets after the guests were gone from their fun weekend at the lake. We were supposed to be 12 for this job, but I wasn’t. My 12th birthday was at the end of summer so I was close to being legal. I think I had my first beer (age 14, which wasn’t legal) while at Hill’s Resort during the outdoor movie night. Anybody recall Near Beer? I’m more of a wine gal these days.
We camped out underneath the stars up at Shoe Tree camp. The next morning we smelled like campfire smoke and would jump into the freezing cold creek, making it a contest to see who would stay in the water the longest, better yet seeing who would be brave enough to submerse their body & head underneath the freezing cold water.
On a clear day Sundance Mountain rendered some of the most beautiful views of the lake. Getting up the mountain in what I believe was a 72 Ford truck (3spd on the column), with a group of us kids piled into the back of the truck on an old dirt road was nearly unbearable for somebody who gets motion sick. Once up to the top of the mountain, then climbing up to see the most spectacular view from the lookout tower was beyond amazing!
We had an old aluminum boat that we would hop into once in awhile and head over to Coolin to the Old Leonard Paul store to buy the .10 hard candy sticks that taste like root beer, sour apple, cherry, etc…to make a goody bag from a brown bag for the summer birthday person’s gift, along with maybe a PL t-shirt. One day I thought a friend and I (she shall go unnamed) should take the little boat out for a spin that had the outboard engine c-clamped to some very soft wood that was on the back of the boat. While spinning circles for the fun of it one of the pieces of wood had apparently rotted through, leaving only one side of the motor clinging to the back of the boat. The throttle was stuck since the engine was tilted sideways & we continued spinning circles. My friend, a little calmer than myself, sat hanging onto both sides of the boat, eyes wide open. Mind you, she was somewhat of a straight A student, who was hanging out with somebody like me who was somewhat of a thrill seeker. Poor girl had no idea what we were in for. I screamed loudly as we spun in circles, many campers from the Outlet campground gathered at the shoreline to see what all the hoopla was about. Eventually I was able to kill the motor. We rowed the boat back, tied it to the dock, & walked away shaking…never to tell a sole. She recently reminded me of this little adventure.
The group of kids from The Outlet had plenty of bonfires on clear starry nights, while talking for hours on end. We would gather wood from the forest floor, twigs, & as we got older…lighter fluid. Each would venture out and about to find the perfect stick to roast their mallow on. One year I specifically recall somebody flinging their marshmallow from their stick, attempting to salvage their golden brown marshmallow. Fail. The unfortunate victim across from the fire ended up with the marshmallow all on the side of his face. He survived without anything other than a mild singe on his cheek since he jumped up, flung the mallow from his face quite swiftly, then iced it afterward.
I babysat for The Carper Family, along with other families during the summers as a means to have spending money or to buy school clothes. The Carpers trailer was closest to the boat shed. I listened to 8-track tapes of Roger Whittaker many a time. I was world champion playing solitaire! And with rabbit ear antenna I could get some reception to watch TV sometimes. One night in particular I watched The Shining, fell asleep & when I woke I left the kids, ran across the field back home, & crawled into bed. The parents were fetched & all was well. And to think I now have 5 kids of my own now! (Side note: I don’t watch scary movies)
Back in the 70’s the only fear while walking the dogs back out on the trails in the woods, or on the old log roads was running into a bear. Only once did see a bear crossingLake-shore road while walking the dogs, but thank goodness the dogs didn’t see the bear and the bear didn’t see us. I did an about face and went back home.
We rode little 90cc & 100cc motorcycles through the trails, while wearing shorts, and once in awhile flip flops. Berdadish Rd. had the most awesome kelly humps. If there were two of us riding on one bike the person on the back would hang on tight, hoping not to fly off while hitting potholes. Gas was inexpensive back then and it didn't take much to fill up the little tank as we would do at The Outlet, then be back out for a few more hours worth of fun.
The Outlet Resort was a much different place during the summers I spent there. As kids we were allowed to sit in the bar, to play pool at the pool tables. Even when I was 21, with my oldest son who was then six months (now 22 & in The Army) I brought him into the bar with me, sat at the table, had a drink & handed him a lime that he gnawed on while the rest of us & a bar filled with people went about visiting having a few drinks. We would walk into the Outlet store from the beach or the docks to buy more suntan lotion, or ice cream bars while in our bathing suits. Our mail was mixed in with everybody else’s at The Outlet too. We would go in and sift through the pile of mail to see if a friend from back home had written a letter.
One day each weekend a few of us girls from The Outlet would hike the Wood Rat Trail to Hill’s Resort to clean the cabins & chalets after the guests were gone from their fun weekend at the lake. We were supposed to be 12 for this job, but I wasn’t. My 12th birthday was at the end of summer so I was close to being legal. I think I had my first beer (age 14, which wasn’t legal) while at Hill’s Resort during the outdoor movie night. Anybody recall Near Beer? I’m more of a wine gal these days.
We camped out underneath the stars up at Shoe Tree camp. The next morning we smelled like campfire smoke and would jump into the freezing cold creek, making it a contest to see who would stay in the water the longest, better yet seeing who would be brave enough to submerse their body & head underneath the freezing cold water.
On a clear day Sundance Mountain rendered some of the most beautiful views of the lake. Getting up the mountain in what I believe was a 72 Ford truck (3spd on the column), with a group of us kids piled into the back of the truck on an old dirt road was nearly unbearable for somebody who gets motion sick. Once up to the top of the mountain, then climbing up to see the most spectacular view from the lookout tower was beyond amazing!
We had an old aluminum boat that we would hop into once in awhile and head over to Coolin to the Old Leonard Paul store to buy the .10 hard candy sticks that taste like root beer, sour apple, cherry, etc…to make a goody bag from a brown bag for the summer birthday person’s gift, along with maybe a PL t-shirt. One day I thought a friend and I (she shall go unnamed) should take the little boat out for a spin that had the outboard engine c-clamped to some very soft wood that was on the back of the boat. While spinning circles for the fun of it one of the pieces of wood had apparently rotted through, leaving only one side of the motor clinging to the back of the boat. The throttle was stuck since the engine was tilted sideways & we continued spinning circles. My friend, a little calmer than myself, sat hanging onto both sides of the boat, eyes wide open. Mind you, she was somewhat of a straight A student, who was hanging out with somebody like me who was somewhat of a thrill seeker. Poor girl had no idea what we were in for. I screamed loudly as we spun in circles, many campers from the Outlet campground gathered at the shoreline to see what all the hoopla was about. Eventually I was able to kill the motor. We rowed the boat back, tied it to the dock, & walked away shaking…never to tell a sole. She recently reminded me of this little adventure.
The group of kids from The Outlet had plenty of bonfires on clear starry nights, while talking for hours on end. We would gather wood from the forest floor, twigs, & as we got older…lighter fluid. Each would venture out and about to find the perfect stick to roast their mallow on. One year I specifically recall somebody flinging their marshmallow from their stick, attempting to salvage their golden brown marshmallow. Fail. The unfortunate victim across from the fire ended up with the marshmallow all on the side of his face. He survived without anything other than a mild singe on his cheek since he jumped up, flung the mallow from his face quite swiftly, then iced it afterward.
These were the good ol’ days at The Outlet Resort.
Gina
Posted January 3, 2010
