Before I got to the campgrounds at Burr Oak, I had to test run my tent, which I hadn't pitched in about twenty years. Here it is in front of my apartment.	And here's the car, packed as it was for the trip.
	It's hard to see it here, but this is the very sloped space at the bottom of the hill where I pitched my tent.	The first position for my tent, which I later realized was actually on the next lot.
Not totally roughing it. The public restroom was only about a sixty-second walk away.		That's only sort of a beer gut. In my case, it's a "rootbeer" gut.
		Autum leaves were in the beginning of their carpeting of the forest floor, as I headed out on my first hike of the vacation.
	Occasionally, on my hike, I got a good view of the lake, but not as often as I would prefer.	I think maybe this marked the way to Barad-dûr, but, I may be mistaken.
Water break at about the halfway point of hike #1.
Right after the water break I came across two archers at an archery range in the park.
The occasion of the very first time I have ever cooked my own meal over an open campfire. That's a couple cuts of chicken breast.
Hot water for my hot chocolate -- another culprit in that gut situation of mine.	First campfire of Autumn Vacation 2020.	So, I parked my car in the right spot, but, my tent is just out off frame on the right, on the wrong camping lot.
My tent relocated to my lot.		Sunday morning two different campers, who were striking camp, gave me their leftover firewood.
And, I still had a little bit of wood left from the night before. I'd also gone into Glouster and bought two bundles, that I ended up not needing to use on this leg of the venture.	Late morning my second day, I did hike #2.
		Lunch at about the halfway mark of this much longer hike than the day before
What's for lunch? -- PB&J and veggies!
		Young equestrians on the trail
I'd already seen evidence that there were horse riders, or, horses, at least, on some of the trails -- hoof prints & other callng cards.		Another water break.
Just a nice pic of the sun through the trees.	An outdoor movie theatre right by the entrance to the hiking path.
Panoramic photo of the virtually empty campgrounds around me when I got back from that Sunday hike.
More pics of the empty grounds around me on Sunday afternoon. It was NOT unwelcome by me!
There was a spot close by my campsite where I could get to the lake. But, man was it a steep climb down -- so steep that it would be unwise to attempt it in the dark.
A couple more shots from that small spot on bank I could climb down to.		The incline can't be discerned well here, but this is the virtual cliff I had to climb down. That path is far more vertical than it may appear.
When I left for the second hike, it looked like it might rain, so I used a rain poncho to cover the firewood.	The two bundles of firewood I'd bought that morning that I didn't have to use yet.	Getting ready for dinner -- my second time cooking my own meal over an open campfire. Plus, there was going to be another night of sitting around the fire pit, most certainly
	My second ever open-fire-cooked meal: this time, my pasta in tomato sauce with ground, lean turkey meat. And, yes, I did eat it all.
More hot chocolate!	"Sigh," the fire pit!
"Sigh," the fire pit!	Monday morning -- still an almost completely empty campgrounds, and no campers close to me. The fire pit session the night before was blissful with solitude.
	The inside of my little tent.
	Time to strike camp.
		On my way out I stopped by the beach, in another part of the park.
My last stop, before heading to Wolf's Den Cabin at Thunder Ridge Cabins B & B, was by the Burr Oak Lake boating docks.
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A few photos from my "dash cam," as I travelled to my next vacation spot.
"The Big House," where the owners live.	Approaching Wolf's Den.
The view from the back deck at Wolf's Den.
My lunch, after settling in at Thunder Ridge Cabins. Tuna salad on wheat with a thick slice of tomato.
The basses and the other music equipment stayed tucked in car while I was at the Burr Oak campgrounds. Now that I was at the cabin, it was unpacked and ready for some work.		The rest of the luggage, and the cooler.
Wolf's Den is the standard one room with a bath and little kitchenette, quite cozy.
		I was either sweetening vacation photos, already shot, or I was writing sketch notes that would become the Autumn Vacation 2020 blog entry.
More pasta in tomato sauce, but this time, nuked in the cabin's microwave. Yep, more roughing it!	Finally it was time to work on some music. Here's me tuning the Embassy Pro, then starting to work out the synthesized bass line for Song #6, "Identity."
Later, rehearsing that synth bass line, having now worked most of it out.
The meditation hut that the owner, Susan, set up in the back part of the property, just inside the wooded part.
	The back forested part of the Thunder Ridge is good for a nice little hike.
On the Wolf's Den front porch, starting to write a new song, Song #7/(workshop title: "Chilled October Morning"), on my Giannini acoustic bass.
	Yeah, even on vacation I have my laptop open, quite a lot.	BP&J and hot chocolate.
We interrupt the Thunder Ridge on-site vacation photographs for some site seeing and hiking photographs:
In 2018, when I went to Hocking Hills, this place was recommended to me, but I didn't make it there. I decided this trip would be about hitting spots i missed the first time. This was one of the places I decided I would have to check out. I'm glad I did. It's a cool site.
	Inside the actual "Rock House."
About a ten-minute drive from Rock House is an area that is touted as "the most picturesque in Hocking County." As I wrote in the main blog post for this, my guess is that many tourists do just what I did and hit both Rock House and Cantwell Cliffs on the same day, seeing as they are seven miles apart. And, as the photos show, it is another beautiful spot.
We now return you to the regularly scheduled, on-site Thunder Ridge vacation photographs:
Why is that some of us think anyone else out there would have even the remotest interest in photos of us eating a meal? And remember, that's rootbeer.
dessert: a jumbo Reese's cup.	The view from the Wolf's Den deck as dusk was approaching.
On the Wolf's Den deck, doing more work on the new one, "Chilled October Morning."
		The gravel road that leads to and from Thunder Ridge Cabins B & B.
Heading down the road toward the next stop.
Literally, right down the road from Thunder Ridge Cabins B & B, is this lovely park. After checking out of Wolf's Den I stopped in for a little hike.
	A little cabin that's close to but not part of the park. I don't know its history, but it's a cool little building.	Don't know the story on this big leaning rock, either, but it is photo-worthy.
More "dash cam" photos, during the drive into Logan for the next vacation installment. These taken on State Route 33.
I can't say this enough: When one is in the Hocking Hills area, one must go into Logan and have some Pizza Crossing. You have slightly mis-spent your trip if you haven't done this! I mean, just look at that pizza!		After pizza, I spent a little time at Lake Logan.
		My close encounter with a great blue heron. Click here for my little video of the meeting.
	A little pontoon boat dock at Lake Logan.
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The POV from Mockingbird Cabin of the road down to the Best Nest entrance.	Mockingbird is called a "cabin," but "cottage" is more suitable word.
The wide open spaces of the Best Nest property, leading back to the picturesque ponds and the great forestry for hiking.
	One of the other Best Nest cabins (cottages).
		Coming upon the first pond.
	The first of the two absolutely beautiful Best Nest ponds.
The open spaces on the way to the forested hiking trails.
		I really wanted this to be an eagle feather, but several people assure me it's a wild turkey feather.
	I'm betting that this is an animal den, and my uneducated guess is it's a fox den.
Heading into the second Best Nest Pond, this one even more breathtaking than the first one.
		More eating pics: Tuna on toast.
		Hot tub, anyone?
A pleasant cool evening, coyotes calling in the distance, a waxing gibbous moon, a fire pit, and a new song on an acoustic bass guitar
On the Mockingbird deck playing "Chilled October Morning" on the Giannini before I shot the footage for the DV movie, Song Previews from My Vacation.
Headed into Logan for lunch at Millstone BBQ. Had a pulled chicken BBQ sandwich. Tasty! And before I was halfway through I surrendered and used a knife and fork. Yep, sloppy, but tasty!		So the cabin had a satellite TV, but, I did not turn it on even once.
In Mockingbird's livingroom, rehearsing the synthesizer bass line for "Identity,"before I shot more footage for Song Previews from My Vacation.
The final, nice, long, serene fire pit of my Autumn Vacation 2020. It was again a lovely, cool evening. Again, coyotes called from somewhere; I like to think they were by one of the ponds. There was some melancholy in my heart, but still it was pleasant close to the vacation.
Had to take a pic of the Van Gogh print hanging on the Mockingbird wall.
	At the start of the trip, right before I pulled out of my parking space at the apartment, the versions of these particular photos were full of anticipation and excitement. These versions have the flavor of reluctance and a little bit of sorrow.
And there you have it, the photos from my Autumn Vacation 2020.
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