Beer Parties

When I was camping at a national forest campground near Hunstsville, Utah, some teenagers decided to have a beer party in the campsite next to mine.  I put up with it until 1:00 a.m. then grabbed my car keys and hit the car alarm which went off for about five seconds before I turned it off.  Silence reigned in a Mormon state where children are regularly chastised and "real" beer is illegal.

Soon after Gary set up camp on site 38 at Laura Lake, two teenage girls were checking out no. 39.  Both sites were isolated, far away from the rest of the campground.  That evening, cars began to roll in, parking along the road.  Teenagers tumbled out of the vehicles carrying cases of beer. 

Gary strolled over to the information kiosk and noted the number of the county sheriff.  Then he waited as the kids got noisier and noisier.  At 10:00 pm, all campers are supposed to be observe an eight hour quiet period, but of course, these guys didn't.  At 10:15 he called the sheriff.  Fifteen minutes later, another pickup tore down the road and the driver yelled, "The cops are coming!"  He must have been listening to the scanner. 

Most of the vehicles left and the sheriff gave the rest of the "campers" a serious talking to.  Quiet reigned and early the next day, site 39 was empty.

Last night, another beer party seemed to be starting at Lost Lake.  Gary and I had the number of the Florence County sheriff.  Once again, we waited until the mandatory  quiet time. 

However, Mother Nature took care of things.  Almost precisely at 10:00 pm there was a loud clap of thunder followed by a deluge.  Other than the patter of rain on top of our camper, silence reigned.

All was well on our end, but campers closer to the miscreants reported to us that yes, they weren't talking loudly all night but they played their radio with the bass turned up, which meant a sort of thump, thump sound. 

At 1:39 a.m. someone shot a gun.  (I woke up and checked my watch.)  We'll report all of this to the ranger when he shows up today.  I expect the party crowd will be gone by the end of the day.

And once again silence will reign.