Driving down/Ski Lift

We left around 10:30, meeting up with my middle sister at a McDonald's semi-close to our destination. Then we stopped at the Canaan Valley Resort & Conference Center State Park and took a Ski Lift up (cost $20 each). I took it the worst compared to anyone else (even my sister who is scared of heights). I'm not technically scared of heights, but I'm scared of death, and anything that could make me die, and I felt like I could slip right under the bar and fall and get seriously injured or die, so I was tense the whole time, especially when the lift would stop for someone and shake.

At the top, we walked around and took some photos, then walked down the Bald Knob trail, then back up, and took the lift down. It was scary again.

AirBnB

At around 4:30 we made it to our Air BnB, which was in some community (we have to have a gate lifted to get in each time). It's very wooded and deer are a common sight. Mom and I shared bunk beds in the smallest room, K&T took the downstairs room, and my dad and little sister got their own rooms.

All but my dad drove to the store and picked up some food for meals (lettuce, carrots, cheese, hummus, etc.). We had already brought plenty of pastries, so no need for more of those.

I walked around the woods for a bit, then me and some others took a small walk down the road, but it was mostly downhill (meaning all uphill on the way back), so we didn't go too far.

I went upstairs for a bit to be by myself after that, but walked downstairs later to see K, A, T, and sort of my dad playing something I never heard of before called "Duck Game" on Switch. My dad didn't like it, so he handed it off to me, and I decided to not be a stick in the mud for once and try to play. It was tough and rather counter-intuitive (at least to me), but it was amusing enough; I was fine being incompetent at it; sometimes incompetence is fun.

Mom and I went to bed a little after midnight, and neither of us slept well.

Blackwater Falls

We got to the start of Lindy Point Overlook at 10:50. It was a pretty nice walk through some woods, and then a long boardwalk over some mud. As the name would entail, it ended in an overlook, but more importantly, there was a means to jump onto some rocks and I saw two snakes. Very cute. I showed my dad and little sister too.

At 11:30 we made it to the Blackwater Lodge, mainly so my mom could use the bathroom, but it was a nice place to explore. They had an arcade and a diner, and outside there was another overlook, and a time capsule, tied to Halley's Comet. It was put together in 1986, to be opened in 2062, when the comet returned close to Earth. Very neat.

Elakala Trail

At 11:50, we went down another path within walking distance of the lodge. It passed by a small waterfall, but the bulk of it was just woods, following red markers on trees. My dad and I went the farthest, me going all the way to the road, which marked the end. Not exactly a fantastic way to end it, but the journey was nice.

I actually did get minorly lost on the way back, probably due to a downed red-mark tree, but thankfully, I was able to get back on the path eventually, and got the consolation prize of being able to better see the small waterfall.

Boardwalk/Bigger Waterfall

Around 12:30, we took this small (albeit, 200+ steps) walk to a larger waterfall (maybe the main one?). The waterfall itself was yellowish-brown colored, due to something called "tannins," and hard water.

"Home"

We got back home around 2:15 and I made a sandwich for lunch, consisting of potato bread, hummus, lettuce, and carrots. It was very good. Sandwiches never super appealed to me, but the inclusion of hummus really makes it good. And the lettuce is so nice for feeling "fresh" and less dry. ...And the carrots exist just to make it healthier: the weakest link. Good lunch. I should make it more often. I ate outside on the porch, and it was very nice. A deer came by at one point, not super close, but within the property. It didn't seem particularly bothered by me.

Stardew Valley & Dinner

The rest of the day was spent at home. My little sister was playing Stardew Valley, and I mentioned liking it too, so my middle sister decided to buy it on Switch for $15 and play it too. She had trouble naming the farm, but eventually got to actually start. Initially, she was playing on handheld mode, but I offered she could play it on the TV, so from there, I watched her play and me and my sister tried to give tips. I was surprised when my dad ended up offering to play for her when she had to eat dinner (Quesadillas, made by her husband). He certainly enjoyed it more than the Duck Game yesterday. He did mostly mining, which is good, because mining is important.

I started my own new save file just to get a better grasp of what the beginning of the game looked like; I wanted to play a different starting farm than before, and decided upon the Lakeside one, and picked Teo as my player. His hair is flipped, but that's okay.

Stressful day that I won't get into, but will note it exists.

Thomas

It rained overnight and was still misting in the late morning, so we didn't actually go anywhere until around 12:30. I suggested visiting the nearby town of Thomas first—because wet conditions wouldn't matter much—so we walked around there for an hour or so. It wasn't a particularly interesting town, but I still enjoyed it. There were tons of "No Power plant" and "No data center" signs, even on a lot of businesses. Mom and I visited an art shop, and man, the prices were high for the quality, but that's art for you. I might draw myself, but I don't always "get" art. But if they have a shop, I guess their art is selling well enough.

We caught up with dad and my little sister and checked out a game shop together; it was neat. It was a repurposed bank, so my sister could describe where a few things used to be. They had three different game rooms, one of which was in the old vault; really cool.

We got home around 2, eating a small lunch. I had another sandwich, same as before, except without carrots. Very good. It's amazing how much hummus elevates the taste of a sandwich.

Dolly Sods

A little before 4:30, the four of us later drove a short 11 minutes to "Dolly Sods." Mom and I walked together behind the others, as is sometimes the case, and we assumed my dad and sister were together, but when we passed my dad (him walking back while we were still walking forward), he said she wasn't with him. We kept going quite a bit until we made it to a barely-river. Apparently there was an actual river and a beaver dam much later, but we decided it was too far and started heading back.

At one point, I pointed to a rocky path I thought we took and said something like "we go that way, right?" and my mom must've not realized it was a path and said no, it was another way. I don't trust myself (and my mom is the best with directions), so I quickly followed her lead... until we arrived at a puddle that we definitely didn't hit on the way over. I mentioned maybe the path I pointed towards was right, but she still didn't know what I was talking about, assuming I meant some way farther path. Still, we walked back until we got to the path I mentioned, and figured out that was indeed the right way. There was a cairn we both missed that helped confirm it was the right way, and from there, we made it back.

We stopped at a bench and my mom texted the others, learning that my sister was at the bench at the very first split, waiting, and dad was using GPS to get back. Mom and I returned to that first bench, but didn't see my sister. Later, we learned he got lost in the same place we did, except he kept going in circles; my sister went to find him, and the two eventually came back together. We left for home around 6:30.

"Home"

After that, there was more stuff I don't want to get into, and it was very stressful and depressing, but I think things got better at the end, even if it started out so bad. I hope so.

We made whatever for dinner, rather late (maybe 8:00). I had half a croissant (shared with my mom), and tried the apple butter from the family reunion for the first time. It was fine. It's not something I'd go out of my way to eat, but it's preferable to a plain croissant. I also finished the icy Mixed Berries that someone before us had left behind. Hurray for no waste (but also, they were decently tasty, ice or no).

I stayed downstairs for a bit, but emotionally drained, I went upstairs later, and played some Stardew Valley on my new Teo account. I got to Day 10 or so, achieving Mine Level 20. Still no big Backpack yet, since I bought more seeds instead. I have enough Copper Bars for an upgrade, but what to do: pickaxe, axe, or watering can? I really want to rely on sprinklers as soon as possible, so probably pickaxe or axe, but still, which one? Pickaxe, probably, since mining is more generally important.

As usual, I went to bed just a few minutes after my mom, around 12:20. I had trouble falling asleep, due to everything that happened today, but at least I slept decently (for a vacation) afterwards. I still woke up a ton; it's just that "decently for a vacation" is a very low standard.

Leaving Davis

I woke up around 8:50, not refreshed, but that's normal. I went on the computer for a bit, then got ready and ate a blueberry muffin for breakfast. Wanting to be useful, I washed the counters off, not knowing if I was competent enough to do anything else without messing up. The front doorknob broke (fell off), but thankfully my dad was able to fix it. We were supposed to leave by 11, and we kind of left by around 11:03 instead, but close enough. We dropped the garbage off at the nearby dumpster, and thankfully someone else was dumping at the same time, since I'm not sure if my mom and I could figure it out otherwise. He even took it for us and threw it in. Nice man.

I'm writing this now (as well as the last two days) on the car ride over. It's 12:39 right now. I'll have to add photos later, but at least I have the first four days written out. Four days (including today) to go. I hope things go okay today. I'm rather depressed and a little "haunted," but I'll try to stay positive.

IHoP

At 1:50, we stopped at IHoP; I'm not sure who suggested it, but I probably haven't been there in over a decade. Mom and I ordered two different crepes: I got the simple four Strawberry Crepes, while she got the fancy two Cinnamon Bun Crepes that were filled with cream cheese and drizzled with cinnamon, along with strawberries. I tried a bit of mom's, and it was very good, though I think I'm glad I got just Strawberry, since it might've been a bit much after a while. My one criticism is that it could've used more strawberries, but that's fine. I only realized after I was done that there was strawberry sauce on the table. Whoops.

We departed at 2:25, and refilled on gas. It was $61.07. Regrettably, gas 20 cents cheaper was just a mile or two away.

We arrived at Shenandoah around 3:00, and stopped by the earliest Visitor's Center for a bit, then drove through the park on our way to the AirBnB. This one was well off the beaten path in super rough, turny, hilly gravel. Not great. A little scary, even. We're definitely not driving here at night.

We arrived at the AirBnB around 4:50 or so, and T made spaghetti and garlic bread (and was nice and made a separate pot of non-meat sauce). There are lots of noodles left over. What a big pot.

This AirBnB isn't as nice as the first. It's on a hill and a big buggy, the basement smells like dog (pets are allowed), and this one cake pan was found utterly dirty; my mom is trying to wash it now, despite us simply finding it like that. That said, I'll have a room to myself this time, so I might sleep a lot better.

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