1st annual spring camping spectacular

So in March, on a whim, we decided to go camping.  It had been raining here in Southern California A LOT.  Everyone was freaking out about the desert flowers, so we figured if the forecast looked good, we'd be able to nail down a campsite closer to the coast.  And we sort of did.  Enter, Lake Cachuma.

Frank and I made the base plans.  He'd get meat, I'd bring the fixins (fixthinsth).  We'd leave Saturday morning and meet at the campsite in the afternoon.  Plan change - meet in Los Olivos for some wine tasting.  Sold.  Above is the flag pole we were to meet at.....turns out there are many MANY flag poles in Los Olivos....this was the wrong one....

We finally crossed paths at the Nielson by Byron Tasting Room.  We tasted several wines - one particularly funky - nothing struck our fancy so we kept on our merry way.  Also, I had no idea how dog friendly this little town was.  One of our friends had a dog in tow, and he was welcomed in, no questions asked.  

We tasted a few more wines across the street at Zinke Wine Co.  This place made me want to come back.  Not necessarily for the wine, but for their outdoor set up.  They had bocce ball, corn hole, fire pits, and several loungey couch areas.  As we doddled our way back to our cars, a band was starting up and there were a few food carts on the street.  Looked like a pretty quaint little place to spend a weekend.  It went on the list for a longer visit in the future.  But, for now, it was pretty great because Los Olivos is only about 20 minutes max from Lake Cachuma.  Quite conveniently located, if I do say so myself.  And if you haven't had enough wine tasting, there are tons of little tasting rooms just out of town.

And!  Here's what we were met with!  GREEN!!!  I've been to Lake Cachuma a handful of times before this and it has always been dusty, windy, cold, and blisteringly hot at times.  But THIS!  It was an incredible surprise.

An incredible surprise that warranted a celebratory shotgun.  While the sun was still shining, we meandered around the grass and annoyed the dog and pounded a few more beers.

So a fair warning, it does get windy here.  We actually swapped campsites to be a touch further away from the edge of the water.  This helped a lot during the cooking process, but still ended up being pretty dang cold later in the evening. 

Here we fought against the elements making a wall for our gigantic steaks.  Otherwise, our meal was relatively low maintenance:

Brontosaurus sized steaks, roasted potatoes, veggies (tomatoes, artichoke hearts), corn

Everything pretty much went in foil packets along with butter and spices.  Simple and painless.

It started to get really cold, and most folks tucked in to bed pretty early - but that's actually one of my favorite parts about camping.  I never really feel that guilty about going to bed early.  Not before a few lazy S'mores though (chocolate chip cookies + roasted marshmallow = genius) and a pretty solid serving of wine....

Blurry mornings, easy breakfasts made with eggs and leftovers and a chill day around the lake slowly packing up our crap.  We only stayed one night but PRO TIP: reserve the site for two nights even if you're only staying for one so you can stay as long as you want the second day.  It was totally worth it all.  

We swung by Solvang on the way home for some cookies and coffee, which were both needed.  Made it home Sunday evening quite satisfied.

MPH rating of Lake Cachuma in Spring: 5/5