12/21-24/25 I went up to Camp Serendipity for 4 days: Sunday through Wednesday.

Because of road closures, I had to take a roundabout route. I had to take I-90 to Blewett Pass, then bypass Leavenworth and take the Chumstick Highway to Plain and from there to Lake Wenatchee. I stopped at a restaurant in Cle Elum to take a break and have breakfast at about noon.

When I got to Lake Wenatchee, I started delivering jars of Ellen's Christmas jam to friends. I learned from Carrie Dickinson that they had had a serious fire in August that destroyed a big shop.

Then I met Connie Smith and a female relative walking on the road, and I delivered a jar of jam to her. Their family was up at their cabin for a couple weeks and she told me about the near miss of a huge tree that had fallen across their driveway and the highway. They had some help clearing a path for cars through the huge trunk.

Next, I stopped at Mike and Shirley's and got caught up on more Lake Wenatchee news. Then, I went across the road to Dave and Nancy's but they weren't there.

I finally arrived at Camp Serendipity at 3:00 and drove through about 8 inches of snow to get parked. I made two trips up to the cabin with my gear and to hoist the flag. I found that the phone was still out, so I got back in the truck and drove to MP1 to get cell service. I called the phone company to report the outage, and I phoned Ellen to let her know I had arrived safely and that the phone didn't work.

On Monday morning when I got up, I found that phone service had been restored so I called Ellen to let her know.

Next, I practiced the piano and then took a nap. When I got up, I had my lunch and then walked to the grave. On the way, I visited with John and heard the details of his harrowing experience of being flooded out of his home and being rescued by boat. His truck and his travel-trailer are total losses, but he thinks his tractor and other diesel equipment will be salvageable.

I continued my walk, past the grave, and on to Byron and Barb's place. They weren't home so I left a jar of jam for them on their porch. On the way back, I met Connie Smith again and learned more details of the tree-fall experience. Back in the cabin, I read the news headlines that I had downloaded during my walk. Then I started fixing dinner and winding down for the day. I also filled and staged six water jugs.

On Tuesday morning, the temperature outside was 24 degrees and there was about an inch of new snow. After practicing the piano, I walked to the grave. Then, I had my lunch and a nap.

When I got up, I called Robert and got caught up on his activities during the storm and the resulting damage cleanup. In spite of being totally exhausted, I was happy to learn that he had not been injured and there was no damage to his place or their store.

On Wednesday, Christmas Eve, the temperature outside when I got up was 25 degrees and it was snowing. After practicing the piano, I fertilized Tiger, and then loaded the water jugs into the truck. I called Robert and told him I would stop in at his restaurant for lunch on the way back home. Then I packed up my gear and left for home at 10:00 hoping to meet Robert and Tess at 11:00. I was 10 minutes late, but I had a very enjoyable visit and lunch before I continued my trip over Blewett and I-90. Even though the trip both ways was arduous, the trip was worth it, and I had a good time.