Working In The Campground Has Its Rewards…

I have many duties on my job. My first love, the part of my job that I love the best, is being out at the entrance station, welcoming visitors to the park, selling passes, and giving directions to scenic viewpoints.

(Me at the entrance station)

I also work at the campground, checking people in when they arrive, and IF there happens to be a vacancy or cancellation, selling sites to campers. The campground here at the North Rim is very nice, with spacious sites. There are no hook-ups, but we do provide every site with a fire ring and picnic table.

(The group area of the campground in early spring)

Today, one of my duties was to walk through the campground inspecting all the fire rings, and noting if any of them need to be replaced or repaired. Every time I walk through this campground, people camping here invite me to eat with them–breakfast, or lunch, or dinner depending on the time of day. I usually decline the invitation, saying that I can’t eat wheat so I have to be careful what I eat.

(the North Rim Campground in early spring before any campers arrived)

Today, though, as I was walking through, there was a family camping in a pop-up, cooking a delicious smelling chocolate cake in their covered grill. As usual, they invited me to have a piece, indicating it would be ready in a few minutes. I gave my usual reply, “It smells very good, but I can’t eat wheat.” And THEY said, “Well, lady, this cake is for you!”

(the North Rim Campground in fall)

The mother said they have been eating a strict gluten free, egg free, and dairy free diet since October of last year, and the cake they were making was made with chick pea flour, tapioca flour, brown rice flour, and potato starch. So, of course, I stopped for a piece of it. It was out of this world delicious! Tanya, the mother, said she makes her own homemade mixes, even grinds her own chick pea flour. I was very impressed.

I didn’t have my camera with me, so no photos, but trust me when I say this was a very good cake. She also asked me not to publish her recipe on my blog because she is trying to write a cookbook. Well, let me tell ya, I will be her first customer when that book is published! Tanya also gave me three of her mixes to bring home–a chocolate cake mix, buckwheat pancake mix (that her teenage son raved about), and a corn bread mix. I can not wait to try that cornbread!

I should get out there and walk that campground more often!