Buried Treasure

As mentioned in my previous post, my parents and I had dinner with the Von Rohr family in Mammoth last week. Ken had said he would try to find some old photos for me to scan and share, and he delivered. Here are the treasures (you can click on them to see them larger). Be sure to check out the short shorts on the boys! We all got a good chuckle about 1980s "fashion."

Leslie & Kibby Roby enjoying a campfire, 1978

I think the dog on the left is probably Duke, Ron Williams' dog. None of us knows the kid on the right, although he looks vaguely familiar. Does anyone recognize him? The funniest thing about this photo for me is what I didn't see until I pulled it up on-screen; our dog Pepper is under Kibby's chair, about to taste whatever was on my plate!

typical crowd hanging out at the store, 1981

Christopher Reavis (seated), Kib Roby, Billy Villarin, Leslie Roby, Kibby Roby, and Shirley Roby.

Eric & Mark Von Rohr and Kibby at an unknown location, 1981

Mark Von Rohr, Kibby, Jeff Williams, Ken (Ollie) Kramer, Eric Von Rohr, 1982

the old gas tank, 1986

Ken, thanks so much for sharing. I promise to get them back into your hands safely!

Robys at Rock Creek

Recognize this?

Yep, that's Kib and Shirley about to arrive at Big Tire. They were spending a week in Mammoth, so I joined them for a few days. Naturally, we had to do a bit of "hiking" at Rock Creek, followed by pie. The walk around the pond was as nice as it always is... lots of wildflowers blooming and absolute peace and quiet.

fireweed

tiger lily

We also walked around Convict Lake; I can't believe how turquoise blue that water is!

The highlights of the trip were a brief visit with Christine Ferrara Engel and dinner out with the entire Von Rohr family. What a treat to see such great old friends. Sorry there are no photos to share; we were too busy yakking to think of getting out the cameras.

I do have a bit more to share from the visit, but that will be another post...

Robys in Mammoth/Rock Creek

As mentioned in my last post, my parents and I went to Mammoth for a brief visit at the beginning of August. Our first morning we canoed around Lake Mary in the old blue and white canoe from the lodge. Yes, it still gets occasional use, but it's getting heavier and heavier the older we get, so I'm not sure we'll be using it much longer. This is Rusty, keeping a close watch on the paddles; he was determined to catch one of those darn things.

A few years ago my parents switched to kayaking. So much lighter and easier to transport! I got to test-drive my dad's at Twin Lakes while he stayed on shore. As you can see, Mom is an old pro in hers.

Saturday night the Von Rohr family (3 generations) joined us for dinner at Slocums. Naturally, there was nonstop reminiscing about "the good old days." And it sounds as if Eric and Mark are doing a great job introducing Eric's kids to all the things we used to do together, even rebuilding our forts.

We finally got our dose of Rock Creek on Sunday. With two aging and unpredictable dogs in tow, we decided that a quick jaunt to Serene would be enough (I have carried 30-lb. Rusty down the McGee Creek trail—not fun). Serene is still one of the most vivid places in my memories, but none of us had been there in ages. As expected, nothing has changed; it still lives up to its name...

We circled the lake and then simply enjoyed the tranquility for a while.

Afterward we did a brief cruise of Mosquito Flats and around the lake, then headed to the Lake Store for pie. YUM. We also drove through the lodge grounds and stopped briefly to say hello again to the Von Rohrs. We checked out the changes in Cabin 11. Different, but nice. I was pleased to see a painting by Joe Mancuso on the wall.

Every time I go back it does get easier, but it still wrenches emotions. Every square inch of the grounds and beyond holds so many memories and they all suddenly come rushing back. It's amazing how minute details from 30+ years ago can remain burned so clearly in one's mind.

As we were driving out, I remarked how much the meadow has returned to forest. Remember when it was just open grass, filled with shooting stars?

The Von Rohr Family

Some of you who stop by this site may recognize members of this family if you've spent as much time at Rock Creek over the years as they have. The Von Rohr family's history with Rock Creek is even longer than the Roby family's. My dad and Ken have known each other since they were boys. Kibby and I grew up with his sons, Eric and Mark. We always looked forward to their arrival for their annual visit and never failed to find creative ways to entertain ourselves. (To protect the innocent or not-so-innocent, I will say no more.) And I still have vivid memories of my parents and Ken and Connie laughing so hard they were crying as we all gathered around the fire in the lobby in the evenings (especially if they had enjoyed some dinner & drinks in Mammoth).

The entire family still stays at the lodge every year, sometimes more than once, passing the tradition on to the next generation. Mark shared photos from their recent trip and he kindly allowed me to post some here. They perfectly capture what it's like to spend family time at Rock Creek.... and how some things don't change all that much (thank goodness).

Mark grills some dinner on the cabin porch after a day of fishing...


Ken and his grandson (Eric's son) at Rock Creek Lake...


Connie peeks through the willows (I believe this is at Big Tire)...

Eric and his daughter Jillian enjoy some laughs...

The youngest generation has obviously learned how much fun can be had without much effort...

Mark says this young guy started feeding right outside their cabin door as they were having breakfast...

Remember the spot we called Big Tire? Remember why it was called that? Remember diving into that icy water on a hot day? (Not while Mark was fishing, of course.)

The lower end of the pond...

The pond...


Anyone else ready to jump in the car right this moment?

THANK YOU, Mark—and the rest of the family—for allowing us this vicarious visit.