Violet smiled at him. “I know you will, Benny,” she said.
Single file, they started off down the path to their campsite. Watch took the lead. He ran ahead, his nose to the ground. Every so often, he would stop and look back to make sure the others were coming.
The air was clear and cool. High above them, birds sang. They passed through a stand of pine. The pine needles were soft underfoot. They could hear the murmur of rushing water.
“We’re nearly there,” Henry announced.
And sure enough, on the other side of the pine grove was a small clearing. A perfect setting except for the cans and paper bags and plastic cups and tableware.
“Somebody must have been camping here recently,” Jessie said.
“And it looks like they left in a hurry,” Benny said.
CHAPTER 4
Making Camp
The Aldens put down their burdens and stared at the mess.
“Why would anyone leave a campsite like this?” Violet asked.
“Thoughtlessness,” Mr. Alden answered. “People don’t think about the effect they have on the environment.”
Henry slid off his backpack and set it on the ground. Then, he leaned over and picked up a soda can. Following his lead, everyone chose a spot to clean up. Before long, the campsite was cleared of debris, and the garbage pail under the maple tree was nearly filled.
“Now, we can make camp,” Henry said.
“The first thing to do is decide where the cooking and dining areas will be,” Mr. Alden said.
Jessie walked over to a circle of large stones. Charred wood lay inside. Nearby, there was a picnic table. “How’s this?” she asked.
“Perfect,” Mr. Alden said.
Henry and Benny unrolled a flat piece of canvas to protect their supplies from the weather. While it was spread on the ground, they fastened the six tent poles, four to the ends and two in the middle. Next, Henry found a large stone and pounded six pegs into the ground. Then, he tied a line that extended from the top of each pole to a peg.
“Okay,” he said. “Time to put up the tent.”
The children raised the first two corner poles.
“Hold them steady,” Henry directed as he tightened the lines.
They moved to the opposite corner and did the same. When the middle two poles were standing, the job was finished.
“Good job,” Mr. Alden said, “but not quite right.”
“What’s wrong with it, Grandfather?” Benny asked.
“It’s flat,” Mr. Alden pointed out. “What will happen if it rains?”
“The water will pool on top,” Henry said.
“And probably leak through,” Jessie added.
“I know what to do,” Henry said. He picked up his pounding rock and began driving a corner peg deeper into the ground. He did the same to three other corner pegs but not to the center two poles. When he had finished, the canvas sloped down from the middle. Now, water would run off of it.
Next, they had to choose a spot for their sleeping tent.
“How about under that tree?” Benny asked. “It’ll be nice and shady.”
“It would be cool there,” Grandfather agreed, “but if it storms—”
“Lightning,” Violet said.
“How about right here where I’m standing?” Mr. Alden asked.
The children examined the spot. It was clear—no rocks or roots or poison ivy beds—and it sloped just enough so that rain would run down and not pool.
“It’s a good place for our tent,” Henry said.
Watch pawed the ground. Benny squatted beside him. He saw a mound of earth with small holes in it.
“The ants thought it was a good place, too,” he said. “I don’t want to spoil their home.”
They decided on another location nearer the brook. While Mr. Alden and the boys pitched the tent, Jessie and Violet began unpacking supplies under the canvas covering the cooking area.
“We can’t just put things on the ground,” Violet said.
“No,” Jessie agreed. “Everything will get damp and ruined.”
They gathered big rocks and made two stacks several feet apart. These they bridged with the old park building board. It was a perfect table for the supply boxes and the first aid kit. The cooler fit underneath with room to open the lid.
The boys had done a good job, too. The sleeping tent was up and the backpacks and sleeping bags were inside.
“Now can we eat?” Benny asked.
“First we have to collect wood for a fire,” Henry said.
Benny ran over to the cooking pit. “There’s wood here.” He pointed to a small woodpile nearby.
“I suppose that’s enough for tonight,” Henry said. “We’ll gather more in the morning.”
“You make the fire,” Jessie said to Henry and Mr. Alden. “We’ll find some long sticks for the hot dogs.” She, Benny, and Violet ran off into the woods.
Henry made a wood teepee in the center of the pit and stuffed some newspaper inside. Mr. Alden got the matches from the tin box in the kitchen tent.
By the time the girls and Benny returned, the fire was burning nicely, and Henry had made a salad of lettuce, tomatoes, and shredded cheese, and set the picnic table.
The Aldens roasted their hot dogs.
“I’m going to put my salad on mine,” Benny said. He tore some lettuce into small pieces and cut up a tomato slice. He piled them and a spoonful of cheese on his bun.
“That’s a good idea,” Grandfather said, doing the same.
“Save room for Mrs. McGregor’s cookies,” Jessie reminded everyone.
“I always have room for those!” Benny assured her.
After supper, everyone cleaned up.
“We can burn the paper plates and napkins in the fire,” Henry said.
“And if we put the wet garbage at the outer edge of the fire,” Jessie said, “we can burn it when it dries.”
Finished with the cleanup, they sat around the fire.
“Let’s tell ghost stories,” Henry suggested but everyone was too tired to think of one.
Benny felt something whiz past him. He ducked. “What was that?” he asked.
“I think it was a bat,” Henry said. He pointed upward where small dark shapes swooped.
“They’re out catching insects for their supper,” Mr. Alden said. “They’ll be gone soon.”
“It almost hit me!” Benny said.
“Oh, it wouldn’t do that,” Grandfather assured him. “Bats have a very good sense of direction.”
“They have a kind of radar,” Violet told him. “They bounce sound off objects to locate them.”
“Just so they don’t bounce off me!” Benny said.
They all laughed.
Bright stars filled the sky. Everyone leaned back to admire them.
Using his jacket for a pillow, Benny settled against a tree trunk. “I think I’ll stay up all night and look at the stars,” he decided. But he had no sooner said that than his eyes closed, and in a minute he was asleep.
CHAPTER 5
Loud Dreams
Violet awoke with a start. She thought she had heard something. She sat up in her sleeping bag. On the other side of the tent, Watch was alert, his ears up, listening. Violet seemed to be the only one of the Aldens in the big tent who was awake. She got up and peeked outside. The woods were wrapped in mist.
Jessie came up behind Violet. “What’s the matter?” she asked her sister.
“I thought I heard something,” Violet said. She and Jessie started toward the dining tent.
“Music?” Jessie asked.
“Loud music,” Violet answered. “Did you hear it, too?”
Jessie nodded. “I thought I was dreaming. Where do you suppose it was coming from?”
Violet shook her head. “I don’t know. At first, I thought it was someone’s radio—another camper’s maybe. But it kept getting louder. It seemed to be coming from just over there.” She pointed toward the trees at the edge of
their camp.
“And then it faded,” Jessie said. “Maybe someone walked past carrying a radio.”
“I don’t think so,” Violet said. “It was too dark to be hiking in the woods.”
“Whoever it was might know the woods well,” Jessie suggested. “And maybe they had a lantern.”
“But why would anyone want to play loud music like that in the middle of the night? Especially if they were hiking in the woods?” Violet wondered.
“To scare animals?” Jessie suggested.
“I don’t know,” Violet said. “It just doesn’t make sense. And I heard something else: someone or something moving around out here. Watch heard it, too.”
“Well, it’s quiet now,” Jessie said.
“And it’s getting light,” Violet added. “I don’t think I can get back to sleep.”
“A nice hot shower would feel good,” Jessie said.
“Yes,” Violet agreed.
While the others slept, Jessie and Violet got out clean clothes and followed the path to the bathhouse. It was a big building divided into two parts: one for men; one for women. Inside each section, a line of sinks faced a line of showers.
When they were dressed in clean jeans and T-shirts, they walked back to camp.
At the site, Henry was up and setting the table. “I used the plastic tablecloth,” he said. “I thought we should save the blue one for dinnertime.”
Henry put a bowl of fruit on the table next to the lantern. The red apples, yellow bananas, and green grapes made a colorful centerpiece.
Benny brought out the cereal boxes. “I can’t find the honey,” he told the others.
“It was in the big box with the cereal and crackers,” Jessie said.
Benny shrugged. “I didn’t see it there.”
Jessie went back to the kitchen tent with him. She glanced into the box, but she didn’t see the squeeze bottle of honey either. She lifted everything out and looked inside. “That’s strange,” she said. “The honey isn’t here.”
Henry saw something on the ground next to the cooler. He reached down and picked it up. It was the honey.
“How do you suppose it got out of the box?” Jessie wondered aloud.
Benny glanced to either side of him. “Are there bears in these woods?” he asked.
“It was probably just a raccoon or something,” Violet assured him. That would explain the noise she heard.
Mr. Alden emerged from the tent. “Good morning, children,” he said. “You’re up early.”
“Good morning, Grandfather,” Jessie and Benny chorused.
“Breakfast is ready,” Henry said. “I’m afraid there’s no coffee, though. We didn’t make a fire to heat the water.”
“Orange juice and cereal are just fine,” Grandfather said.
They all sat down and poured their favorite cereal into bowls. Benny sliced a banana on top of his cornflakes.
“Did everyone sleep well?” Mr. Alden asked.
“I dreamed I was listening to an orchestra,” Henry said. “Suddenly, the music got louder and louder.”
Benny looked surprised. “I dreamed about loud music, too,” he said.
Violet and Jessie exchanged glances. “That wasn’t a dream,” Jessie said. “We heard loud music, too!”
“So did I,” Mr. Alden put in. “It didn’t last long, but it was very disturbing.”
“I wonder where it came from,” Henry said.
“Some camper with his radio volume turned up,” Mr. Alden suggested.
“That’s what we thought,” Violet said, “but it got so loud it sounded as though it were near us.”
“And then it faded,” Jessie added.
“Well, I just hope they don’t do that every night,” Benny said. “I don’t like loud dreams.”
Violet and Benny put the napkins and other dry garbage in the center of the fire pit, and put a log on top so it wouldn’t blow away. They set the wet garbage at the edge of the pit to dry. They would burn it later.
Jessie and Henry washed off the spoons and knives in the brook.
“We’ll heat water later to wash them properly,” Jessie said.
“What do you children want to do today?” Mr. Alden asked.
“Go exploring!” they all said at once.
“Run along then,” he said.
“Don’t you want to come with us, Grandfather?” Violet asked.
Mr. Alden shook his head. “Thank you, no. I think I’d like to stay here and read.” He opened a magazine he had brought with him.
“We won’t be too long,” Jessie said.
“Take all the time you want,” Mr. Alden said. “Just don’t get lost. The woods can be tricky. They can make a person lose all sense of direction.”
Henry held up a silver compass. “We won’t get lost with this,” he assured their grandfather.
Jessie packed some fruit and trail mix for their trip. Now they were ready to go. Watch followed them to the hiking path.
“You stay here with Grandfather,” Jessie told him.
“Take Watch with you,” Mr. Alden said. “With him along and the compass, I won’t worry about you getting lost.”
Violet paused to look at the dark buds on the maple tree. She reached up and touched one. It felt like velvet. “These are ready to open,” she said. “We’ve come to the forest at a very good time.”
CHAPTER 6
The Missing Lantern
They hiked a long way into the woods. After a while they came to another small clearing. A camp was set up there. A woman, a man, and two small children sat at the picnic table eating breakfast. At one end of the table, a portable radio played softly.
“Maybe they played the loud music,” Benny said.
“Let’s find out,” Henry suggested.
The man saw the Alden children. He snapped off the radio. Then, he waved. “Hello, there,” he said. “Are you camping here, too?”
The Aldens walked closer.
Henry said, “Yes, our camp is over that way.” He pointed toward their campsite.
“We’re the Changs,” the man said. “It’s nice to meet you.”
Henry introduced himself and his sisters and brother.
“And this is our dog Watch,” Benny added.
Watch lifted his paw.
The Chang children giggled.
Mrs. Chang said, “We thought we were the only campers here.”
“It seemed a pleasant change,” Mr. Chang added. “All the other campgrounds we’ve tried have been so crowded.”
“We thought we were the only ones, too,” Benny piped up, “until we heard loud music last night.”
The man and woman looked at each other. “Loud music?” they both said.
“You didn’t hear it?” Jessie said.
“We were awfully tired last night,” Mr.
Chang said. “We slept pretty soundly. But— ”
One of the children said, “More milk, Daddy,” and reached for the pitcher. It tipped. Mr. Chang caught it just as it was about to fall over.
Just then, the other child slipped off the picnic bench and started to cry. Mrs. Chang rushed to pick her up.
Henry edged toward the path. “We’ll see you again,” he said.
The Aldens hiked along silently. They listened to the birds singing overhead. They saw chipmunks and squirrels and rabbits.
Finally Jessie said, “It sure is strange that the Changs didn’t hear that music last night. Their campsite isn’t that far from ours.”
“Do you think the Changs are the ones who played it?” Violet asked.
“They have a radio,” Jessie said. “They could be the ones.”
“But why would they do it?” Henry asked.
“I don’t know,” Jessie answered.
They fell silent again, thinking.
After a while, Benny said, “I’m hungry.”
“Again!” Violet said.
“You’re always hungry,” Henry joked.
“I know,” Benny
agreed.
Jessie pointed to a large flat rock. “Let’s sit there,” she said, “and eat some fruit.”
“We can leave the seeds and peels here,” Violet said when they had finished their snack. “The birds and small animals will eat them.”
They continued on. Every so often, they found an empty soda can or some other waste. They picked it up and dumped it into their empty lunch sack.
When it was full, Henry said, “Too bad there aren’t more garbage cans along the way. We’ll have to carry this with us until we find one.”
Before long, they came to a wide stream. Watch wagged his tail and lapped up a drink of water.
“This must be the same brook that runs along our campsite,” Henry said. He took out the campgrounds map and studied it. “We’re nearly out of the park,” he told the others. “We’d better turn back.”
They followed the stream back toward camp.
“We have to stop for wood,” Henry reminded them.
There were special areas marked on the map where campers could get wood. The children stopped at one. They dropped the debris they had collected into a garbage can. Then they went to the large, tarpaulin-covered woodpile.
“How will we carry the wood back to camp?” Violet wondered.
“I have an idea,” Henry said. He took off his belt. He wrapped it around several pieces of wood and buckled it. “We can carry it this way.”
When the children got back to camp, Grandfather was napping against the maple tree, his magazine open beside him.
The children didn’t wake him. Instead, they took off their shoes and socks and went wading in the stream. The cold clear water soothed their tired feet. They splashed it on their wrists and faces. It was refreshing.
In the late afternoon, Henry and Benny laid the fire. Then they went into the kitchen tent to prepare supper.
“Benny, you can peel and slice the carrots,” Henry directed. “Jessie, you do the potatoes.” He began slicing a large onion.
Grandfather came in. “What can I do?” he asked.
“You can tear up the lettuce for the salad,” Violet said. “I’ll set the table.”
When they all had finished, Violet made hamburger patties and Henry put each one into a foil packet with some of the vegetables. Jessie lit the fire. “We don’t want a big flame for this meal,” Henry said. “We’ll have to let it burn down a while.”