September 4, 2025 • 19 mins
🏕️ In this bedtime story, the air shifts as summer begins to lean toward fall. In Camping in September, we take one last trip into the mountains before the season changes. From setting up camp beneath the pines to swimming at the base of a hidden waterfall, the days are filled with warmth, laughter, and quiet moments by the fire. Nights bring stars overhead, the comfort of a tent, and the sweetness of marshmallows toasted over glowing coals.
This story invites you to slow down, breathe deeply, and imagine yourself in nature as the seasons turn. Perfect for winding down, resting, or drifting off to sleep.
If you enjoy cozy, relaxing stories, remember to follow the podcast so you don't miss any that drop every Thursday.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Connect with The Slow Life
Stories written and read by Jennifer Veinot
🌐 Website: TheSlowLife.ca
📸 Instagram: @theslowlifecozystories
📌 Pinterest: theslowlifecozystories
💌 Support the show by donating HERE
All content copyrighted Jennifer Zwicker (Veinot) 2024, 2025
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:02):
Welcome to The Slow Life. I'm Jennifer Vino and I create,
narrate and design the soundscape of this village of
cosy stories to relax and unwind.
Each week I share an original story.
Read 2 times so you can relax even more during the second
(00:25):
reading. I'm happy to announce my
website, theslowlife.ca. It provides a space where we can
connect and I can bring you all things cozy.
Let's settle in with some easy breathing at your own pace.
(00:48):
With each inhale, let fresh air fill the space around your
heart. With each exhale, feel the calm
air spread through your body andflow out through your arms and
legs, gently in through your heart, gently out through your
(01:12):
body. And now let's begin.
This story is called Camping in September and it's about it's
still being summer, a waterfall all our own, and sweet, sweet
(01:33):
camping cereal. The air feels different as we
load the last bag into the car. It's still summer in the way the
afternoon sun warms the skin, but fall seeps in around the
edges on these September mornings.
(01:55):
This trip is our way of roundingout the last two months.
Cozy nights spent outside campfires in the dimming light.
A time to stretch in nature under the wide sky surrounding
us. We're on our way, and the drive
(02:16):
is part of the fun. The village falls away behind
us, the streets curving into roads through the hills, then
winding into the folds of the mountains.
The trees grow taller, the canopy thicker as we make our
way, the roadside grasses mixed with the dusting of yellow
(02:42):
golden rod. We keep the windows cracked to
let the air circulate on its own.
The road grows quieter. It feels like crossing into
another place entirely, even though we know it isn't far.
The campsite isn't full, but still has enough folks around to
(03:06):
add to the experience. A few tents are scattered
through the trees, some in mutedcolours, blending into the late
summer woods. Others can be seen further off.
We choose a space near the edge where the trees open just enough
(03:28):
to glimpse the Ridge of the mountains beyond.
Stepping out of the car, the ground is soft with pine
needles. The air smells like earth slowly
cooling down. It will warm up shortly, like
most days. Around this time, we set up the
(03:49):
black goat tent we bought this past spring, its walls fanning
out smooth and dark against the dappled sun.
It will keep out the morning sunif we want, but for now we leave
the flap open to air it out. It's easy to set up and we have
(04:10):
it down pat by now. Inside, the sleeping bags puff
as we shake them out. Laying them side by side.
We put the smaller things into place.
Lanterns, bags of folded clothesand a backpack with a deck of
(04:31):
cards and other small games. The food we leave in the car,
out of sight and scent of curious animals.
We duck through the zipper door,back outside and breathe in.
The weekend is ours. We set up lawn chairs by the
(04:52):
fire pit and unload the bit of wood we'd bought at the camps
office. We sit for a few minutes,
feeling like our home for the next few days is ready to settle
into. Wanting to Snoop around, we
follow the path that winds away from the campsite.
(05:15):
It leads through tall ferns and over stones covered with Moss,
the air extra fresh beneath the still green trees.
The sound comes first, a hushed rushing of water, soft and
steady. Then the trees start to thin and
(05:36):
a waterfall appears. It spills white over the rocks
not too high up into a clear pool below.
Prepped for this with bathing suits on, we leave our clothes
folded on the rocks and step into the water.
(05:56):
It's warmer than we were expecting.
We thought we might just get in long enough to say we did it,
but it's comfortable and not a shock to the system at all.
We make the short swim towards the falling water, reaching out
to touch the cascade, letting itsplash over us.
(06:20):
It's a refreshing curtain that massages our shoulders, heads
and backs. We say things to each other that
neither one of us hears, but we know the context.
Emerging from the falls, laughing, eyes squinting in the
spray and the sun. We stay in the pool part for a
(06:44):
while, still impressed with the waters warmth.
We lie on the sun warmed rocks until the afternoon stretches
thin and the shadows lengthen. Time to pull our clothes back on
and make our way back along the trail.
(07:05):
The campsite glows golden when we return, the low sun still
hanging on after hot showers in the newly built facility.
We build a small fire in the growing dusk.
The wood catches with a crackle,smoke curling upward with no
(07:28):
breeze to night. Watching the flames mostly in
silence, we let it settle into coals and stretch our legs
towards the heat. The front office thoughtfully
provided thin sticks sharpened enough for marshmallows, and we
hold them just above the embers.The goal is usually to toast
(07:53):
them to a beautiful brown, but sometimes we don't catch them in
time before they get to the crispy phase.
Just as yummy in my opinion. We blow them out and slide the
sweetness between 2 Graham crackers and squares of
chocolate. The chocolate softens, the
(08:16):
marshmallow tries to stay in place, and it tastes like
summer. The sky continues to darken.
Stars show themselves 1 by 1. The fire keeps us warm, and the
night settles around us. We sit back and tilt our heads
(08:38):
up, eyes scanning over constellations whose names
escape us. The sounds change as night time
expands. I like that we can hear the
other campers close by, laughingover their own stories.
The fire winds down and so do we.
(09:01):
We gather things up to store in the car and slip inside the
tent, thankful for the convenience of the lanterns.
We pulled the sleeping bags up around our shoulders,
whispering, even though regular voices wouldn't disturb anyone.
(09:21):
There's something about being ina sleeping bag in a tent that
makes you feel like a kid camping out in your backyard.
The blackout fabric will be appreciated come morning, and it
muffles the outside world just enough.
And just as kids do, we chat andgiggle with each other,
(09:46):
continuing to whisper as if we'll soon be shushed to settle
down by the adults still sittingaround the fire.
The talking from the other campers flows down around us and
there are longer gaps in our ownconversation.
We say our good nights and look forward to our tiny boxes of
(10:11):
camping cereal in the morning. My heart is full, my eyes are
heavy and sleep comes easily. Camping in September, the air
(10:31):
feels different as we load the last bag into the car.
It's still summer in the way theafternoon sun warms the skin,
but fall seeps in around the edges on these September
mornings. This trip is our way of rounding
out the last two months. Cozy nights spent outside
(10:57):
campfires in the dimming light. A time to stretch in nature
under the wide sky surrounding us.
We're on our way, and the drive is part of the fun.
The village falls away behind us, the streets curving into
roads through the hills, then winding into the folds of the
(11:21):
mountains. The trees grow taller, the
canopy thicker as we make our way, the roadside grasses mixed
with the dusting of yellow golden rod.
We keep the windows cracked to let the air circulate on its
own. The road grows quieter.
(11:46):
It feels like crossing into another place entirely, even
though we know it isn't far. The campsite isn't full, but
still has enough folks around toadd to the experience.
A few tents are scattered through the trees, some in muted
(12:08):
colours, blending into the late summer woods.
Others can be seen further off. We choose a space near the edge
where the trees open just enoughto glimpse the Ridge of the
mountains beyond. Stepping out of the car, the
ground is soft with pine needles.
(12:30):
The air smells like earth slowlycooling down.
It will warm up shortly, like most days.
Around this time, we set up the black goat tent we bought this
past spring, its walls fanning out smooth and dark against the
dappled sun. It will keep out the morning sun
(12:54):
if we want, but for now we leavethe flap open to air it out.
It's easy to set up and we have it down pat by now.
Inside, the sleeping bags puff as we shake them out.
Laying them side by side. We put the smaller things into
(13:17):
place. Lanterns, bags of folded clothes
and a backpack with a deck of cards and other small games.
The food we leave in the car, out of sight and scent of
curious animals. We duck through the zipper door,
back outside and breathe in. The weekend is ours.
(13:43):
We set up lawn chairs by the fire pit and unload the bit of
wood we'd bought at the camps office.
We sit for a few minutes, feeling like our home for the
next few days is ready to settleinto.
Wanting to Snoop around, we follow the path that winds away
(14:05):
from the campsite. It leads through tall ferns and
over stones covered with Moss, the air extra fresh beneath the
still green trees. The sound comes first, a hushed
rushing of water, soft and steady.
(14:26):
Then the trees start to thin anda waterfall appears.
It spills white over the rocks not too high up into a clear
pool below. Prepped for this with bathing
suits on, we leave our clothes folded on the rocks and step
(14:47):
into the water. It's warmer than we were
expecting. We thought we might just get in
long enough to say we did it, but it's comfortable and not a
shock to the system at all. We make the short swim towards
the falling water, reaching out to touch the cascade, letting it
(15:10):
splash over us. It's a refreshing curtain that
massages our shoulders, heads and backs.
We say things to each other thatneither one of us hears, but we
know the context. Emerging from the falls,
laughing, eyes squinting in the spray and the sun.
(15:35):
We stay in the pool part for a while, still impressed with the
waters warmth. We lie on the sun warmed rocks
until the afternoon stretches thin and the shadows lengthen.
Time to pull our clothes back onand make our way back along the
(15:56):
trail. The campsite glows golden when
we return, the low sun still hanging on after hot showers in
the newly built facility. We build a small fire in the
growing dusk. The wood catches with a crackle,
(16:18):
smoke curling upward with no breeze to night.
Watching the flames mostly in silence, we let it settle into
coals and stretch our legs towards the heat.
The front office thoughtfully provided thin sticks sharpened
enough for marshmallows, and we hold them just above the embers.
(16:43):
The goal is usually to toast them to a beautiful brown, but
sometimes we don't catch them intime before they get to the
crispy phase. Just as yummy in my opinion.
We blow them out and slide the sweetness between 2 Graham
crackers and squares of chocolate.
(17:07):
The chocolate softens, the marshmallow tries to stay in
place, and it tastes like summer.
The sky continues to darken. Stars show themselves 1 by 1.
The fire keeps us warm, and the night settles around us.
(17:28):
We sit back and tilt our heads up, eyes scanning over
constellations whose names escape us.
The sounds change as night time expands.
I like that we can hear the other campers close by, laughing
over their own stories. The fire winds down and so do
(17:53):
we. We gather things up to store in
the car and slip inside the tent, thankful for the
convenience of the lanterns. We pull the sleeping bags up
around our shoulders, whispering.
Even though regular voices wouldn't disturb anyone.
(18:14):
There's something about being ina sleeping bag in a tent that
makes you feel like a kid camping out in your backyard.
The blackout fabric will be appreciated come morning, and it
muffles the outside world just enough.
And just as kids do, we chat andgiggle with each other,
(18:39):
continuing to whisper as if we'll soon be shushed to settle
down by the adults still sittingaround the fire.
The talking from the other campers flows down around us and
there are longer gaps in our ownconversation.
We say our good nights and look forward to our tiny boxes of
(19:04):
camping cereal in the morning. My heart is full, my eyes are
heavy and sleep comes easily. I wish you sweet dreams.
Welcome to The Slow Life. I'm Jennifer Vino and I create,
narrate and design the soundscape of this village of
cosy stories to relax and unwind.
Each week I share an original story.
Read 2 times so you can relax even more during the second
(00:25):
reading. I'm happy to announce my
website, theslowlife.ca. It provides a space where we can
connect and I can bring you all things cozy.
Let's settle in with some easy breathing at your own pace.
(00:48):
With each inhale, let fresh air fill the space around your
heart. With each exhale, feel the calm
air spread through your body andflow out through your arms and
legs, gently in through your heart, gently out through your
(01:12):
body. And now let's begin.
This story is called Camping in September and it's about it's
still being summer, a waterfall all our own, and sweet, sweet
(01:33):
camping cereal. The air feels different as we
load the last bag into the car. It's still summer in the way the
afternoon sun warms the skin, but fall seeps in around the
edges on these September mornings.
(01:55):
This trip is our way of roundingout the last two months.
Cozy nights spent outside campfires in the dimming light.
A time to stretch in nature under the wide sky surrounding
us. We're on our way, and the drive
(02:16):
is part of the fun. The village falls away behind
us, the streets curving into roads through the hills, then
winding into the folds of the mountains.
The trees grow taller, the canopy thicker as we make our
way, the roadside grasses mixed with the dusting of yellow
(02:42):
golden rod. We keep the windows cracked to
let the air circulate on its own.
The road grows quieter. It feels like crossing into
another place entirely, even though we know it isn't far.
The campsite isn't full, but still has enough folks around to
(03:06):
add to the experience. A few tents are scattered
through the trees, some in mutedcolours, blending into the late
summer woods. Others can be seen further off.
We choose a space near the edge where the trees open just enough
(03:28):
to glimpse the Ridge of the mountains beyond.
Stepping out of the car, the ground is soft with pine
needles. The air smells like earth slowly
cooling down. It will warm up shortly, like
most days. Around this time, we set up the
(03:49):
black goat tent we bought this past spring, its walls fanning
out smooth and dark against the dappled sun.
It will keep out the morning sunif we want, but for now we leave
the flap open to air it out. It's easy to set up and we have
(04:10):
it down pat by now. Inside, the sleeping bags puff
as we shake them out. Laying them side by side.
We put the smaller things into place.
Lanterns, bags of folded clothesand a backpack with a deck of
(04:31):
cards and other small games. The food we leave in the car,
out of sight and scent of curious animals.
We duck through the zipper door,back outside and breathe in.
The weekend is ours. We set up lawn chairs by the
(04:52):
fire pit and unload the bit of wood we'd bought at the camps
office. We sit for a few minutes,
feeling like our home for the next few days is ready to settle
into. Wanting to Snoop around, we
follow the path that winds away from the campsite.
(05:15):
It leads through tall ferns and over stones covered with Moss,
the air extra fresh beneath the still green trees.
The sound comes first, a hushed rushing of water, soft and
steady. Then the trees start to thin and
(05:36):
a waterfall appears. It spills white over the rocks
not too high up into a clear pool below.
Prepped for this with bathing suits on, we leave our clothes
folded on the rocks and step into the water.
(05:56):
It's warmer than we were expecting.
We thought we might just get in long enough to say we did it,
but it's comfortable and not a shock to the system at all.
We make the short swim towards the falling water, reaching out
to touch the cascade, letting itsplash over us.
(06:20):
It's a refreshing curtain that massages our shoulders, heads
and backs. We say things to each other that
neither one of us hears, but we know the context.
Emerging from the falls, laughing, eyes squinting in the
spray and the sun. We stay in the pool part for a
(06:44):
while, still impressed with the waters warmth.
We lie on the sun warmed rocks until the afternoon stretches
thin and the shadows lengthen. Time to pull our clothes back on
and make our way back along the trail.
(07:05):
The campsite glows golden when we return, the low sun still
hanging on after hot showers in the newly built facility.
We build a small fire in the growing dusk.
The wood catches with a crackle,smoke curling upward with no
(07:28):
breeze to night. Watching the flames mostly in
silence, we let it settle into coals and stretch our legs
towards the heat. The front office thoughtfully
provided thin sticks sharpened enough for marshmallows, and we
hold them just above the embers.The goal is usually to toast
(07:53):
them to a beautiful brown, but sometimes we don't catch them in
time before they get to the crispy phase.
Just as yummy in my opinion. We blow them out and slide the
sweetness between 2 Graham crackers and squares of
chocolate. The chocolate softens, the
(08:16):
marshmallow tries to stay in place, and it tastes like
summer. The sky continues to darken.
Stars show themselves 1 by 1. The fire keeps us warm, and the
night settles around us. We sit back and tilt our heads
(08:38):
up, eyes scanning over constellations whose names
escape us. The sounds change as night time
expands. I like that we can hear the
other campers close by, laughingover their own stories.
The fire winds down and so do we.
(09:01):
We gather things up to store in the car and slip inside the
tent, thankful for the convenience of the lanterns.
We pulled the sleeping bags up around our shoulders,
whispering, even though regular voices wouldn't disturb anyone.
(09:21):
There's something about being ina sleeping bag in a tent that
makes you feel like a kid camping out in your backyard.
The blackout fabric will be appreciated come morning, and it
muffles the outside world just enough.
And just as kids do, we chat andgiggle with each other,
(09:46):
continuing to whisper as if we'll soon be shushed to settle
down by the adults still sittingaround the fire.
The talking from the other campers flows down around us and
there are longer gaps in our ownconversation.
We say our good nights and look forward to our tiny boxes of
(10:11):
camping cereal in the morning. My heart is full, my eyes are
heavy and sleep comes easily. Camping in September, the air
(10:31):
feels different as we load the last bag into the car.
It's still summer in the way theafternoon sun warms the skin,
but fall seeps in around the edges on these September
mornings. This trip is our way of rounding
out the last two months. Cozy nights spent outside
(10:57):
campfires in the dimming light. A time to stretch in nature
under the wide sky surrounding us.
We're on our way, and the drive is part of the fun.
The village falls away behind us, the streets curving into
roads through the hills, then winding into the folds of the
(11:21):
mountains. The trees grow taller, the
canopy thicker as we make our way, the roadside grasses mixed
with the dusting of yellow golden rod.
We keep the windows cracked to let the air circulate on its
own. The road grows quieter.
(11:46):
It feels like crossing into another place entirely, even
though we know it isn't far. The campsite isn't full, but
still has enough folks around toadd to the experience.
A few tents are scattered through the trees, some in muted
(12:08):
colours, blending into the late summer woods.
Others can be seen further off. We choose a space near the edge
where the trees open just enoughto glimpse the Ridge of the
mountains beyond. Stepping out of the car, the
ground is soft with pine needles.
(12:30):
The air smells like earth slowlycooling down.
It will warm up shortly, like most days.
Around this time, we set up the black goat tent we bought this
past spring, its walls fanning out smooth and dark against the
dappled sun. It will keep out the morning sun
(12:54):
if we want, but for now we leavethe flap open to air it out.
It's easy to set up and we have it down pat by now.
Inside, the sleeping bags puff as we shake them out.
Laying them side by side. We put the smaller things into
(13:17):
place. Lanterns, bags of folded clothes
and a backpack with a deck of cards and other small games.
The food we leave in the car, out of sight and scent of
curious animals. We duck through the zipper door,
back outside and breathe in. The weekend is ours.
(13:43):
We set up lawn chairs by the fire pit and unload the bit of
wood we'd bought at the camps office.
We sit for a few minutes, feeling like our home for the
next few days is ready to settleinto.
Wanting to Snoop around, we follow the path that winds away
(14:05):
from the campsite. It leads through tall ferns and
over stones covered with Moss, the air extra fresh beneath the
still green trees. The sound comes first, a hushed
rushing of water, soft and steady.
(14:26):
Then the trees start to thin anda waterfall appears.
It spills white over the rocks not too high up into a clear
pool below. Prepped for this with bathing
suits on, we leave our clothes folded on the rocks and step
(14:47):
into the water. It's warmer than we were
expecting. We thought we might just get in
long enough to say we did it, but it's comfortable and not a
shock to the system at all. We make the short swim towards
the falling water, reaching out to touch the cascade, letting it
(15:10):
splash over us. It's a refreshing curtain that
massages our shoulders, heads and backs.
We say things to each other thatneither one of us hears, but we
know the context. Emerging from the falls,
laughing, eyes squinting in the spray and the sun.
(15:35):
We stay in the pool part for a while, still impressed with the
waters warmth. We lie on the sun warmed rocks
until the afternoon stretches thin and the shadows lengthen.
Time to pull our clothes back onand make our way back along the
(15:56):
trail. The campsite glows golden when
we return, the low sun still hanging on after hot showers in
the newly built facility. We build a small fire in the
growing dusk. The wood catches with a crackle,
(16:18):
smoke curling upward with no breeze to night.
Watching the flames mostly in silence, we let it settle into
coals and stretch our legs towards the heat.
The front office thoughtfully provided thin sticks sharpened
enough for marshmallows, and we hold them just above the embers.
(16:43):
The goal is usually to toast them to a beautiful brown, but
sometimes we don't catch them intime before they get to the
crispy phase. Just as yummy in my opinion.
We blow them out and slide the sweetness between 2 Graham
crackers and squares of chocolate.
(17:07):
The chocolate softens, the marshmallow tries to stay in
place, and it tastes like summer.
The sky continues to darken. Stars show themselves 1 by 1.
The fire keeps us warm, and the night settles around us.
(17:28):
We sit back and tilt our heads up, eyes scanning over
constellations whose names escape us.
The sounds change as night time expands.
I like that we can hear the other campers close by, laughing
over their own stories. The fire winds down and so do
(17:53):
we. We gather things up to store in
the car and slip inside the tent, thankful for the
convenience of the lanterns. We pull the sleeping bags up
around our shoulders, whispering.
Even though regular voices wouldn't disturb anyone.
(18:14):
There's something about being ina sleeping bag in a tent that
makes you feel like a kid camping out in your backyard.
The blackout fabric will be appreciated come morning, and it
muffles the outside world just enough.
And just as kids do, we chat andgiggle with each other,
(18:39):
continuing to whisper as if we'll soon be shushed to settle
down by the adults still sittingaround the fire.
The talking from the other campers flows down around us and
there are longer gaps in our ownconversation.
We say our good nights and look forward to our tiny boxes of
(19:04):
camping cereal in the morning. My heart is full, my eyes are
heavy and sleep comes easily. I wish you sweet dreams.
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