Chapter 1 THE CAMPING BEGINS!

  Honk! Honk!

  Henry hugged his parents good-bye and ran out to the car. He squeezed into the back seat between his best friends, Dudley Day and Max Maplethorpe.

  “Ready for some camping?” Dudley’s dad asked from the driver’s seat.

  “YES!” Henry, Dudley, and Max cheered.

  This was Henry’s very first camping trip ever, and he had a lot of questions. “Do we have to bathe in a river?” he asked.

  Max giggled. “No baths. It’s only one night.”

  Henry pumped his fist. “So no brushing our teeth either?”

  “Nice try,” Dudley replied. “No smelly breaths allowed!”

  Henry shrugged. “Hey, I like marshmallow breath! But speaking of smelly… will there be SKUNKS?”

  Dudley’s mom turned around to face the back seat. “In all our years of camping, we’ve never seen a skunk. But do you know what to do if you see one?”

  Dudley and Max knew the answer. “Don’t panic! Stay quiet! And back away slowly!”

  Henry repeated this to himself so he wouldn’t forget. “Wow, you both are camping EXPERTS,” he said.

  He hoped he would be a camping expert by the end of the trip too.

  After a while they turned onto a dirt road. They bumped along through the woods until they stopped at a clearing.

  “Let the camping adventure begin!” Dudley said.

  Chapter 2 NATURE POINTS

  The campsite had a firepit, a camp stove, and a picnic table.

  “Let’s get a fire going!” said Dudley’s dad. “Can you collect some sticks? The drier the better!”

  Henry turned to his friends. “Last one to gather ten sticks is a burnt marshmallow!”

  They all ran in different directions to collect sticks.

  Soon they had a big pile beside the firepit.

  “Look at THIS!” Max said, kneeling beside the trunk of a tree.

  The two boys sprinted over. Max pointed at the trunk. “It’s a lizard!” she said.

  The lizard had stripes on its back, which matched the bark perfectly. “If you hadn’t pointed it out, I never would have seen it!” said Henry.

  The lizard zipped down the tree and disappeared into the leaves.

  “That’s worth THREE nature points!” said Dudley.

  “What’s a nature point?” Henry asked.

  “It’s a camping game,” Dudley explained. “If you spot a cool plant or animal, you get nature points. Everyone else decides how many points to give. It all depends on how cool the thing is.”

  “Is there a prize for getting the most nature points?” asked Henry.

  Dudley shook his head. “No, we just play for fun.”

  Max had an idea. “What if the person with the MOST nature points gets an extra s’more tonight?”

  “Okay!” Henry and Dudley agreed.

  Henry couldn’t wait to eat an ooey-gooey s’more cooked over a campfire.

  But he was already three nature points behind Max. He needed to start spying some cool nature stuff… now!

  Chapter 3 A TUMBLING TENT

  WHOOSH! A gust of wind blew through the campsite.

  Dudley’s parents had just assembled the tent. The only problem was, they hadn’t staked it to the ground yet.

  The tent cartwheeled away toward the trees.

  “Catch it!” Dudley shouted. Everyone sprinted after the tumbling tent.

  The tent rolled toward Henry. He didn’t exactly stop it, but he did grab one of the tent poles until everyone else caught up to him.

  “Nice save!” said Max.

  Dudley’s dad shook a finger at the tent. “Bad tent! You’re on a time-out!”

  He dragged the naughty tent back and hammered the stakes into the ground.

  Once they finished setting everything up, Dudley’s mom suggested a hike. Dudley’s dad stayed behind to make dinner.

  On the trail, Henry hopped over roots and searched for cool wildlife.

  It was time to get some nature points!

  Dudley found something first. It was a plant with glossy leaves and purple berries.

  “Those berries are called elderberries,” said Dudley’s mom. “They’re a common plant around here. One nature point!”

  Max found some gigantic mushrooms and got two more nature points.

  Henry kicked a root. I’d better find something soon, he thought, because now I’m REALLY far behind!

  Soon the woods opened to a river.

  “I wish we had swimsuits. Then we could jump in the water!” said Dudley.

  Max stuck her hand in the water. “Only a POLAR BEAR would jump in this water!”

  Henry pointed to a pile of leaves along the riverbank.

  “We can jump in these leaves instead,” he said.

  But when he jumped, the leaves were wet and mushy.

  Henry pulled his feet out of the pile one at a time. SLORP! SLURP! “Yuck!” he cried.

  His socks felt soggy and wet. And what was worse, he didn’t have one single nature point. Grrrr!

  Chapter 4 ONE MUDDY SOCK

  The three friends climbed on top of a large rock and drank from their water bottles.

  That’s when Henry saw something twitch on the rock. “Hey, another lizard!” he said.

  Dudley gasped, but not because of the lizard. A dragonfly had landed on top of his water bottle.

  They all admired how the dragonfly’s double wings shimmered in the sun.

  “Three nature points for the dragonfly!” said Max. “Only one point for the lizard, since we already saw one.”

  Henry knew Max was right. A second lizard wasn’t worth as much as the first.

  He slid off the rock and wandered away. Maybe he could spot something a little farther away before Dudley or Max found it first.

  Something was glowing up ahead. What could THAT be? Henry wondered. Whatever it was, he hoped it was worth a ton of nature points.

  Henry followed the glowing light behind some boulders. He gasped. It was his magic book!

  “Boy, am I ever glad to see YOU, Magic Book!”

  The book floated to Henry. The medallion popped off the cover, and the chain swirled around his neck. Then the book opened, and the pages fluttered until they stopped on a spell.

  The Wonderful Wildlife Spell!

  Is your camping trip letting you down? Do you wish you could impress your friends with your wildlife discoveries? If you are looking to spot more wildlife, then this is the spell for you!

  Ingredients:

  1 muddy sock

  3 dry twigs

  2 squirts of sunscreen

  1 green acorn

  Place the ingredients into a neat pile on the ground. Put one hand over the pile. Hold your medallion in your other hand and chant the following spell:

  Mammals and birds, I’ll spy!

  Along the trails, oh my!

  With this wildlife spell, I’ll see all living things on the count of three!

  One! Two! Three!

  Henry quickly gathered three twigs and a green acorn and started a pile. Then he unzipped his backpack and pulled out his sunscreen. Squirt! Squirt!

  All he needed now was a muddy sock. Lucky for him, he had two of them! He pulled off one of his muddy socks and dropped it on the pile.

  Holding his medallion in one hand, Henry placed his other hand over the pile. He chanted the spell.

  POOF! Some magic sparkles swirled around the pile, and the ingredients disappeared.

  “Henryyyyy!” Dudley’s voice called.

  “Coming!” Henry yelled. He quickly shut the magic book, and—swoosh!—it took off into the sky.

  When Henry returned to his friends, Max stared at his feet. “Why are you only wearing ONE sock?”

  “Um, because the OTHER sock got wet when I jumped in those leaves!” Henry said. “I had to take it off.”

  The four hikers began to head back to the campsite. Henry kept a lookout for wildlife the whole way.

  Now that I’ve cast a spell, maybe I’ll spot something amazing, like a moose, a bear, or even a bobcat!

  Mrrr-oooow!

  Chapter 5 TRACK STAR

  Henry didn’t spy a single cool plant or animal on the way back.

  That’s weird, he thought. Even with magic, I still can’t win nature points!

  The friends did see some cool shadows on the trail. They also saw pine cones and more acorns.

  “Hey, there’s a fork in the trail,” said Henry. One trail went right back to camp. The other trail went another way.

  Dudley, Max, and Dudley’s mom turned onto the shorter trail. Henry ran toward the longer trail.

  “Wrong way, Henry!” Max called.

  But Henry didn’t turn around. He had already spied something on the other trail. “Come see!”

  Henry knelt down to look closely at what he’d found. An animal has been here, he thought. But what kind?

  His friends joined him. “Animal tracks!” cried Max.

  Dudley and his mom didn’t know what kind of animal had left the tracks either. “Could it be dragon tracks?” Dudley asked.

  Henry looked around. “No,” he said. “None of the trees have scorch marks from dragon fire.”

  “Maybe it was Bigfoot on tippy-toes?” Max suggested.

  But Dudley frowned. “Why would Bigfoot need to walk on tiptoes?”

  They decided to memorize the tracks so they could draw them back at the campsite. Maybe Dudley’s dad would know what kind of animal had walked by.

  “Henry should get three points for the animal tracks!” Max said. Dudley agreed.

  Henry added up the points in his head. He and Dudley had four points each. Max had five.

  Well, at least I’m TIED for last now! Henry thought.

  But still, not even a little magic had helped him earn an extra s’more.

  Chapter 6 BETTER OUTSIDE

  Back at the campsite, the friends drew the animal tracks in the dirt. Dudley drew an oval track.

  “No, no, no,” Max said. “It looked more like THIS.”

  She drew smaller tracks that were closer together.

  Henry’s tracks looked like upside-down hearts, split down the middle.

  Dudley’s dad studied the drawings. “Looks like deer tracks,” he said.

  Henry, Dudley, and Max sighed. A deer wasn’t bad, but they had hoped for something more interesting.

  For dinner, everyone sat on the logs around the campfire. Dudley’s dad served chili into bowls. Dudley’s mom passed around shredded cheese, sour cream, and cornbread.

  Henry smacked his lips. “Why does food taste BETTER outside?”

  Max bounced on the log. “EVERYTHING is better outside!”

  After dinner Henry set the marshmallows, graham crackers, and chocolate bars on the picnic table.

  He made a promise to himself: I will not be a sore loser in the Nature Points game.

  “Cleanup time!” Dudley’s mom called.

  Everyone had a special task. Dudley scraped leftover food into a pail. Dudley’s mom washed the dishes.

  Dudley’s dad rinsed, Henry dried, and Max stacked the dishes in a plastic tub.

  Wow, thought Henry. Even doing dishes is fun when you’re camping!

  That’s when Henry heard something rustle in the woods.

  “Did you guys hear that?” he said.

  “Are you trying to scare us?” Max said, laughing.

  Henry shook his head and pointed toward the woods.

  “Shhhh!” he whispered.

  Scrinch! Scrunch! Scrinch!

  They watched something big and shadowy tromp out of the woods.…

  Chapter 7 A MAGICAL BOND

  “A GIANT deer!” Henry whispered. He counted eleven points on its antlers.

  Dudley’s mom laid her hand on Henry’s shoulder. “That’s not a deer, Henry. It’s an elk.”

  Dudley grabbed his dad’s arm. “What should we do?”

  His dad put a finger to his lips. “Same thing you would do for a skunk.”

  Henry remembered. Don’t panic, stay quiet, and back away slowly.

  The elk walked around the picnic table and sniffed the s’mores ingredients. Henry wondered if it was hungry for dessert.

  Scrinch! Scrunch! Scrinch! Another elk appeared. This one was smaller and didn’t have antlers.

  “A cow!” Dudley whispered.

  Henry tried not to laugh. “That’s not a COW!”

  Dudley whapped Henry. “No, silly! A female elk is called a cow. A male is called a bull.”

  Max glared at the boys. “Be quiet, guys!”

  The cow bobbed her head at the bull. She looked like she was trying to say Time to go. But then she stopped and looked right at Henry.

  Henry held his breath. She’s staring at ME! he thought. Don’t panic, stay quiet… what was the third thing again?

  Bump! The bull sideswiped the picnic table. The box of graham crackers fell to the ground.

  The sound made the cow look away from Henry.

  Then the two elk trotted back into the woods.

  “Phew!” Henry let out his breath. “I’m sure glad they don’t like s’mores!”

  Chapter 8 THE COOKIES CRUMBLE

  Henry ran back to the picnic table. On the ground he saw the same animal tracks that he’d spotted earlier.

  They hadn’t been deer tracks. They had been elk tracks!

  “One million nature points for Henry!” Dudley declared. “He heard the elk first.”

  Max nodded. “And that cow looked right AT Henry. It was like they had a magical bond!”

  “I guess that cow knew not to MOOSE around with me!” Henry joked.

  But he secretly wondered if Max was right. Had he lured the elk to the campsite with his spell?

  Dudley tore open the bag of marshmallows.

  “Henry is the winner of the Nature Points game. TWO s’mores for him!” Max said.

  The three of them poked marshmallows onto skewers.

  Henry held his skewer over the fire. The marshmallows took forever to brown. He pushed them closer to the fire.

  Poof! The two marshmallows caught fire and turned into ash!

  Dudley handed the bag of marshmallows to Henry. “Try again!”

  This time Henry was more patient. He slowly rotated his stick. Soon his marshmallows were golden on all sides.

  “Now for graham crackers and chocolate!” said Max.

  Henry rested his skewer against a rock and opened the box of graham crackers.

  Then he gasped. The graham crackers had broken into a thousand pieces. It must have happened when the elk knocked it off the picnic table.

  Dudley laughed. “Well, I guess THAT’S the way the cookies crumble!”

  But Henry and Max didn’t think it was funny. They thought it was crummy.

  Chapter 9 S’MOREZY!

  Henry had come all this way for his first camping trip. He wasn’t going to let some broken graham crackers ruin his first campfire s’mores experience!

  He dumped the graham cracker bits into a bowl. Then he asked Dudley’s mom if they could melt chocolate bars.

  Dudley’s mom placed some unwrapped chocolate bars in a pan over the fire. Meanwhile, the three friends roasted more marshmallows.

  “What are you up to, Henry?” Dudley asked.

  Max twirled her stick. “Are we going to dip our marshmallows in the melted chocolate?”

  Henry grinned. “Even better! Watch this!”

  Henry dipped the toasted marshmallows in the melted chocolate. Then he rolled the chocolatey marshmallows into the crushed graham crackers.

  “Ta-da!” Henry said, holding up his creation.

  Dudley and Max followed his example. “A s’more on a stick!” cried Dudley.

  Max took a bite of hers. “It’s genius! What are you going to name it?”

  Henry tapped his chin. “How about Henry’z S’morezy Surprize?”

  Dudley and Max laughed. “That’s a mouthful to say and a mouthful to eat!” Max said.

  The best part was that there was enough for everyone to make as many s’morezy surprises as they wanted.

  That meant everyone got a prize. Not just Henry!

  Chapter 10 HAPPY CAMPERS

  Henry, Dudley, and Max brushed their teeth. Then they entered the tent and wriggled into their sleeping bags.

  Dudley’s dad switched off the lantern.

  The woods were darker than any place Henry had ever been! At home there was always a little light from the streetlamps outside his window.

  Henry peered through the tent’s skylight. “Wow, I can see the Big Dipper!”

 

1 2