Livingston, Montana

Livingston, Montana

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Osen’s RV Park, Livingston

Our drive up to Livingston began with a visit to Mammoth Hot Springs in Yellowstone. After leaving the park and Wyoming, the highway followed the Yellowstone River all the way up to Livingston Montana. After driving through a mountain pass, we entered Paradise Valley. Wow, it was so beautiful with the Absaroka Mountains and the Gallatin National Forest on the east and the Madison Mountains on the west. There were several small towns along the way. As we approached Livingston, we passed through Rock Canyon, which was another amazing landscape. We arrived at the RV park, which was just a couple of miles outside the city limits. It was off the highway and back in a residential area. The park was well kept, with grassy areas around the camp sites. We setup our rig in the assigned space, which we really liked as it was along the edge of the park and there were no RVs behind us. There were some trees that also provided shade, as it was a warm day. The dogs enjoyed the grassy areas to hang out under the awning. The owners were very nice and helpful upon check in. They let us know they would be hosting a July 4^th barbeque for all the people staying at the park.

After getting settled, we needed to go to town for some groceries and to get oriented in this western town.  The town was hosting a large Independence Day celebration, beginning that day with a parade through downtown. We were sorry we didn’t make it there in time for the parade, as this is a big deal in Livingston! We checked out the events that would be taking place over the next three days. There was an art festival and the Livingston Rodeo Roundup followed by fireworks for all three days. It was going to be an exciting Independence Day celebration! We stopped in a liquor store downtown and purchased our necessities for the week. There was an adjoining bar, called The Office. This was a big hang out for the locals. When we returned to the RV park, I called our friend Annie Turner, who lives in Livingston and was the one that suggested that we come up this way, since we were going to be so close in Wyoming. She was working and would be each day, except for the 4th, so we made plans to get together the on that day.
We learned some history of Livingston while researching the events and the local area. The town was built around the railroad, which also brought industry to the area.  After Yellowstone was designated as the first National Park, the town soon grew bigger as it became the first gateway to Yellowstone. Visitors came into Livingston from the east by train and then changed to another train that went south into the Park. Thus, the growth of tourism in the area. Beyond that, we just fell in love with this western town that still had much of the original buildings and that old western feel.
The next day, Kurt rode his bike into town to visit the Chamber of Commerce. He was able to purchase the rodeo tickets, which we decided to go to on the 3^rd since the 4^th was already sold out. He also inquired about kayaking the Yellowstone River and shuttle services. When he returned, we decided to drive around town to explore some of the river access points for put in or take out. We found that Livingston has a really nice dog park along the river, where you can let the dogs run off leash. They can also get in the river to play and cool off. We also drove south outside of town along the Yellowstone to look at river access points in that area. With the help of a great river map, we were able to determine where we would put in and take out. The shuttle services here simply drive your vehicle to the take out, which made it so easy. On our way back to the campground, we stopped in the grocery and saw Annie. It was the first time we had seen her since February in Chokoloskee. We were excited about getting together with her and Lou the next day. After getting some dinner, we headed out to the rodeo. We decided to go early into downtown and have a drink, then walk to the fairgrounds. This was only about a couple of miles from where we parked.
It was exciting to go into the rodeo arena and see the cowboys and the local people enjoying the festivities. The rodeo is an annual event in Livingston and there were some top qualifying cowboys there. We saw bucking broncos, steer wrestling, ladies barrel riding, team calf roping, ladies stunt riding and of course, bull riding. The events were very fun to watch and there was some great competition! The rodeo ended with a great fireworks show that everyone enjoyed.
On July 4^th, we drove over to Annie’s house for a visit around noon. They were enjoying a day off work and getting some gardening done. It was great to see them again and have a couple of drinks together. They have two awesome dogs, one golden retriever (Jeff) and another large black lab (Jenny). We brought our dogs with us, and after the initial butt sniffing, everyone was okay with each other (the dogs that is). It was nice to get to know them a little better, as we had only briefly met them in Chokoloskee. We all decided to get together later downtown at The Office and have some drinks. We headed back to camp and returned in time for the barbeque provided by the campground owners. It was very nice with typical barbeque menu and we met some of the other visitors to the camp. We met Annie & Lou at The Office around 6pm and enjoyed the conversation and live music. After a couple of hours, Kurt and I decided we wanted to go down by the river and watch the fireworks show. Annie and Lou decided to head home. We took our cooler and chairs to a nice park along the Yellowstone River, just a few blocks from the rodeo grounds. We sat there and enjoyed the river sounds and then the fireworks display. It was a great way to end the Independence Day celebration.
The next morning, we gathered our stuff for hiking and headed south to a hiking trail in the Gallatin Forest in the Absaroka Mountains. We drove up a gravel road through the hills and forest, then back into the valley to the trailhead, near a campground. This was a hike called Pine Creek, as the trail followed the creek. It was about a 5 mile round trip back up to the waterfall. It began as a nice forest hike along the creek and then quickly changed to a steep climb up into the waterfall area. It was a very beautiful hike. When we arrived at the waterfall, it was very high and wide, with a nice footbridge that crossed the rocky creek at the base. When we crossed over the bridge, there was the other side of the falls. It split near the top, so there were two waterfall features, each one as beautiful as the other with many terraced ledges. I hung out by the waterfall while Kurt continued up a steeper trail that led to the top of the waterfall. After that, we headed back down the trail as it was getting very cloudy and overcast. In the distance we did hear some thunder, so we made it down the trail quickly. Just as we made it to the truck, the rain and storms came down on us. This was one of our favorite hikes on this whole trip. It was also in bear country, so we were hiking with the trusty bear spray. There were quite a few hikers on this trail, so we were not too concerned with a bear encounter. After this hike, we headed back to camp for lunch. We then took the dogs down to the river dog park in town. They had a lot of fun running free and playing in the river. We so enjoyed our time by the river and playing with the dogs.
The last day of our stay in Livingston was our epic paddle on the Yellowstone River. We had been looking forward to getting our kayaks on this river, it was so exciting. We parked the truck at Mill Creek Bridge and paddled about 20 miles downstream to Carters Bridge, which was in Paradise Valley. Since the river was so swift and running about 7 – 10 mph, it only took us about 3 hours to complete. Wow, we were moving faster than we have ever paddled, encountering many Class 1 rapids. There were places along the river that ran slower and was very calm; and then the rapids, which were very exciting. We did get wet, but we really enjoyed this paddle! The river flowed through many ranch lands and also some very upscale home properties along the water. Apparently, there are quite a few celebrities and wealthy people that live (or have another home) in this area. The weather was perfect his day, sunny and not a cloud in the sky. At the end of the paddle, we were so glad that we were able to do this run. This will not be our last time to get on this river. We hope to come back to Montana in the next couple of years and stay for an extended amount of time.

After returning to camp, we called Annie to see if she wanted to meet us at a place along the river where there is access for swimming and hanging out. She had mentioned that she loves to take her dogs down here to play in the water.  It was only a couple of miles from our camp. She met us there and brought her golden retriever, Jeff. The dogs and us all had a great time, playing retrieve the stick and having some colds drinks! The dogs played well together and had a great time; this was a chance for our boys to get out have some fun.  We then headed back to camp to prepare for the next day’s move to Yellowstone, on the east side of the park. We would be heading to Fishing Bridge to tour that side of the park.

Yellowstone National Park - Madison Campground

Yellowstone National Park

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Madison Campground – West side of Yellowstone

We were having such a great time in Grand Teton, but we were scheduled to move on to Yellowstone. The drive was only about 90 miles, so it was easy and there were a few really nice stops for scenic views. The road ran along the Yellowstone River. After entering the park, we stopped at the Grant Village visitor center for research about kayaking in Yellowstone. We were directed to the backcountry office. They advised us that our kayaks would need a further inspection by their staff and an additional permit sticker. The good thing is that there was no charge for this permit. Also, we found out that we could not paddle on any river or creek in the park due to spawning trout. There were only two small lakes where we can paddle in a limited area, and cannot put our boats on any shoreline! Oh well, more government regulations! So we got the permits just in case we do decide to get on the water.

Upon arrival at Madison Campground, we were assigned a site that we were not able to fit our trailer into! They were able to give us another site, which turned out to be very nice. This is an older campground with no hook ups and typically smaller sites, not designed for today’s larger RVs with slide outs. We were fortunate again to have very nice RV neighbors for the time we were there. The first family staying next to us was from Helena Montana, and they gave us a huge pile of firewood that he didn’t want to carry home. That was awesome!

The next day we made plans to tour the various geyser basins. Along the way, we took the Firehole Canyon Road that ran along the Firehole River. This road had awesome views of the river and a large waterfall. This river also ran downstream behind the campground through a beautiful valley. We continued south to see Old Faithful. There was a village there that had shopping, grocery, fuel and lodging. It was very modern and well organized. This area was one where a cell signal was available, so I tried to take advantage of this and get to the internet to post pictures and my blog. There was a large concrete walkway all around the geyser with bench seating to handle hundreds of people. We walked through the Visitor Center to read about the geology and volcanic activity that created this landscape of this park. When the time of the expected eruption was near, we moved outside to the benches and picked our spot. The geyser did erupt about 10 minutes prior to the predicted time; it erupts approximately every 90 minutes, plus or minus 10 minutes. When the geyser did erupt, it was exciting, but only lasted a few minutes. Unfortunately, it was not the spectacular event that we had anticipated. But it was worth the time to come and see the great one in Yellowstone. As we drove to the next geyser basin, there was an awesome falls along the road. Kepler Cascades was close to the road and we took some great pictures.

The next location was a visit to Biscuit Basin, where there were several geysers and nice boardwalks to get to each one. This basin had some very amazing thermal features. Along with geysers, there were hot spring pools and fumaroles. Some had quite brilliant colors and others were simply boiling pools. However, all of them were wonders that we have never seen before.  The different colors are due to the minerals, bacteria and gases that make up the feature.

We continued down the road to a bike/hike trail that would take us back to the Lone Star Geyser. This was a great chance for us to ride our bikes down this 5 mile trail. It was an old forest road through beautiful lodgepole pine forest with a creek running along most of the trail. At one point, we had to park the bikes and then hike back into the geyser area. This conical geyser is second in size to Old Faithful, but has a 3 hour interval for eruptions. We were in luck with our timing as the geyser was nearing the end of the eruption. A ranger had told us that this one had a series of three eruptions before ending the cycle. We watched until the cycle was over and got some great pictures. This one actually impressed me more than Old Faithful. We then headed back on our bikes and continued the forest ride.

After a few hours of geyser gazing, we headed back to the camp for a rest and to let the dogs out. By the time we got back it was late afternoon and we were ready to relax for the evening. Our RV neighbors gave us a load of firewood, so after dinner Kurt made a campfire and we invited them over to enjoy it with us.  

The next day we wanted to do a hike back to Mystic Falls. The trailhead was at one end of Biscuit Basin, where we had been the previous day. It was warm and sunny when we got to the trailhead. The trail was flat at first and then began a steep climb up a lovely trail through forest. The waterfall was about 2.1 miles back and was well worth the steep hike. Mystic Falls is a cascading, 70 foot waterfall. Kurt hiked on up the trail, which lead to an overlook at the top of the falls. I stayed at the bottom of the falls and went back to the base of the falls, where I found a nice rock to sit on, cool off and relax. As I gazed at the falls, I saw trout trying to jump up over waterfall terraces. I’m not sure that any of them made it, but maybe some did. They are however, in spawning season! It was so relaxing. I saw Kurt at the overlook and he took some nice pictures.  After Kurt came back down, we headed back down the trail. After returning to camp, we again enjoyed our evening around the campfire.

Our last full activity day we decided to head to Fountain Flat drive and ride our bikes on a 6 mile round trip trail. The gravel service road was not the easiest to ride on, but we were heading to Fairy Falls. The trail followed Fairy Creek, which is in a beautiful valley surrounded by meadows. When we reached the trailhead, we parked the bikes and hiked on up the trail.  Again, the day was warm and the trail went through high desert, pines and sagebrush. The waterfall, which was about 100 feet high, created its own weather. It was like a big air conditioner was turned on, along with a cool, fine mist. We stayed there a little while to cool off.  It was very relaxing and a nice respite from the heat. We now had to hike/bike back to the truck. It was a wonderful trek through the wilderness. Along the trail, there was a lone bison bull grazing, so we got some pictures of him. We then drove north on the main road to the lower geyser basin, where the main geyser is named Fountain Paint Pot. The variety of geysers there were very different colors and types. There were hot pools, mud pots and fumaroles. After another day of geyser gazing, we were preparing for our trip north to Mammoth Hot Springs then on to Livingston Montana.

The next morning, we headed north toward Mammoth Hot Springs. On the drive up, we stopped at a waterfall overlook, Gibbon Falls, which is a gigantic cascading waterfall. The overlook was very large; so many people were stopped there to get a look and pictures. Moving on up the road, we were able to find an RV parking space in Mammoth Village. We walked up to the hot springs, which were amazing terraced hot springs/geysers. The boardwalk up and around the terraces was extensive as we were able to see all the features of this amazing hot springs. We spent about an hour there getting some great pictures. While we were in Mammoth Village, there was a small herd of elk roaming the grassy areas and having lunch. It was cool to see them up so close. We then moved onward toward Montana. We stopped in the town of Gardiner to get some lunch. We got take out salads and went back to the RV to eat. The dogs enjoyed a nice walk around the area. On to Livingston!

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Grand Teton National Park

Grand Teton National Park - Jackson, Wyoming

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Gros Ventre Campground

Our move a day early to Grand Teton was a great decision. The campground that we had decided on did not allow reservations, so it didn’t matter that we got there a day early. The drive to the park was absolutely amazing. The first part was still mostly the high desert, but then as we approached the Jackson, the landscape changed to lush, green, steep mountains. There were also beautiful meadows full of wild flowers. The road mostly followed the path of the Snake River. The river was awesome, wide and swift, with lots of rapids. The mountains became craggier as we moved northward.

As we entered the town of Jackson, we found this to be a lovely mountain town; however, it was very busy and crowded with tourists. Being a rather large mountain town, it has all the amenities that a resident or visitor would need. We made our way through town and the road construction (uhg) and headed out to Gros Ventre (Grow Vont) Campground. The drive passed through the lush sage brush valley on the south side of the Grand Teton National Park, with a view of the Teton Mountains on the west side of the park. This campground is the largest in Grand Teton. It has over 350 sites (RV and tents) and runs along the Gros Ventre River. The National Elk Preserve is on the other side of the river. The ranger station assigned a very nice site for us and it was very spacious. It backs up to the river, but not a river view. But this was great as there was no one behind us! Perfect! The campground does not have any electrical or water hook ups, so we filled our RV water tank prior to setup and then hooked up the generators for power and battery charging. The dogs loved the site as we let them run a little off leash, but had to be careful as the rangers are very strict about this rule. After we were setup, we walked the dogs back to the river (on leash) to check it out. The Gros Ventre is a fairly wide and swift river, especially now with the snow melt filling all the rivers in the area. This area is known to have lots of wildlife roam into the campground. This happened the first night. We saw two large juvenile moose come into the campground and were grazing on the plants. They approached an RV about 3 sites down and seemed to be very rowdy, playing and jumping around. They started to come toward our site, but then headed back to the river. It was awesome to see these moose up so close.

We prepared our dinner and got ready for bed. We were able to watch some TV with the air antenna (some local stations out of Idaho). We started planning our activities for the next three days that we would be here.

The next morning was very chilly and we decided to drive through the park and stop at a visitor center. We went to Moose Junction and stopped for information. We found there was a paved bike trail that goes up to Jenny Lake, so we took our bikes off the truck and headed up the 7 mile trail to the lake. What an awesome way to see this part of the park. There were many beautiful vistas that we took pictures of and enjoyed stopping along the way. There were some glaciers up in the mountains and we got some great pictures. We finally made it to Jenny Lake and the view was incredible. What a lovely lake with crystal clear and blue water. We had packed a sandwich lunch and found a rock to sit on by the lake. It was very peaceful and relaxing. We walked around the visitor’s area and looked at some historical information about the area. A ranger was able to provide information about kayaking on Jenny Lake, which would require a special permit for boating in the National Parks. We really wanted to get our kayaks in this lake for a paddle, so we thought the next day we could do a paddle across the lake and then hike up to some hidden falls. On our way back to camp, we drove down the Antelope Flats Road, and along the way there was a huge herd of bison crossing the road. There were quite a few cars stopped to get a look and pictures. And of course, Kurt wanted to get a closer look. He walked down the road and got within 75 feet of the bison that were on the road. Oh my, I was so mad at him! He knew better, but those of you that know him and that he is a crazy dare devil can understand. I just turned around and couldn’t watch.  He finally backed away and came back to the truck; and eventually everyone was able to drive on past the herd. There were also some cute baby bison, they call them “little reds”.  Shortly after that we drove down “Mormon Row”. This is a large tract of land that was homesteaded by a group of Mormons, primarily the Moultons. One of the barns on the land is the most photographed barn in the US, as the photos usually show the Grand Tetons in the background. It was wonderful to read about the history of those settlers and how they created amazing farm lands and a great spiritual community. Later, when we were back at camp, we saw two young moose back in the campground again. They seem to come by most every night. A little later, we wanted to get the dogs out of the RV and out on a hike. We drove out of the park to a National Forest area, where there was a huge landslide years ago, the Gros Ventre Slide. The picture shows the information about this area; it was about 15 mile drive back into a valley past our campground. We were able to take the dogs on a hike through a nice trail that crossed over the natural dam that was created by the slide. A small lake was also formed on the upside of the dam. It is very interesting history of the area, as seven years later, the natural dam busted loose and the small town of Kelly was flooded with only 15 minutes warning for the residents. It was devastating as six people died and almost all the buildings were destroyed. The dogs really enjoyed running free on the hike and we also had a great time. By this hour of the day, we were very tired and ready to call it a night.

The next day we had to take some time to drive into the town of Jackson. We had a package waiting at a UPS store, a part for our tire pressure monitoring system on the RV. We picked that up and then also had to have a tire repaired for the RV. One of the tires had a slow leak (thanks to the tire pressure monitoring system we noticed it early on). We were able to get a simple fix and were back to getting our shopping done. We found a Mexican food restaurant and decided to have lunch there; it was okay, but not great. Kurt had found a mountain bike trail southeast of Jackson, so we drove out to the trailhead for him to take a ride. I was able to get a cell signal there and get on the internet to check emails and post my previous blog and pictures. On our drive back to the campground, we saw another herd of bison crossing the road into our campground. Again, many cars were stopped to look and we all had to wait for the bison to decide when they would cross the road. It was so exciting to watch these massive animals in their natural environment.

When we got up the next morning, we packed up for hiking and headed back to Moose Junction and found the trailhead for Taggart Lake. We had heard it was a beautiful hike back up to a mountain lake, which also included another lake called Bradley. The hike was awesome, as it followed along a beautiful creek, which we had to cross at a big waterfall area. The trail continued up through mountain meadows filled with wild flowers and aspen forest. It was amazing. We reached Bradley Lake first and then continued on to Taggart Lake. The hike was about 5 miles round trip. It was worth the climb, except my left foot was in pain by the time we got back to the truck. Kurt had wanted to do another hike by Jenny Lake, on the Hidden Falls trail. He went on the hike himself, while I relaxed in the truck and also went to the Visitor Center and shops at Jenny Lake.  On our way back to camp, we again drove Antelope Flats and saw several Pronghorn antelope. They are such beautiful animals. When we got back to camp, we also began prepping for our move the next day to another campground on Jackson Lake on the northern side of Grand Teton Park.

Colter Bay Village RV Park

The drive to Colter Bay was only about 25 miles, so we arrived there by noon. We were able to check in to our RV site early. This RV park has full hook ups, which we were looking forward to after four nights of boondocking. We were only going to stay here for two nights, mostly for full hook ups and to get some laundry done. The campground was very nice, but the sites were kind of small. The Village was a full service area; with grocery, laundry, fuel, marina and restaurants. After setting up the RV, we decided to go get lunch at the café.  We had been eating turkey sandwiches for days and just couldn’t take another one. It was a good for a change to get something different for lunch. After lunch, we went on a hike around Heritage Point. There were some small lakes, and views of Lake Jackson. The marina was full service and there were many boats there. The forest was lovely with lupine flowers everywhere. On the small lake named Swan Lake, we saw two trumpeter swans. There were also Canadian geese, white pelicans (there are really pelicans up here!) and a sand hill crane. After the hike we went back to the RV to relax and have some dinner.

The next day we took our kayaks down to Lake Jackson and put in near the swimming beach. We were on the east side of the lake and had made plans to paddle across the lake to look at a giant waterfall back in the valley named Waterfall Canyon and to see the shore line. We made the 3 mile trek across the lake and landed the kayaks on a gravel shore. We were able to get a closer view of the waterfall, but it was still several miles back into the canyon. There was no way to hike back there, no trails and also it would require some rock climbing to get even close to the waterfall. We simply enjoyed the view from the shore, and paddled around into some other little coves where we stopped and ate our lunch (sandwiches again). On the paddle back, the wind picked up a little and we were crossing some choppy water. It was much harder paddling back then it was going over. The complete trip lasted about three hours and was really fun. It was so awesome to be paddling in the shadows of the Teton Mountains, a new kayaking experience for us. We went back to camp to get some chores completed. Kurt walked the dogs and I got to do laundry. They had a really nice “launderette” and I was able to get a few loads done at once. We wanted to go down to the lake and take something for dinner. We went to the grocery store and got a frozen pizza. We baked the pizza in our RV oven and then loaded up the food, cooler, dogs and chairs. We headed to the beach about one hour before sunset, which up here is close to 10pm. The evening was beautiful and the sunset on the mountains was amazing. The purplish hue on the mountains is called alpenglow. The pictures do not do any justice to how it really looks. It was a great last evening for us in Grand Teton.  What a great time we had in Grand Teton. So far, this was my favorite stop on our trip. Now, on to Livingston Montana!

Flaming Gorge Recreation Area - SW Wyoming

Flaming Gorge Recreation Area – SW Wyoming

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The drive from the Yampa Valley to Flaming Gorge was one of the prettiest drives so far. As we headed west and north through the Uinta Mountains in Utah, the landscape changed from high desert to forest, red canyons, then back to high desert areas with small rounded mountains and slopes down to the reservoir. The Uintas include the Ashley National Forest, which is a beautiful mountain forest. This is part of the Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area, beginning in the northeast corner of Utah and continuing up into Wyoming. The Green River is the architect of the gorge. The Green River dam is at the north end by the town of Rock Springs. We arrived at the campground to find nicely laid out campsites, each with a wind shelter over the picnic table, much like what we had in Yampa. We got the RV setup; we had electrical connection, but had to fill our water tank for this stay. The campground host was very friendly and helpful. This area had a large commercial marina and a commercial RV park right on the lake. As we soon discovered, this camping area is all about the lake fishing. We walked the dogs down to the lake to have a look. There were some sloping areas down to the lake and other shoreline that was cliffs.  

As the afternoon progressed, the wind began to get very strong. There were gusts up to 45-50 mph. Every one retreated to their RVs for protection. We decided to have happy hour inside and discuss our options for activities. Our initial inclination was that we would not stay past this first night. We thought maybe we would go ahead and move towards Teton the next day.

When we awoke the next morning, the weather was beautiful and the forecast looked very good. Since we had already pre-paid for 4 nights, we decided to stay here and work with it somehow. Maybe we would leave a couple of days early. There was not much to do other than fishing, and you need a fishing boat for this lake. The second day we decided to drive up to the town of Green River (26 miles north) and look into another RV park and see if there were more activity options. We spent most of the day looking around the town and found there was only one RV park, which we looked at, and decided that it was a little scary looking. There was also not that much to do in that area, except some hiking. It was crazy that the Green River flowed right through town, but there were no outfitters in the area. Even the Visitor Center worker said they received a lot of complaints from visitors who wanted to kayak/canoe this river! So we gave up and headed back to camp.

By then we decided to go ahead and stay one more night, then move north to Grand Teton. So the third  day we drove back into Utah and Ashley National Forest to hike the Red Canyon Rim Trail. We had passed this on our way to the campground, but didn’t have the time to stop and hike. It was well worth the 60 mile round trip drive south. We spent a few hours hiking and driving around to explore the forest. There was dispersed camping everywhere, with primitive campsites. It would have been awesome to camp there, but would require boondocking our RV. Maybe in the future if we ever come back to this area, we will consider camping in this forest. It was very beautiful, much better than the reservoir camping.

We were definitely going to move the next day to Grand Teton, so after returning to camp we got everything ready for the move. The drive up there would be about 5 hours, so we needed to get an early start.

Yampa River Valley - Western Colorado

Yampa River State Park –Western Colorado

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We traveled west toward Craig, which took us through Steamboat Springs and through some mountain passes. One particular pass that Kurt was concerned about is right before Steamboat, called Rabbit Ears Pass. This was no problem as the only concern was the downhill grade of 7%, which our F250 handled perfectly. The drive down the mountain provided awesome scenic views. There was one canyon on the way that had high craggy rock walls. It looked amazing! The town of Steamboat Springs was obviously a wealthy area, due to the ski resorts. There were very beautiful homes on the mountain sides and the town had all the amenities needed for tourists. We even made a Walmart stop in town. After continuing to head west, we entered the rolling hills area and the Yampa Valley. The area was mostly ranch lands and a little town of Hayden, with the Yampa River winding back and forth across the road. We arrived at the campground and checked in. The campground was very well organized, with plenty of space between campsites. The sites have nice gravel pads with wooden borders. The picnic table had a metal wind shelter over it, strategically placed for the typical prevailing winds. This was a great idea, as winds would popup at any time. We got the RV setup and then walked down to the river with the dogs. The river access was right along the park. We met the campground host, Dan, who was very friendly and knowledgeable about the area. We also spoke with a ranger to get more information on paddling the Yampa. They provided a map with all the access points to the river and told us about one that was upstream about 13 miles above the park. We discussed our options to get on the river. There are no outfitters in the area that could shuttle us. We were both tired from the drive and wanted to get some rest.

The next day, Kurt thought it would be a good idea if he paddled the river first, to see what we could expect. So we drove to the put-in and he floated downstream. The river was very swift and there were some Class 1 rapids in that area. He made the trip by returning right to the river bank at our campground. I drove the truck back to the campsite and waited for him to return. He had predicted it would take about 2 hours. His actual time was 2.5 hours. He did stop a couple of times on a gravel bar to stretch his legs and have a snack. While he floated, I got some housekeeping done.  Kody and Kirby were enjoying the warm sun and sleeping outside. When Kurt returned, I brought the truck to the river parking lot and we took his gear and kayak back to the RV. He loved the trip and said we would definitely both go the next day. We contacted the camp host and asked him if would be able to go with us to the put in and just drive our truck back to the park. He was happy to do this, as he is camp hosting alone right now. We went back to the RV and had some dinner and got ready for kayaking the next day. Kurt had also acquired wood for a campfire, so we decided to sit by the fire for awhile and relax. It was his typical “cracker” fire. It was getting colder, so we went in to get some sleep.

The next morning, we met with Dan and drove to the put in. Our kayaks and gear were packed and ready to go. Dan drove the truck back to the park and we went down the river. This area of the state is a mix of rolling hills, flat mountains, meadows and mostly ranches. We saw some diverse areas along this 13 miles, it was pretty amazing. It was an easy paddle, mostly just steering, and we saw some wildlife. There were 1 bald eagle (flew right over us), 2 golden eagles, pronghorn deer, cattle and horses grazing. It was so relaxing and a lot of fun. This paddle took us 2.7 hours. We really enjoyed getting our kayaks in the water and looking at the countryside out here. When we got back to the RV, the boys were real happy to see us. They have been so good staying in the trailer while we are out.

We wanted to go on a hike and the ranger had told us about a nearby reservoir, Elkhead. She said there were some hiking trails at the lake. We took the dogs and drove up to the lake and found it to be a typical reservoir in a desert environment. The trails were not so great and it was very warm, so we decided to skip this hike. We then drove into the town of Craig to go to Walmart. We wanted to get our shopping done so we wouldn’t have to stop on our drive the next day.
                                                 
Later that day we began getting everything ready to move to our next location. We got the kayaks cleaned up and put back on top of the truck. We were sorry to have only booked three nights there, we had no idea how much we would have enjoyed this area.

Estes Park - Rocky Mountain National Park

Estes Park – Rocky Mountain National Park

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The drive up to Estes Park was very beautiful, through mountain roads and awesome scenery. Prior to the mountain roads, our new GPS took us off the interstate way too soon. Rather than stay on the highway until the last turn towards the mountains, it took us through Boulder Colorado, right on a busy city road near the college and at lunch time! Wow, we could have done without that detour… After that, the drive was nice going up into the mountains. As we got closer to Estes Park, the Rocky Mountains were visible in the distance. As we approached the town, we were able to see the surrounding beauty of this valley. It’s like a big bowl surrounded by rocky hills and mountains. The Thompson River runs through the valley and right down the middle of downtown Estes Park. Gosh, it’s so beautiful and charming. We drove through downtown Estes Park to get to the campground. Estes Park Campground at Marys Lake is about 3 miles south of town and is a Larimer County campground. Upon arrival, we found our site and got setup. The campground was very dusty, due to the dirt roads and very little grass. The sites were mostly dirt and gravel. It was also pretty windy, so we had to take down the awning and pick up the ground rug. Otherwise, it was adequate with full hook ups.

We decided to take a short drive back into Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP) to check out the nearby area. We stopped at a couple of pull-offs and saw a black bear along a creek in Beaver Meadow. There were also some elk in the area. After driving just a few miles, we decided to go back to camp and relax for awhile.

The next morning we went for a drive up the Trail Ridge Road which traverses RMNP. This is the road we would be taking on our way westward, towing the RV. We were aware of the road conditions, which are wide two lane with many tight switchbacks. Kurt wanted to be able to get a feel for the drive before we decide to make the drive with the RV. The complete trail is 48 miles long and runs on the mountain ridges, down through mountain valleys, with many steep grades up and down. There are many pull-off overlooks to view the spectacular mountains and valleys. Since we were driving only the truck, we were able to pull off and take pictures and also go on some short hikes up to special overlooks and rocks. This park and mountains are beyond any description. It is so amazing to see mountain peaks with snow on them, beautiful green valleys with creeks/rivers and tundra areas above the tree line. We drove about 30 miles back on the road, until we got to the Continental Divide. There were many wildlife sightings; including yellow-bellied marmots, chipmunks, elk and we even saw a mountain lion. There were also many wild flowers in bloom, which just made it even more spectacular.
At this point, Kurt wanted me to drive on the way back. It was fairly easy and with no problems. We determined that there would be no problem pulling our RV across Trail Ridge Road. There were other RVs traveling the road, which helped us make that decision. After getting out of the park, we drove around Estes Park to check out the large lake and the trails around the town. The city park is huge, with a paved trail around the lake. There was boating access and also a dog park, where they can run off leash. It is such a beautiful town with emphasis on tourist and outdoor activities.
The next day we wanted to go hiking and found a nice trail within RMNP on Deer Mountain. The hike went to a peak on the mountain and was about 3 miles one way. While hiking up the trail, we noticed a wildfire on the back side of a mountain on the other side of the valley. Oh boy, we thought this could mean trouble. After hiking awhile and watching the fire grow larger, we decided to turn around and go back down the trail. The smoke was blowing toward us and we didn’t want to continue to breathe it. After we got back to the truck, we noticed the smoke was dissipating. We were not sure why the fire was slowing down, but it was a good thing. We went back to camp to let the dogs come out for a walk and start Happy Hour!

The next day we spoke with our RV neighbors about hiking and they recommended Gem Lake, an awesome hike up to a mountain lake. We packed a lunch and drove to the trailhead in RMNP. Gem Lake is 4 miles round trip hike with an elevation gain of 1090 feet, up to the lake at elevation 8830. This was an amazing and challenging hike with great views of the Estes Valley. The trail was very well maintained and easy to follow (straight up)! We truly enjoyed this beautiful hike, despite the steep trail. There were so many awesome rock formations to look at and the views were amazing. When we made it to the top, it was a small lake surrounded by huge rock formations. Everyone there was relaxed and having some lunch by the lake. We hung out there for awhile and Kurt was determined to hike up on top of the rocks, but only made it about halfway when his vertigo got the best of him. He decided it wasn’t a smart idea to continue. I did get a picture of him up on the rocks. The hike back down was so much easier and quicker. It was such a great hike and had some spectacular views of Estes Park valley.  What a wonderful hike and a beautiful sunny day!

After we returned back to camp, we decided to take the boys to the dog park in Estes Park. They had been cooped up in the trailer every day we were in the area. Dogs are not allowed on trails within the National Park, so we had no option but to leave them in the RV. However, they don’t mind it too much and it allows them to get some extra sleep! The dog park was wonderful, with fenced areas to run. They also had access to play in the lake if they wanted to. Kirby and Kody had so much fun playing and running with the other dogs. It was so good for them to run off leash. We took them back to camp for their dinner. Later, we drove into downtown Estes Park. It was after dark, but most of the shops and restaurants were open for Saturday night. It was a nice experience to walk around this quaint mountain town. We did a little shopping and I purchased a T-shirt with the Estes Park and RNMP graphics. It was also amazing to see the Thompson River running through the town. There were several beautiful little parks by the river, with places to relax and enjoy the rushing waters.

After returning to camp, we had happy hour and dinner, then began prepping for our departure the next day. We will be heading toward northwestern Colorado to Yampa River State Park. This is over the mountains and down in the rolling hills area, just past Steamboat Springs. Hopefully we will be able to get in a paddle on the Yampa River.

Cheyenne Mountain State Park - Colorado Springs

Cheyenne Mountain State Park - Colorado Springs

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Our drive to Dodge City was on a country highway with great views of farmlands. As we were heading west, we noticed menacing black clouds and thunderheads in the distance. I pulled up the radar on my Droid and found a very large front moving toward us. At that time, the storm was right over Dodge City and there were alerts for severe thunderstorms, with wind gusts up to 60 mph. Also, there was a possibility of moth ball sized hail. Oh boy, this made us very nervous. As we got closer to Dodge City, the storm hit us hard. The wind and rain was driving at us in a broadside direction. This was very scary as we were concerned that the wind might blow over our trailer. Kurt started to pull over on the side of the road, which made us both very nervous. Then we noticed a sign for a small town just a couple of miles ahead and I was able to look at a satellite view of the area. We made it to the town and pulled off the road and parked parallel to some kind of industrial building. We stayed there about 15 minutes, when the wind and rain began to lighten up. We were then able to go forward past the front and the weather was quite nice and cool. We located the Walmart and found two other RVs and some semi-trucks parked. We picked our spot, parked and opened our slides. We then went into Walmart and did some shopping. The evening there was not too bad, we expected it to be noisier. We slept pretty good and got up early to get back on the road. 

We then headed toward Colorado Springs. The drive was very uneventful and actually quite enjoyable. Kurt let me drive as the road was a nice highway and the traffic was minimal. We crossed through the western side of Kansas and were able to view miles and miles of fertile farmlands. The plains of Kansas are amazing with wheat fields as far as you could see. There were many fields of windmills across this part of the state. It was incredible to see some of the wind farms that seemed to go on forever. Wind energy is a no-brainer for this part of the country. We crossed the border into Colorado and after a few hours, we arrived at Cheyenne Mountain S.P. This area is so beautiful; the campground is in the foothills with Cheyenne Mountain behind us and Fort Carson just below us. The campground is one of the nicest we have ever been in. Everything is very neat, clean and organized, with the campsites very well planned. We got setup with full hookups and relaxed for the evening. The weather was beautiful and the skies were cloudless. After dark, we had an awesome view of the city lights. We discussed our plans for the next day. Garden of the Gods was our plan, as it is very close to Colorado Springs.

The next morning, we packed our cooler with lunch and headed out to Garden of the Gods. This is a city owned park which was donated by the original owner’s family to be used for free public access. This park has enormous red limestone formations and boulders. There are paved walking trails throughout the park, with many other hiking and mountain biking trails. We walked the main park trail and took many pictures of the amazing rock formations. The temperature had climbed up in the upper 90’s and was very hot, despite the low humidity. We found the picnic area and a little shade for a nice place to eat our lunch and cool down. Kurt wanted to do some mountain biking, so we drove over to the parking lot by that trailhead. Kurt rode some trails for awhile, and decided not to overdo it. The altitude was affecting our breathing and stamina. We knew this was going to happen, but when you actually experience it, you have to be careful. We decided to head back to camp, cool off and let the dogs come outside. We checked out the trails in the park, but unfortunately dogs are not allowed on any hiking trails in this park. Kurt found some mountain bike trails and decided to ride some. He was having a great time, but the altitude did make him stop sooner than he wanted. After that, we relaxed the rest of the evening and had some dinner. We discussed our plans for the next day and we wanted to go up to Pikes Peak, but the forecast was for very high winds. So we decided to do that the following day. The next day we would go down to Royal Gorge Bridge & Park.

The next morning we got up early, as the drive to Royal Gorge was about 60 miles south. The drive  was through some very lovely farmland and rural communities. The last town before the bridge is Canon (canyon) City. It’s a neat little farming/tourist town. The park was just 12 miles past Canon City. We finally arrived at the park entrance and found a place to park. The entrance fee was kind of steep, $26 per person. But, if you want to play you have to pay the man! This is a privately owned and maintained park. We entered the park and walked across the bridge first. Wow, the winds were very strong and could almost blow you over. I had to hold on to the bridge railings. The bridge is 986 feet above the canyon floor, which is very narrow. The Arkansas River flows through the canyon, with white water rapids. There were rafts below; it looked like it would be fun. We hung out on the bridge, taking our time going across. There were flags from all the 50 states along the bridge. The park had rides that included a tram and zipline that went over the canyon. Those rides cost extra $$. We had no interest in those anyway. The south side of the bridge had a little mock up of a western town. It was kind of cool, with various buildings you might see in an old western town.  After visiting that, we walked back across the bridge and took more pictures. I decided to go back across and Kurt wanted to stay on the bridge with binoculars to look around. I was standing near the north end of the bridge when I noticed a small black plume of smoke on the south side; it looked a few miles away. However, knowing the dry, low humidity and high temp conditions, I knew it couldn’t be good. I waved at Kurt to come off the bridge. We had not yet taken the incline tram down to the bottom of the gorge. We stood at an overlook area and watched the fire expand quickly. At this point, the rangers were running sirens and heading to the south side of the bridge. They were evacuating all the visitors on that side.  We got in line to board the incline. The tram headed down into the gorge.  By the time the tram got to the bottom, they announced that the whole park was being evacuated! Darn, we then had to head back up to the top. It was disappointing that we didn’t get a chance to walk around at the bottom. However, it was quickly becoming a dangerous situation. When we got off the incline car, they were rushing to get everyone out of the park. We were advised to leave in an orderly and quick manner. Many people continued to linger in pull off areas along the road to watch and take more pictures. Kurt did the same once we got about 5 miles away from the park at a tourist business. We took some more pictures and then decided to get out of there since everyone was trying to leave. We made it to Canon City and felt a little more relaxed, even though the smoke was building very fast and moving towards Canon City. We then got back on the highway and headed back to Cheyenne Mountain. By the time we got back to camp, the smoke from Royal Gorge filled the sky in that whole area. The wind was blowing it in that direction. Our eyes and throats were burning from the thick smoke. Unbelievable, as the fire was more than 60 miles away. We turned on the local TV channel and discovered that there was another fire burning just northeast of Colorado Springs, in a rural neighborhood. This neighborhood is called Black Forest and has very large nice homes on about 5 acre lots. We watched the news reports on both fires. The Royal Gorge fire was spreading extremely fast and by the next day, over 3000 acres had been burned. The fire had jumped the gorge and had burned three building structures within the park. Also, the incline rail had been damaged.  We’re so glad that we saw this awesome canyon and bridge when we did. It may be awhile before the park may reopen. The last report was that the bridge did have some minor damage, but not structural.

The rest of the evening we continued to watch news reports on the fires. The Black Forest fire was also spreading very fast and they had not yet been able to contain any of the fire. By the time we left on Thursday, the reports had stated over 300 homes were completely destroyed, but there were no injuries or loss of life. It’s so sad to see people’s homes go up in flames.

The next morning was scheduled for the day to go up to Pikes Peak. The wind was still pretty strong, but not as bad as the previous day. We left the camp around 10 am and headed to Manitou Springs, where the Pikes Peak Cog Railway station is based. The train takes the rail up a slow grade to the peak of the mountain. The ride takes 1.5 hours one way. It was a beautiful view all the way up, with waterfalls, wildlife, views of other mountain peaks and some historical landmarks. The ride was very comfortable and when we got to the top, we were able to exit the train car and walk around for about 40 minutes. They will not allow anyone to stay up at 14,110’ altitude, as it makes some people sick. We even felt a little wiggy if we moved around too fast or bent over and stood up quickly. It was also quite chilly up at the top, we had brought jackets and they were used. Kurt and I took many pictures from the peak and the view was amazing, even though the distance was smoky from the local fires. The ride back down the mountain was about the same, with great views. After returning to the train station, we headed into Manitou Springs to walk around the quaint little old town. There were many shops, restaurants and art galleries. It was a cool little place with a history of gold mining.

We headed back to camp and stopped for a few groceries. That evening we began prepping for the next day’s move on up the road. Our next stop is in Estes Park, Colorado. The drive up there should be awesome through the mountains. We sat outside again and watched the city lights down below the park.