Sat, 8/22/09

San Luis Lakes State Park, Mosca, CO, to KOA, La Junta, CO: Left this morning at a little past nine. I drove first heading south on 150 and then northeast on 160. Drove over La Veta Pass and then downhill into Walsenburg, CO. We’re now out of the mountains. In Walsenburg we stopped at a little café and had some breakfast and then Mike started driving. Out of Walsenburg we headed northeast on Rt. 10. There is absolutely nothing on this stretch of road except large ranches. Nothing but grass and sage and cacti with a few buttes here and there. Just outside La Junta we started seeing a more agrarian landscape with fields of corn and other crops. Pulled into the KOA at about 1:00 and got set up. When we were hooked up to water and I turned on the faucet, sand came out. An “ah ha” moment. That’s why our pump wouldn’t work. So, Mike drained the fresh water tank and replaced with new water. It’s pretty warm here. We’re not used to the heat since we’ve been in the high country for so long. Think it hit the low 90s today down here. We’re here to see historic Bent’s Fort tomorrow.

Great Sand Dunes with Sangre de Christo Mountains in the background

Fri, 8/21/09

San Luis Lakes State Park, Mosca, CO: Well, we survived just fine last night with no running water. We drove over to Alamosa and had breakfast at a neat little café there. The food and service were great. Then drove back to Great Sand Dunes National Park which we can see from our site. This place is pretty incredible. The dunes formed in a curve in the Sangre de Christo mountain chain. The dunes are the tallest in North America (the highest is 750 feet) and comprise more than 330 square miles. The dune area is surrounded by two streams which some say are the lifeblood of the dunes system. The streams bring huge amounts of sand down from the mountains and then the wind blows it back into the dunes. In the spring there is also a phenomenon called “current surge” where the shallow, swift streams form waves which occur every few seconds. This phenomenon occurs only in a couple of places in the world. The huge valley we’re on sits at about 8000 ft This high valley is the most arid in the nation. Left the park and drove back to our site and relaxed the rest of the day. We leave tomorrow for La Junta, CO, and we’ll have running water—hurrah!

Our site

Thu, 8/20/09

West Fork NF CG, Pagosa Springs, CO; to San Luis Lakes State Park, Mosca, CO: Well, it started out a good day. Morning dawned sunny and bright. We decided not to top off our water tank before we left so we wouldn’t have the extra weight. Left at 10:20 and headed back over Wolf Creek Pass. After going over the pass we followed the Archelata Creek for quite a while. An absolutely beautiful drive. We went through South Fork, which is a cute little town, and Del Norte. Then we’re basically back in the desert on a high, wide valley sitting between the San Juan and Rocky Mountains. Guess it’s a big potato growing area. Made it to the San Luis Lakes State Park which is in the middle of nowhere. The campground is all sage brush and sand but we have a beautiful view of the Sange de Christo Mountains. It’s really quite pretty and not very hot. The campground is quite nice. We have electric but no water. Thought we could fill up the water tank at the dump station on our way in, but they didn’t have potable water there. Mike is starting to get ticked off at this point. So, after we got set up we filled up our totes at the faucet in our loop (four trips) and transferred to the holding tank. It took five six-gallon totes to fill it up. Mike went and sat at the picnic table relaxing (glad that job was done) and I went in to turn on the pump. That’s when our day went to hell. The pump didn’t sound quite right and no water came out. I had washed my hands just before we started filling the tank and it worked just fine. So, after ranting and raging for a while Mike called our RV dealer in St. Louis. They walked us through how to prime the pump, but still nothing. Can’t really believe it needed to be primed anyway. We discussed our options. Mike wanted to pull out tomorrow and drive down to Alamosa and find an RV dealer hoping that they could fix. I said I’d rather stay here two nights like we planned. The rest of the trip we’ll be on city water anyway. So, we filled up the stock pot with water to use for washing, etc. They do have showers here also. That was our wonderful day. Tomorrow we’ll drive over to Great Sand Dunes National Park—just up the road. In the meantime, we have a full fresh water tank but can’t get to any of it (sigh)..

Wed, 8/19/09

West Fork NF CG, Pagosa Springs, CO: Not as cold this morning. Had our last camp fire and burned the last of our wood. Started getting pretty warm. Mike wanted to do part of the Archaleta Creek trail, so we headed out east on Rt. 160, going over Wolf Creek pass via a series of switchbacks. Not too scary. After going over the pass and heading down, we passed the Wolf Creek ski area (pretty nice), went through a snow shed and a tunnel, then turned onto a National Forest road up to Big Meadows reservoir and the Archaleta Creek trailhead. Donned our hiking boots and grabbed my trekking poles and headed out. The trail went along the reservoir for much longer than I remember. The last time we were here, I had a 30-35 lb. pack on my back and Mike had about 50 lbs. We wanted to hike up to the first camping area we stayed at back then, but when it started getting steeper and rougher (equestrian trail also), we doubled back and took the trail that goes all around the reservoir. Stopped in a little meadow and had snacks and then continued on. Passed a beaver pond. A pretty trail, but we hiked a lot further than we had planned. Drove back over the pass and back into Pagosa and had dinner and then back to our site. It was 85 in Pagosa and 68 up at Archaleta Creek. We leave tomorrow for Great Sand Dunes NP. We get to go over the pass AGAIN with the fifth-wheel in tow. Oh goodie.

Piedra River Gorge Trail

Tue, 8/18/09

West Fork NF CG, Pagosa Springs, CO: Not quite as cold this morning. We decided to do the laundry and grocery shopping today. So, we headed into Pagosa Spings and had breakfast first at a neat little restaurant in town. Sat out on the deck since it was such a pretty morning. We both had steak and eggs. While we were sitting there eating, all kinds of emergency vehicles headed out on the road to Chama with sirens blaring. It seemed like every law enforcement person in the area was out on this call. Would have been a great time to rob a bank or something. We heard there was an accident with a semi. Doesn’t sound good, but the ambulance did come back with someone in it, so at least they’re still alive. Scary. After breakfast we did the laundry. Checked out a model home a couple of doors down while our clothes were drying. Nice place. Then we did the grocery shopping, washed the truck, and then back to our site. We’re the only ones in here—us and a gentleman we met named Gary. He’s a few sites down from us. He’s from Columbia, MO, is a retired attorney and has been out here solo since early June. He doesn’t really look old enough to be retired.. He’s a very interesting guy. He has the means to stay at some pretty fancy resorts, but he prefers the National Forest campgrounds. I like that. He’s heading to Great Sand Dunes after here and so are we. So, maybe we’ll see him there. It started out mostly cloudy today, but cleared off by evening. 81 today. Supposed to go down to 40 tonight. Perfect.

Piedra River Gorge Trail

Piedra River Gorge Trail

Mon, 8/17/09

West Fork NF CG, Pagosa Springs, CO: Cold again this morning. It was 44 inside when Mike got up. Turned on the furnace and went back to bed until it warmed up. It finally warmed up enough to get up, bathe, and dress. Mike laid a fire and we sat around enjoying that for a while. Filled our water tank and Mike got one of the propane tanks filled. After finishing up those chores we drove to Pagosa Springs and had something to eat. Then drove back up the Piedra Road and the unpaved forest road and hiked part of the Piedra River Gorge trail. The trail follows the Piedra River up into this deep gorge covered with spruce and pines. I think it’s the prettiest trail I’ve ever hiked. After our hike we drove back up to Williams Reservoir. The views were spectacular. Back to our site. Sandwiches for dinner I guess. I’m still full from lunch. Hit the low 80s today and not a cloud in the sky.

Sun, 8/16/09

West Fork NF CG, Pagosa Springs, CO: Cold this morning. Mike had gotten up early and started a fire. So I got up, took a quick shower, dressed and joined him outside. Enjoyed the fire for a couple of hours and then we cooked up a big breakfast—bacon and eggs and biscuits. Delicious! After we cleaned up the dishes from breakfast, we finished up taking down and cleaning the rest of the mini-blinds. We cleaned all the windows on the inside also. Now we just have to get the outside of the RV washed. I’m so glad we got that lovely chore done—and without killing each other. After finishing the blinds we went and pumped water and filled our tank. The rest of the day we relaxed and read. The book I’m reading—“The Patriot” has been hard to put down. Will have to get more of his books. A beautiful day today, but on the cool side. The sky was a deep, deep blue with a few puffy clouds drifting around. Probably only in the 70s today..

Piedra River Gorge

Sat, 8/15/09

West Fork NF CG,Pagosa Springs, CO: Well, last night’s movie outing was a bust. We headed to Pagosa at around 7:00 so we could catch the 8:00 movie, “Public Enemies”. We got there and the movies had changed. So, we ended up seeing “The Ugly Truth”, a chic flick of questionable merit. I ate a huge bag of popcorn and some oreos and had an upset stomach most of the night. Tossed and turned all night. By morning I was okay though. This morning was pretty cloudy. Was expecting bright sunshine. So, I thought it would be a good time to take the mini-blinds down and wash them. The last time we did that was three years ago at this very campground. Was a test to our marital harmony then. They’re not exactly easy to get down. We did the bedroom and one of the ones in the living area. Figured that was enough for now—especially since the weather was getting better. So, cleaned up the mess from this little chore, went and pumped water and transferred to the holding tank, changed clothes, and headed to Pagosa for the duck race and picnic at the town park. This event was put on by the Knights of Columbus. They don’t really race ducks, but you buy a plastic floaty duck (or several ducks) and they put them in the San Juan River which runs right through the park and the one that gets to the finish line first wins. We didn’t stay for the “race”. Had a couple of burgers and then drove back over County Rt. 600 past all those fancy ranch properties to where it turns into an unpaved forest road. Drove up that for several miles which was a beautiful drive up this beautiful valley with the rugged San Juan Mountains all around. We passed this pretty canyon, gorge, or whatever where we plan to hike the Piedra River trail which goes into this gorge following the Piedra River. We drove past the beautiful Williams Reservoir high in the mountains and then continued on to where the road dead-ended at an equestrian campground. The Williams Creek trail starts at this campground. We thought about hiking part of that trail but decided it was getting late, so we headed back to town. Stopped at City Market and picked up my prescription and then had dinner at a Mexican restaurant next to City Market. We both had a great meal. Back to our site with the setting sun shining on the beautiful mountains. Think it hit 78 in Pagosa today. It was in the 60s up high. Played Aggravation again. Mike won.

Mountain in the mist

Fri, 8/14/09

West Fork NF CG, Pagosa Springs, CO: Rained all night last night. A nice, steady rain. Had the heat on again this morning while taking my shower. Washed my hair and luckily Mike had the generator running so I was able to blow it dry. We’re in a little, narrow valley and the escarpment above us was totally shrouded in low clouds. Mike started a fire and we sat outside enjoying that all morning. Felt pretty good. Before it started raining again we decided to go fill up the water jugs. Came back and sat inside and played Aggravation for a couple of hours. Mike finally won a game. Sprinkled off and on. I suggested we go transfer the water to the holding tank before it rained again. So, out we go and got it all set up and it started raining really hard. Go figure! Got the tanks filled and changed into some dry clothing and then back inside. I started a new book, “The Last Patriot” by Brad Thor. I just finished “Web of Evil” by J. A. Jance. Both pretty good. I had never read either authors, but we swapped some books with a couple we met in Monument Valley. Gave her some Dean Koontz. Mike is reading “Hole in the Rock”, an amazing read about Mormon early settlers. We plan on going into Pagosa Springs tonight to a movie—“Public Enemy”. They have a tiny little cinema on Main Street. Always fun to go to those old movie theaters.

The house--nice view of the mountains

The barn

Thu, 8/13/09

West Fork NF CG, Pagosa Springs, CO: Not as cold this morning. But I still started the furnace while taking my shower. Pretty cloudy today which kept the temperature down some. We relaxed most of the day. I got my keyboard out and played for a couple of hours. Then we went and got some water. This campground doesn’t even have spigots. They have a well with a pump. It takes 40 pumps to prime it and then about 70 pumps to fill up a 6 gallon tote. So, about 200 pumps altogether to fill two six-gallon totes. We take turns pumping and it’s a great upper body workout. Then we use the transfer pump to transfer from the totes to the holding tank. I rearranged some cupboards and then sat outside reading for a while. The hummers are all over and we put out some peanuts for the chipmunks. Later in the afternoon we drove into Pagosa Springs. I dropped off a prescription at City Market pharmacy and then we drove around on the outskirts for a while. We saw some amazing properties—huge mansion homes with large barns and elaborate, electronic gates. And beautiful views of the rugged and beautiful San Juan mountains in the distance. Came back and Mike took me out to dinner for my birthday. We went to the Ole’ Miners Steakhouse. The place was really cute with a lot of mining memorabilia. Started raining while we were having dinner. It was 83 when we went in and 65 when we came out. At our campground it was 57. It’s supposed to get down to 32 in Pagosa Springs on Saturday night, which means it’ll be colder up here. Will have to bring the poor plant in. It’s a Key West plant after all. Played Aggravation again. I won both games. Poor Mike.

Wed, 8/12/09

West Fork NF CG, Pagosa Springs, CO: Really chilly this morning. Didn’t want to get out of bed. Turned on the furnace before I took my shower. It warmed up nicely outside though because by the time I showered, got dressed, and went outside it felt pretty good. We had a fire for a while. Then it got really warm. A gal Mike met yesterday stopped by with her dog. She’s been traveling solo with her RV for 15 years now. We figured she must be 79. She’s out there doing it! After she left we walked down to the river. A very pretty river tumbling down through this little valley. Water is crystal clear and cold. There’s nothing like a Colorado mountain stream. Got back and it started clouding up over the mountains. Sprinkled for a while. We turned on our NOAA weather radio but got no reception—very unusual. But, we did get NPR on our super radio! So glad I bought it! We had baked pork chops, apple sauce and a vegetable for dinner. Played aggravation for a while. I won! Not sure how warm it got today. Probably in the mid- to upper-80s.

Our Site

Tue, 8/11/09

Slick Rock CG, Moab, UT, to West Fork NF CG, Pagosa Springs, CO: Left Moab this morning at 10:00. I decided to drive first. Headed south on Rt. 191 through Moab and figured we’d be driving through more flat terrain. But we drove through more sandstone monoliths, canyons, gorges, and washes. Passed another huge and really stunning arch right on the side of the road. Kept climbing until we were on top of a large plateau with higher bluffs, mesas and mountains around us. At Monticello we headed southwest on Rt. 491. The road was all torn up in Monticello—main road and side roads. It was a mess and we got mud all over the fifth wheel and the just-washed truck. Rt. 491 is a pretty decent road, albeit only two lanes, and we’re starting to see large farms—no more desert. We crossed over into Colorado a few miles from Monticello. We were going to stop, eat, and switch drivers in Cortez, but going through the little town of Dove Creek I noticed the little Blue Mountain Café. So we pulled in there and had breakfast. A cute little place with a large parking lot and good food. After eating Mike took over driving and we continued on through Cortez (a cute little town), Durango (getting way too big), and finally Pagosa Springs which is pretty much the same except for the western outskirts which has been built up quite a bit. We’re about 30 miles east of Pagosa Springs in the West Fork National Forest campground in the middle of the San Juan National Forest on the west fork of the San Juan River. A beautiful place. After getting set up we sat outside for a while enjoying the peace and quiet. The only sounds were the chattering of the birds and the susurration of the wind through the trees. Nice. It was in the low 80s when we pulled in here. Perfect!