Rocky Mountain High!

August 10-14, 2023

After sitting idle for many months, The Felix was begging for a short adventure! So we loaded up and off we headed …… north into high elevation Colorado, to enjoy some cool temps and breathtaking scenery. 

A quick 822 mile loop in 4-1/2 days met all of our goals plus we enjoyed afternoon thunderstorms and a few rain showers. 

Follow the link below to read about our trip as I narrate my daily journal pages.

Day 1 …. Home to Lime Kiln
Our first night we stayed at what’s become one of our favorite Bureau of Land Management (BLM) dispersed camping area near Monte Vista called Lime Kiln, along the historic Old Spanish Trail. From 1829 – 1849, this active trade route passed through northcentral New Mexico, beginning in Santa Fe, into southern and western Colorado, and eastern to southwestern Utah, to southern Nevada, ending in Los Angeles, California. Plenty of money was made from the sale of serapes and other woolen goods that were sent to LA, and with the sale of CA-bred horses and mules that were sent to Santa Fe. It was also common to see Indian slaves transported to LA and sold, and a lot of contraband goods were sent in both directions. 

Our stay was short, but fun, especially for Luna who raced back and forth between prairie dog burrows trying to nab one before it would duck back below ground! She never had a chance, but did love the exercise after a long day’s drive.

Day 2 … Lime Kiln to Blue Mesa

Our second night we spent next to Blue Mesa Reservoir just west of Gunnison. We fell in love with this country years ago, and returning is like “coming home.” The entire area surrounding Blue Mesa is managed by the Park Service as the Curecanti National Recreation Area. We’ve always wanted to spend a night in one of their campgrounds and scored on a nice site close to water. Luna was sad there weren’t prairie dogs to chase, but she got a lot of walks, and even dared to put a paw in the water; a big step for our little desert dog!

Day 3 …… Blue Mesa, Lizard Head Pass, West Dolores

On our way to find our third night’s roost, we encountered a herd of big horn sheep ewes and kids working their way down to the reservoir for a morning drink. Then the rest of the day we spent ooohing and ahhhhing at the breathtaking scenery between Montrose and Stoner ….. big, big mountains, still wearing ribbons of winter snow; peaks rising up to elevations nearing 14,000 feet. We stopped just beyond Lizard Head Pass and walked into an alpine meadow full of wildflowers, and nonstop 360 degree views that included the magnificent Lizard Head Peak! We stayed a long time, soaking it all in, before heading down the pass in search of a camping location. An hour or so later we settled on a Forest Service campground run by a private concessionaire. Not the highlight of our trip, because the cost was exorbitant for substandard and rundown amenities. But despite lack of a view, the trees were plentiful, the chipmunks were everywhere (happy Luna), and we got to listen to a flowing creek all night.

Day 4 … West Dolores to Saul’s Meadows

Then on the way to our fourth night’s camp, we paused for about an hour in Cortez to take care of some computer business. It was during this stop that a series of almost comical mishaps occurred. For about an hour, while Roy was working, Luna and I set off to explore a nearby heavily vegetated dry to wet meadow, but not until she chased a few squeeking prairie dogs. As I was trying to keep up with her, I stepped into one of the prairie dog burrow holes! Ouch! As I uttered my loudest, most convincing “squeek” while extracting myself (unharmed) from the hole, Luna came running and we resumed our walk. Back and forth, back and forth, we wove our way through the meadow full of 4 foot high grasses and shrubs, all the while Luna disappearing and reappearing as she pronked her way along. Both of us hot and exhausted, we headed back to The Felix, but not before spending 15 minutes picking grass seeds from my socks and Luna’s toes. It was then that I looked up and saw Roy waving at me to “come quick!” Inside The Felix, he had been engaged in a major cleanup! Apparently the latch on the refrigerator wasn’t fastened when we left the campground (my bad), and when we hit one or all of the big bumps in the road between there and here, the freezer and refrigerator popped open, spewing forth all of the contents! Puddles of melted ice, thawing chicken, broken containers! Ugh. What a mess and a serious loss of refrigerated air. Cleanup complete, we pushed on (only stopping twice before our camping area to check the latch on the refrigerator!). We passed by the entrance to Mesa Verde National Park, then Durango where the narrow gauge RR takes tourists into the mountains to Silverton, and finally a mile or so past Bayfield where we turned off the highway to find Saul’s Meadows, a dispersed camping area on Forest Service lands. Awesome place, so many choices, all grassland meadows surrounded by open stands of ponderosa pine! I’ve heard good things about Saul’s Meadows and wasn’t disappointed. We had just discovered another favorite dispersed camping area!

Day 5 …. Saul’s Meadows through Georgia O’Keeffe Country to Home

On the fifth day, we headed home, choosing to drive through beautiful Georgia O’Keeffe country as we waved goodbye (for now) to Colorado in our rear view mirror.

Thanks for coming along! 

Until next time ……. be curious!