Month: August 2019

Today we headed to Purgatory Ski Area. We didn’t know what to expect, we just knew we liked Purgatory in the winter so we wanted to check it out in the summer. The ski area was really hopping with summer activities. There were zip lines, mountain biking, 4×4 ATV’s, a bobsled, and an Infernal Mountain Coaster. We enjoyed the nice weather and rode the Infernal Mountain Coaster. Donna enjoyed a waffle from a local vendor.

On the way back to town we stopped at Honeyville where they sell everything honey. Donna bought some honey and really enjoyed using it over the next week. Back in town we stopped at Home Slice Pizza. It was good on a previous visit but this time it took over an hour to get a Calzone that wasn’t very good. We headed back to the coach and watched a movie.

Today is travel day to Durango CO! We got up at our normal time and chose to eat breakfast in town. We took our time because we only have an hour drive and the park made it clear we couldn’t arrive before 1pm. After breakfast we got the coach ready and headed out. I wanted to get propane for the coach on the way and we set the GPS for AmeriGas in Bayfield CO about half way. We got there and they couldn’t help us as all of their technicians were out with trucks. They recommended Tarpley’s RV in Durango. I plugged that in and about 40 minutes later we arrived. They informed us they did not carry propane. Ok, I should have called. I did a quick phone search and confirmed the Durango KOA campground would be happy to fill us up. We back-tracked the 4 miles and the folks at the KOA were super nice and had us on our way in no time. I asked at the KOA about diesel and they recommended a gas station near Tarpley’s. We found the CENEX gas station had nice accessible diesel pumps AND propane. Ah, if we had only known. Why Tarpley’s couldn’t have recommended the place 200 yards away I’ll never know.

We killed some time on the Home Depot parking lot so we wouldn’t arrive before our 1pm check-in time. We arrived at Lightner Creek Campground just after 1pm and checked in. The campground is in a valley surrounded by mountains and is very pretty. We only get 30A electric service so we have to be careful with out A/C and appliances. We can only run one A/C at a time here. After setup we drove the short 5 minutes into Durango downtown and ate at Steamworks Brewery. This is our favorite place to eat in Durango and we were thrilled to discover no wait on a holiday weekend. The food was great and we ate on the patio with a really nice breeze and nice temperature. After lunch we walked about half of the downtown shopping area before our parking meter ran out. We chilled the rest of the day at the coach. I checked with the office and had received the items I had ordered from Amazon. I had ordered new thermostat parts for the AC part of our hot water heater that has been inoperative for about the last year. The propane hot water works fine so it has been low priority. Even though it has been a low priority I wanted to fix it to reduce propane usage and its loud at night when it turns on. I had also ordered a new battery for our Verizon “Jetpack” wireless internet device. While the device still worked, the battery had swollen so that it was hard to keep plugged into the device, taking it offline often. We discovered when we made reservations here that there is a Motorcycle Rally in Durango this weekend. The campground owners were trying not to accept reservations from Motorcycle groups due to the problems they experienced last year. We are afraid what this may imply for our 4 days here in Durango. Its 7pm and we now have new neighbors. They are currently very loud, this doesn’t bode well for our stay.

By the way, I mentioned we are in a mountain valley. This means no phone coverage, no internet coverage, and no TV satellite. Can’t win them all. We do have quite a bit of recorded TV programs and movies so it isn’t all bad.

This morning we drove up to the West Fork National Forest Access Road. We drove the 10 miles or so into the forest along the West Fork river. The drive is very pretty. The road dead ends at a trailhead and the 5 or so parking spots were already taken. We drove the 1/10 mile back to “overflow” parking that was empty. We made our own trail through the wood the 300-400 yard to the river. Surprisingly, we didn’t see or hear anyone on our short hike or at the river. The river is really nice with towering cliffs rising above us.

This drive was pretty short and enjoying the river didn’t take that long. Leaving West Fork we decided to try and find Silver Falls. The Falls were shown on the sign near the East Fork campground to be only 8 miles. Sounds easy right? We hadn’t gone ½ mile past the campground before the road turned bad. We could only go 5-10 mph due to the very rough rock road. About a mile in there was a sign warning that High Clearance Vehicles were recommended. The drive was very pretty but it was hard to enjoy due to the poor driving/riding conditions. The road followed a very pretty river and we were shocked to see some nice Class A’s and other RV’s parked at an unmarked dry campground probably about 3 miles in. I wasn’t smart enough to take note of the mileage when we saw the orignal sign. We drove what seemed like a really long distance before giving up due to the road conditions. A high clearance vehicle like our Jeep really did take some of the stress out of the drive. Even with our clearance we hit a rock ledge pretty hard on our skid plate. Later when I reviewed a map online I figured we had traveled 5 or 6 miles of the 8 mile drive.

It was 2pm by the time we made all the way back to town and we decided to repeat lunch at the Roadhouse Grill. It was really good again. After lunch we got gas and washed the car, it really needed a wash. We relaxed around the coach and made a few preparations for the travel day tomorrow.

Today we decided to drive and see some more cabins in the woods around Pagosa. We found some really cool places, but we have no idea just how expensive they might be. After the cabin tour we decided to drive the Blanco Basin Road into the forest. This was a pretty long drive down gravel forest access roads again. The road ended at the Fish Creek Trailhead. We got out to play around the creek for a short while. There were a few trucks but we didn’t see or hear anyone. The creek was very pretty. We headed back toward town but only got a few miles before we were stuck. A Semi Truck with a Bulldozer on a flat bed dropped the back end of his trailer off of the corner at a hairpin turn. We were on the only route in or out of the forest. Uh Oh. I got out to examine the situation and the truck driver said “well your timing stinks”. There was a small spur of the road a couple of miles back and we decided to get out and explore that area a little while the two truck drivers figured out what they were going to do. There wasn’t much to see at the other trailhead but Maverick enjoyed running around for a while. When we returned to the Semi Truck about 45 minutes later they were just cleaning up after recovering their trailer. They drove the bulldozer off the front of their trailer and used it to drag the trailer back onto the road. After a couple of minutes we were able to get around them and head back to town.

After making it back to town we decided to eat at the Roadhouse Grill. The food and service was excellent. By this time we were beat so headed back to the coach.

We headed out a little earlier this morning. We headed to Piedra Falls and the weather is great. I read the falls were really nice and the hike was pretty easy. The falls are located about 30 miles away on mostly gravel National Forest Access roads. Two years ago when we traveled some of these same gravel roads they were terrible and I wasn’t sure how well this was going to work. We were pleasantly surprised. This time around the roads were all in very good condition. You could easily maintain 30-40 mph without any real discomfort. We arrived at the trail head and found ourselves the only ones here. What a treat. The hike was pretty easy and mostly level. Since we were by ourselves Maverick got to run off leash the entire time. The hike was ½ mile to the falls and because we got there by 10am the temperatures were nice and cool. We thought the falls and river were beautiful. After a short time at the falls another group arrived. By the time we made it back to the car there was three cars in addition to ours. We got lucky to experience the hike and a little time time at the falls by ourselves.

After the falls we went to Williams Reservoir. This lake was the destination a two years ago when the roads were bad. On that trip we were at the lake near 4^th of July and it was very crowded. Visiting today only added about 8 miles. As always the lake was very beautiful. The lake was calm and the surrounding mountains reflect in its surface. Today, the lake didn’t have very many people so it was quiet and serene. Maverick enjoyed wading in the lake. On the return trip we stopped at a gorge we stumbled on last time. There isn’t any signage for the gorge but if you pay attention there is a parking area where you can hike a few hundred yards down a hill to the cliff edge of the gorge. The gorge is probably 200 ft deep with a very scenic river. Maverick enjoyed climbing on the rocks around the gorge.

When we got back to town we decided to eat at the Buck Stops Here again. This time the wait for food was really long and Donna’s grilled chicken wasn’t very good. Bummer.

Today Donna had arranged for a massage. Maverick and I dropped here off and then went exploring. Our first stop was the Reservoir Hill Disc Golf Course. No, we didn’t play disc golf but we enjoyed exploring the park. The park is a beautiful forest and Maverick and I had it to ourselves. We wandered around the park for about an hour. After the park Maverick and I explored backroads to the South of town. We found many stunning homes in the forests.

I was to meet Donna at 1130 at the Hot Springs. I found Maverick a really pretty and shaded spot near the Springs. Donna and I enjoyed soaking in the springs on a spectacular day. After we finished soaking we headed to Riff Raff Brewery and Grill for lunch. We shared an excellent burger on the patio overlooking the river. The food was excellent and we enjoyed dining outside.

Time to leave the lovely Wolf Creek Run resort. It is really a treat. We are just moving across town to Mountain Landings RV Resort. We need to be out of Wolf Creek Run by 11am but can’t be at Mountain Landing before 2pm. We drove the coach to Wal Mart and parked it. We ate lunch at Rosies Pizza and it was very good. After lunch we walked around the outdoor market.

Next we checked out Summit Ski and Sports, one of our favorite placed for t-shirts and outdoor gear. Before heading back to the coach, we stopped at Pagosa Bakery Company which is Donna’s favorite place for treats. Finally, we drove the coach from Wal Mart to Moutain Landings RV Resort. Our spot here is really nice with a really large Ponderosa Pine shading the coach.

Back at the coach we decided to make reservations for the next portion of our Journey. Since we only have until 9/2 in Durango we thought it wise to reserve for the rest of the week of Labor Day holiday. I planned a route to Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. The park is near Montrose CO. Our route will take us from Durango through Silverton, to Ouray. We plan on spending a few nights at Ouray and then on to Montrose. The route is Hwy 550 from Durango to Montrose and will be somewhat challenging for a big rig. I researched the route online and expect it to be OK.

Many more people here in Pagosa on the weekend. Everything is crowded and we realize we need to wait until the work week to do some of the activities we would like. I got a haircut this morning and we looked at houses around the Pagosa Lakes neighborhood. We walked Maverick at at a neighborhood pond/lake. We chose to try Pagosa Brewing Company for lunch. I had Salmon fish and chips and the tempura salmon was fantastic. Donna had a waffle and bacon. After lunch we walked the Camino Real Imports which has a huge selection of Mexico products. It was just something to do and we didn’t buy anything.

This morning we stocked up on groceries at Wal Mart. After returning our stock to the coach we headed downtown Pagosa Springs. We wanted to eat at our old favorite Tequila’s Mexican Restaurant for lunch. The weather is wonderful so we ate on the Patio overlooking the San Juan river and the Hot Springs. We plan on visiting the springs later in the week. After Tequila’s we walked Maverick along the river and then strolled through all of the downtown shops.

After leaving downtown we looked around at houses for sale just for fun. We play with the idea of retiring some day to Pagosa but we aren’t serious at all. Still, its fun to see if our pretend budget would get us a place we would be satisfied with.

Today we decided to drive through Wolf Creek Pass to Southfork and on to Creede. We took our time walking through the shops in downtown Creede . It is a really beautiful day and the temperature is nice and cool. After walking downtown we decided to drive the Bachelor Loop. We have driven the Bachelor Loop twice before. The first time we rented a Jeep and took our boys. On the advice of the rental place we took the 4×4 extension shown at the top of the map above. The first half was nice but the second half of the 4×4 trail was agonizing crawl down a river-bed. It cured our entire family of ever wanting to hardcore 4×4 ever again.

The second time was two years ago. This time it was just Donna and I and Donna was driving our own Jeep. This time we accidentally took the 502 spur that had a hardcore 4×4 trail at its end. We went ahead and followed 502 until it rejoined the main loop. While pretty, the 502 spur isn’t as interesting as the main loop and the hard 4×4 isn’t our favorite. If I had been driving she might have killed me for taking the detour.

Third time was the charm. This time we ONLY drove the main loop and it was much more fun. The main loop is an easy drive with many old mines to see. The first half follows a very interesting gorge with a beautiful stream next to the road. All three times the route returns to Creede on a beautiful drive high above the town. We really enjoyed it.

After returning to Creede we stopped at Big Dougs BBQ food trailer. The BBQ was really good.

After lunch it was time to head home. About half way from Creede to Southfork however we come to a complete stop. It turns out we were behind a Sheep drive that was taking at least 200 head of Sheep down the highway. Cowboys on horses and sheep dogs were driving them on. It took aobut 30 minutes for the sheep drive to reach the point where they left the road. You don’t see that every day.