First long trip, Colorado in July.

ScottSanford · 05-25-2023, 09:35 AM

I've been going to Colorado with my son and friends every year since about 2010, usually a 2 week trip. Son is out of school and working now, so I'm planning to be on the road solo the last week of June and all of July.

First 2 weeks of July will be in Villa Grove, south of Salida. If I can get enough internet I will make the whole stay there, if not I will have to move to finish out the month.

I'm only taking 2 weeks of vacation, and will work remote for the remainder of the trip.

BirchyBoy · 05-25-2023, 10:45 AM

Have fun! Consider a Starlink on the roam plan and you can pause it between trips.

**creativepart** · 05-25-2023, 12:46 PM

Where will you stay in Villa Grove? Not much around there.

Since you go frequently you already know that Colorado in July is both a great time to go and the busiest time to go.

Have a great time.

ScottSanford · 05-25-2023, 12:54 PM

In Villa Grove will be in San Luis Valley campground. And you are correct, it is busy in July, but not so much in this area. We have always been in the Silverton up through Montrose area before (before the ATV crowds started coming en masse). Last year stayed in Paonia, and a couple of years in Saguache area. Saguache is currently my favorite little town, the Bonanza area trails are great, and hardly ever see anyone on them. Plus Hayden, Tomichi, Hancock, and Marshall passes are amazing.

**creativepart** · 05-25-2023, 01:11 PM

Have you been to Creede? We've been there 3-times and liked the area pretty well. ATVs are getting pretty aggressive there too.

I like to fly fish - so Creede is a good spot.

Our favorite is Cortez/Delores/Durango. We stay in a National Forest Campground, Haviland Lake Campground that has 50-amp service at about 1/2 of their sites. It's 17-mi north of Durango on Hwy 550.

ScottSanford · 05-25-2023, 01:21 PM

We've been to and through Creede several times, it's nice. There is a 60 or 70 mile off road trail that runs from just north of Silverton to Creede.

We've gone up through Cortez and Delores a few times, stayed a week at Clayton campground north of Rico. Rico is another cool little town, not much there. Bolam Pass trail from Rico over to Purgatory is in my top 5 favorites.

Fanrgs · 06-01-2023, 10:01 PM

If you guys have been to "Delores", then you should know that it is spelled "Dolores." That's the Spanish word for "sorrow," because the full name of the river is "El Rio de Nuestra Senora de Dolores" or "The River of Our Lady of Sorrows." That name was given to the river by a Spanish explorer in 1765, ie., 11 years before there was a United States of Ameeica.

The nicest RV park in Dolores is the Dolores River RV Resort and Cabins. It's a great place for family reunions because it has cabins, yurts, covered wagons, and tent-only campsites for those poor family members who have not yet discovered the joy of RVing. They also have a catch-and-release trout pond fof the kids and a long stretch of river and river bank for those who don't want to release their catch. We stayed there last year and had a gorgeous tree-shaded FHU site a couple of hundred feet from the Dolores River.

**creativepart** · 06-02-2023, 06:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fanrgs

If you guys have been to "Delores", then you should know.

Knew how to spell it, didn’t know the rest.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fanrgs

The nicest RV park in Dolores is the Dolores River RV Resort and Cabins.

I agree it’s one of the nicest. We stayed there a couple of years ago. However it was crowded and they do that side to side pull-thru site scheme. You park facing one way and then someone else pulls in 2’ away facing the other way and the utilities are in the tight middle. Not my favorite. We were there on a very crowded Fall weekend. So it wasn’t ideal.

We’ve also stayed at The Views RV Park. It’s up on the hill across the road from McFee Reservoir NFS campground. It was pretty nice. Big sites with lots of room.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f4ySyBIFfH0&t=8s

ScottSanford · 06-22-2023, 09:15 AM

Work came along and changed my plans, but I'm ready for the trip. Have to visit our Fort Worth office next week. So, Normangee TX moochdocking this weekend, the Ranch at Rhome (Haslet, TX) next week. Then Scenic Valley RV Park in Amarillo on the 30th, Black Canyon campground in Santa Fe NM for Saturday night, arrive in Villa Grove on Sunday.

ScottSanford · 07-09-2023, 08:13 AM

Trip is going well. San Luis Valley Campground is nice, the owners are very friendly. After a week in Fort Worth where temperatures were triple digit every day, I finally escaped the heat when I overnighted in Amarillo. A powerful storm came in while I was setting up for the night. Long story short, I ended up riding out 60 mph gusts and hail in the trailer, disconnected from the truck, without the stabilizers deployed. It was an exciting ride and a valuable lesson learned.

Fanrgs · 07-09-2023, 09:19 AM

We had a similar wind experience in a mountaintop state park cg. in AR. So scary we ended up spending most of the night in the nearby brick restroom, not in the trailer. We have been in other high wind locations, but learned to fill our water tank upon arrival, even when hooked up to. city water. That extra 500# of water lowered the center of gravity of the trailer and it rode out the wind with barely any "rocking and rolling."