The Grand Canyon trip - 1st Stop Cascade Campground

We started off on our 16 day vacation with an intention of camping somewhere near Salida. We had a couple of possible campgrounds in our sights but no reservations so were just keeping our eyes open for possibilities. Being that it was a Sat. night this was a bit risky.

However, a little perseverance paid off. As we approached Salida a road was spotted on our map that had a number of campgrounds on it. Mt. Princeton had no openings and was near a raging river. Had to shout to be heard. Chalk Lake was also full and near the same river but had access to areas that were wider and slower moving so looked to be an excellent location. On our third try we hit gold. A gorgeous site at Cascade Campground. In fact we had two to choose from.

The main road through the campground. It was heavily treed and surrounded by gorgeous mountains.

Max walks Blossom to explore the campground.

Next to the campground (and across the road) the river was much too powerful to go into.

This is our site.

We were surrounded by trees.

A view off into the forest.

This was the open site that we didn't choose.

Another view of our site.

Max cooks dinner. You can see the next site behind him.

Sunshine polished his dinner off quickly but Blossom would rather play ball or go for a walk.

There was a great local trail very close to the campground.

The trail went along a scenic ridge.

Blossom enjoyed it also. We surprised a Mule Deer on the trail and it took off up the mountain.

In several places the rocks overhung the path.

It was a pretty flat path, gentle down one way and gentle up the other way.

Blossom finds a stream she can play in.

Sunshine is wary.

Luckily it had a bridge.

A beautiful view.

There was still snow in the mountains.

Everyone enjoyed seeing the river.

Beautiful but too fast flowing for the dogs.

We enjoyed the view.

This was a beautiful spot. All to soon we hit the road again.

Hermit Park Campground and hiking

We finally made it out for our first camping trip of the year. There was a strange burnt smell and I think the forest fires in Arizona created both the smell and the haze in my pictures.

Our site appeared very level to the eye but unfortunately it was slightly off. Also we were surprised to find out that we couldn't quite get level. I guess we forgot how from last year. After 30 min. trying we gave up and just decided to not be level. The doggies were a bit disgusted with our efforts as it kept them from exploring the area.

When we checked this site out last year the fire pit and table were at the end of the site nestled in some trees. This year they were next to the road. There were only 8 campsites on this loop so it wasn't busy.

Here is a view from the main road. Hardly anyone except park personnel checking on the sites went by this road.

After giving up on the leveling we decided to take a hike. There was a path nearby.

It had a good amount of trees.

The path was very nice and fairly level.

Just a little up and down but not much.
It was starting to get dark so we headed back.

Back at the campground Blossom keeps and eye out for wildlife.

Surprisingly we didn't see any. But I love getting pics. of Blossom at the drivers wheel. She is so cute!

We moved the picnic table to better take advantage of the site.

This is the view of the valley.

Another view from the new table location.

The other sides of the site are surrounded by forest.

Doggies relaxing in their new location waiting for a dog walk. Unfortunately they are now in the sun so we will move their pen later.

The rocks at our site, just beyond the table.

And we are off to explore the forest behind our site.

Blossom finds a little fort probably built by kids.

Sunshine and Blossom like to explore the rocks.

Blossom says she has found something good. Sunshine wants to know what it is.

To get to it she needs a better angle.

She can really get her snout in from this angle. Sunshine decides to take off and go up the same way she did.

She is using all her strength to hang on to the rock. Sunshine realized there wasn't room for two so came back to see what he could from below. She is hanging on to the ledge by her toenails.

She's slipping...but recovers.

Since there were no critters there it was time to explore the top of the rocks.

Sunshine hangs on with his toenails as he maneuvers around the rocks.

The rocks are fun but the forest beckons.

We explored a little more.

Back at the campground Blossom drinks up.

Then it was time for a new adventure. This time along the road. It is adjacent to a wetland.

A view of the site from further down the road.

A picture of our Brave.

The dogs relaxing in their new location.

We deployed the awning to check it out. It was in great shape.

All too soon it was time to leave the campsite. But they have a nice trail at this park that we decided to hike so we went and parked there.
The trail is up to a look out point.

On the way up you see trees and some views.

The look out point is fabulous! Unfortunately we had some haze, likely due to the Arizona fires as you could smell them.

Absolutely stunning!

This is a stitched together panoramic photo.

After the look out I went a little further down the trail.

Sunshine always enjoys the rocks.

It ran pretty level for a very short time.

However when it started to go sharply down I turned around and headed back. Gave me another chance to enjoy the look out.

On the way down it was pretty also and alot easier going.



As we get closer to the parking area we get some pretty valley views.

We enjoyed the park but it is probably a better destination for out of state visitors to Estes Park or Rocky Mountain National Park as it is very close to these locations. In addition it allows dogs on the trails and in the forest whereas RMNP does not. The trails are pretty and the one has a great view over Estes Park. Also you can walk through the forest exploring with your dogs and they will love it.

The various campgrounds offer many sites with very pretty scenery. Some more forested than others and some with views and rock formations. Hermit Hollow is probably the most forested and has alot of nice rock formations. Bobcat is partly on the flatlands and probably has more than half the sites in the forest. Kruger (the area we were in) is forested but adjacent to the wetlands. We picked it because it was walking distance to the first trail we went on. The parking area for the second trail was a ways away and without a tow vehicle we knew we would hit it on the way out when we could drive there. The spacing between most sites is generous.

For more pics of the campground see my scouting post. http://1994brave29rqrv.blogspot.com/2011/04/estes-park-hermit-park-campground.html

For the locals it is better to take your chances and go to the non-reservable national forest campgrounds. The fee to stay here for one night was $20 +$2.50 processing fee + $6 park pass. Too much for no-hook ups and a place that wants you out of the park by noon the next day. We stayed later and no one said anything but you should be able to stay the whole next day, as long as you vacate your camping spot.

Replacing alarms and fire extinguishers

Last year when we acquired our RV I replaced the smoke alarm up front with a dual CO/Smoke alarm. I also replaced the smoke alarm in back with a new one. And I added a stand alone CO alarm to the back. The end result is we have redundancy for both systems. I also added two fire extinguishers, one to the bedroom and one behind the driver. I kept the original one that came with the coach and put it under the kitchen cabinet but I wonder if it has aged out.

This year I noticed our LP alarm which went off at the drop of a hat last year didn't go off when we tested the stove. This year we are replacing that with one that draws less current so that is a win for us.

Not under the safety arena but I added a second hose and a new spray to our outdoor shower. This way we can wash things off behind the coach and not create a mud puddle right were we would walk when going by the coach and in the door.

Our Fantastic Fans

We bought into the hype around Fantastic Fans last year and decided to install a temperature operated one in our bedroom and a normal exhaust one in our bathroom. They were very expensive. They guy who installed them charged the same price as the fan cost to install so all in all it was a very expensive addition.

To make a long story short, we were really disappointed in them. The original fan in our bath was so powerful that it would suck the screen into the fan blades. The new one pales in comparison and is just as noisy as the original. Replacing the original was a total waste of money. We were looking for quieter operation which we didn't get and the new one is less powerful.

In the bedroom the temperature operated one takes up so much of the area of the vent opening that when we don't have the fan running (which is most of the time since we boondock alot without electrical hook-ups) it really impedes the fresh air flow.

Well, they are in and we aren't taking them out because of all the money we spent putting them in. So this year we swapped the lids. The cheaper (but still very pricy) exhaust only fan in the bathroom has an opaque lid which we could really use in the bedroom to make it dark at night. The more expensive bedroom fan had the see-through lid which we could use in the bathroom to let light in for night time visits.

I wish we had never gotten them.