Heading west!

V

Valkyrie

New member
Marcia, Boomer and I left Ohio this morning bound for the Black Hills and the Big Horn and Medicine Bow National Forests for three weeks. It's the first real trip with our new 24 foot travel trailer (KZ Spree 240 RL) and it is truly luxurious after ten years with a great little pop-up and lots of years before that with tents. We are used to about 30 minutes to set up the pop-up, but in five we were plugged into power and water, had the awning out and were having a cold one sitting in folding chairs with our feet up at a mom-and-pop campground in central IL. I had to ask, "Did we forget to do something?" LOL

We should be at Rushmore and Crazy Horse in a few days and I'll try to post some pics after that. Now, it's time for a walk to check out the fireflies, a shower and hitting the sack with the AC cranked to combat the 80 degree temps. I love being retired!

Nick
"Valkyrie"
 
That sounds so great! I have wanted to see Mt. Rushmore since I was old enough to know what it was. Right after it was carved. One of these days...

Have a wonderful vacation!
 
Hi Nick,
Sandy, and I are leaving July 20th heading to Rapid City in the RV then on up to Glacier National Park, then back down to Utah.
Looks like the timing will not work out where we could meet you all out there. You all have fun in the new RV and be safe.
Hope to see you all at another Boat Cruise.
Jim & Sandy
 
"Heading west" made me hope, just for a second, that you were towing Valkyrie REALLY west, here to the Upper Left Coast for some San Juan cruising. Oh well, another day.
 
Sounds great Nick! Have a good time, we had a 28' Catalina with a slideout for a number of years. Lived in it down here on weekends before we built the garage-apt. Sold it last summer, just weren't using it anymore and were running out of room!

Please take a picture of Mt. Rushmore for us and prove this ain't so!

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Hi Charlie et all!

We're in a campground in Mitchell, SD right now replete with power, water, cable and sewer for a remarkable $15 per night. The secret came from Jim and Joan and their recommendation to join Passport America that lists close to 6,000 campgrounds that allow members to stay for half price with some restrictions, but a great deal! Thank you, Jim!

We had a long day today, about 627 miles, getting an average of 13 mpg doing a little over 60 mph. Marcia drove for the first time today, never having towed a vehicle before. After 10 minutes she relaxed and said, "I think I'll drive until lunch. This is fun!"

My retort, "Man, I'm really starving!" (It was 8:05 AM!)

She is a great sport and laughed along with me!

I just walked Boomer and threw his Frisbee for him and now it's time to eat supper - fresh salad, olives, a good cheese, Foccacia bread to dip in olive oil and cracked pepper and a nice wine. Life is good!

We're really anxious to get to the high mountains - fresh clear air, a million stars with no manmade light, crystal clear mountain lakes with rainbow, brook, cutthroat and brown trout and the pungent smell of pines. I called the ranger station today and our favorite campground on 25 acre Brooklyn Lake is still isolated by eight feet of snow on the road, which should be plowed out in a week or so. It's really beautiful. I will post pictures next week or so when possible.

Regards,

Nickj
 
Must be nice Nick :D
12 short years and a market boom and we'll be there.

Ya know, we really need some young CD owners in here, so young that they don't even notice the folks that are already retired and having all the fun. They could envy those of us that are just catching a glimpse of the other end of the tunnel :lol: :lol: :lol:
 
Hi Brats,

Just checking in from Keystone, SD where we are camped about five miles from Mt. Rushmore. Last night we went to Mt. Rushmore to see "the guys" again, the last time being about ten years ago.

We got there about 8:00 PM for the lighting of the memorial which started at nine. It was a very emotional experience for a number of reasons. We hiked the Presidential Walk which is a trail around the base of the mountain which gives us an up-close-and-personal look at the four presidents. After thousands of people rising to say the Pledge of Allegiance, we sat in the huge amphitheater and watched a very moving film about the four honored presidents and their beliefs in individual freedom and personal responsibility.

By then the figures had been illuminated and the most touching part of the evening occurred when four Boy and Girl Scouts from GA lowered and folded the flag while thousands watched. The superintendent of the memorial then asked for all veterans to come down to the stage, to the applause of the audience. The superintendent then circulated among the male and female veterans and had each place their right hand on the folded flag and introduce themselves and state their branch of service. They ranged in age from early twenties to late eighties, but each spoke loudly, clearly and their pride was evident. After the introductions were over there was uproarious applause and I'm not ashamed to say that there were tears in my eyes. The entire experience was very emotional for both Marcia and myself.

Today we hiked to Harney's Peak in Custer State Park, which we had done about ten years ago. It's a seven mile hike through beautiful country and rated moderate. However, we both agree that in the intervening ten years they SHOULD NOT have made the mountain steeper and the peak higher than it was before! Neither of us remember being tired, sore and swear that our knees did not refuse to cooperate during our last hike there! ARRGGHHH!

Of course, Boomer (three year old Airedale) had a great time, got petted dozens of times by other hikers and still had enough energy to swim after sticks that I threw for him in Sylvan Lake. A ranger came up as Boom was swimming and noted with a smile, "I'm glad that you have one of those LOONNGG leashes on that swimming dog so that you comply with park regs." It was that kind of day.

We then went to the Crazy Horse Memorial to see how things progressed in the last ten years. Can't go into detail on that because I'm running out of battery and time before I cook dinner! If you are not familiar with it, Google it for the full effect.

Tomorrow we're heading to Sheridan, WY and points west - Big Horn National Forest and a campground at over 10,000 feet for steaks over the fire under a blanket of stars. The next few days will be devoted to trout fishing in the high mountain lakes from our canoe. Way out of cell and 'puter range up there so next report will come from Cheyenne later in the week. Hope that this travelogue is not boring you to tears, but I feel that I am sharing with family.

Regards,

Nick, Marcia and Boomer
"Valkyrie"
 
We're enjoying the travelogue, Nick. I spent a lot of years in the area you're talking about - beautiful scenery; nice people. Have fun with the rest of your journey and we'll be looking forward to hearing about it.

Travel safe, best wishes,
Jim
 
Hi Brats,

We've been in Cheyenne for two days now, having spent five great days in Big Horn National Forest west of Sheridan. As soon as we got out of the truck at Sibley Lake campground we felt that we had come home, having camped there a number of time before.

The trout fishing was great and we caught nearly our limit every time that we fished from our canoe - lots of rainbows, mostly cutthroat and a few nice brookies and new to us, cuttbows, a cross between cutthroats and rainbows. Most we cooked over a fire for dinner in a fish basket, a grate-like affair which allows us to broil them over the coals of our campfire until their skin starts to bubble and blister; when that happens the skin golden brown and the flesh is delicious, without the taste of cooking oil. Add a fresh salad, bread baked in a Dutch oven, some three bean salad and a cold beer and it's ready to go, followed by a 'smore or two for dessert.

We spent the Fourth at the state capitol in Cheyenne at a Tea Party, which we enjoyed immensely, but I'll leave the politics out of it except for that. We didn't see any fireworks from the campground due to lots of on-and-off rain.

Our plans were to head back up to the mountains, the 12,000 foot Snowy Range west of Laramie for another week of camping, hiking and fishing, but that is up in the air (sorry!) due to 20 foot snow drifts along Route 130, the main East-West road through the area. I called the ranger station last week and they had just plowed out fifteen miles of twenty foot drifts a short while ago. It is doubtful if the higher campgrounds, which we love, will be open for a few weeks. We plan to climb the road to see for ourselves. If they are closed we'll take 130 west and then head north through the high desert, back to the Big Horns to a few VERY remote campgrounds that we discovered last week.

We continue to love our new camper, often re-arranging gear and clothing, trying to find the right fit. Having the oven, which is propane and can be used even without electric hook-ups is a real treat. The transition from our pop-up to this RV has been VERY EASY! Our high mpg has ranged from 14.3 doing 62 mph with a stiff tailwind to 7.7 with a forty mph headwind! Our average is around 13, which is about 3-4 less than our pop-up, not a bad trade-off for the added luxury.

Charlie - I tried for three hours to upload photos in a sub-album last night, but they just wouldn't cooperate. Sorry. I'll try tonight if we are at a good campground with hook-ups. Twelve days to go before Marcia has to be back to work.

Regards,

Marcia, Nick and Boomer
"Valkyrie"
 
Thanks Nick for the effort, don't sweat it.... Glad you're having a good time, you are in a great spot. Stay in the highlands where it's cool!

Charlie
 
Hi Nick,

Not sure when your "gotta head east" date might be, but since you've come this far, the Tetons and Yellowstone are some of the most spectacular scenery this country has to offer. You are a LONG day's drive to the Tetons from Cheyene. Elevations in that area in the valley floors will be 7,000 or so, generally guaranteeing pleasant days and cool nights. Of course, there will be plenty of tourists this time of year... but, the square miles are grande, so you shouldn't have a problem finding some solitude... especially if you get out of the vehicle and do a little leg-work. :wink:

In the Big Horns, you can do a beautiful loop from east to west, heading out of Buffalo, over to Ten Sleep, then north to Shell Canyon and back east to Sheridan. There are forest service campgrounds and some commercial. It will be a real pull over some of that with a trailer.

Another interesting place is Thermopolis and the hot springs; from there you can go south into the Wind River range.

Jackson, WY, is a fun tourist town, with some pricey accomodations. If you can work in a white water raft trip, it will be worth it - a real hoot!

Head south from where you are, and Rocky Mountain National Part is equally spectacular. Estes Park is a fun place, with several commercial campgrounds. Probably only 3 hours from Cheyenne. Go over the Rockies and you come down into the Grand Lake area. From there you can run south and go to Breckenridge, then take I-70 east to Denver.

So many options, depending on the timing.

I haven't steered you wrong, yet, have I? 8)

Have a great time and keep us posted.

Best wishes,
Jim
 
Jim,

Hey, you must be psychic or psychotic or something like that. We're in a campground in Thermopolis right now and just spent 30 minutes in the hot springs here at the campground and I feel my hair coming back and a, well, never mind!! We came north and were in the Wind River range a short while ago. I forgot how beautiful and dramatic it is. Yellowstone and the Tetons sound great, but dogs are not allowed anywhere but the parking lot and Boomer is our constant companion.

You're also right about the loop around the Big Horns. We've done that before and are headed back there AGAIN! The snow in the Snowy Range was monstrous this year and we headed there from Laramie yesterday morning, only to find that our favorite campground was closed. We did four-wheel it within walking range only to find that "our" site was under a 20 foot snow bank! Rather than head into CO we decided to go back to the Big Horns. We'll leave early tomorrow and take Route 14 from Greybull back up to 10,000 or so feet. Porcupine campground is a mile in and has a spectacular view of the mountains and high meadows. Also, we discovered a trout stream with 16" rainbows that laughed at us last time!

Today was a leisurely day and took our time. Big deal today was eating out for the second time in ten days - buffalo burgers at the Square Shooter in Rawlins! We had great pit bbq in Cheyenne at our campground. The best news so far is that this respite from work has Marcia thinking creatively about how to move up her retirement date!

No, you haven't steered me wrong and I hope I can repay the favor some time.

Regards,

Marcia, Nick and Boomer
"Valkyrie"
Fountain of Youth Campground
Thermopolis, WY
 
Valkyrie":l4fmrnr4 said:
Jim,

Hey, you must be psychic or psychotic or something like that. ...

No, you haven't steered me wrong and I hope I can repay the favor some time.

Regards,

Marcia, Nick and Boomer
"Valkyrie"
Fountain of Youth Campground
Thermopolis, WY
Click to expand...

Hey, Nick, haven't you heard - I'm psychedelic...

TieDieE_001.jpg

:roll:

Glad to hear you're having big fun in our former part of the country. Travel safe and keep us posted. Oh, and when you get back, tell us about the comfort and ergonomics in your RV. :wink:

Best wishes,
Jim
 
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