A Day at Crater Lake National Park

20 08 2016

Crater Lake LodgeAfter a quick email check we’ve opted to start our day at Crater Lake with a restaurant breakfast.  Unfortunately a bit of a slow start and some unexpected road construction causes us to arrive at Annie Creek Restaurant in Mazama Village just as they are switching over to lunch.  But their tasty sandwiches make a fine substitute for breakfast.  After a quick drive around the Mazama Village campground, we head up to the Visitors Center, then to Rim Village.  The jewel of the Crater Lake crown must be the beautiful Lodge.  Opened in 1915 and recently completely renovated, the Lodge features what is perhaps the best view of the caldera and lake.

Formed 7700 years ago, Crater Lake is the result of a massive volcano estimated to be over 12,000 feet tall literally collapsing onto itself.  After spewing enough ash that would cover the state of Oregon 8 inches deep, the magma chamber could no longer support the weight of the mountain and it collapsed into what is today Crater Lake.  The deepest lake in the US at nearly 2000 feet, and thought to contain the most pure water of any lake in the world, the lake level is maintained by only snow and rain.  And, with an average snowfall of 44 feet, there is plenty of melting water to keep the lake refilled from seepage and evaporation.

Entering along the western rim, we continue along the eastern rim to complete the circumnavigation of the lake in about 3 hours.  Plenty of rim-side parking spots and one side-excursion to The Pinnacles provided plenty of photo opportunities and information on the lake, it’s two small islands and even a castle on the edge of the caldera.  Overall a great day in a beautiful National Park!


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Categories : Olympic Peninsula - 2016, Summer Camping 2016

Camping on the KV Bar Ranch

18 08 2016
Junipers Reservoir RV Resort

Junipers Reservoir RV Resort

We about 10 miles east of Lakeview, OR in the Junipers Reservoir RV Resort, set on the edge of a 8400 acre cattle ranch.  About 40 sites are in a big loop next to the nearby reservoir.  There’s a nice pavilion with BBQ grills and picnic tables in the center of the grassy loop.  Next to the pavilion is the bathhouse and small (2 washers/2 dryers) laundry facility.

Most of the sites have a picnic table with at least one nice shade tree, and provide gravel, fairly level pads.  We’re in a full hookup site with 30/50 electric, water and sewer.  The parks WiFi is delivered by radio signal from a nearby mountain peak, and rebroadcast on a large antenna over the central pavilion.  The speed and reliability is some of the best we’ve had, easily running along at 2Mb downloads even during the traditionally heavy evening usage period.

The shade trees are a welcome relief in the still unusually hot August temps pressing into the mid to upper 90’s. Tomorrow we’ll continue northwest to Crater Lake National Park where we’ll spend 2 nights in the Broken Arrow Campground.  More from Crater Lake…


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Categories : Olympic Peninsula - 2016, Summer Camping 2016

Finally, the end of I-80

17 08 2016
New Frontier RV Park, Winnemucca, NV

New Frontier RV Park, Winnemucca, NV

We’ve arrived in Winnemucca, NV – and are parked at the New Frontier RV Park on the east side of town.  This is a relatively new park, and amazing in terms of size and investment.  There over 130 RV sites, several with park models already installed and another 110 or so modular buildings that are configured as 3 individual studio living spaces with bed, bath and small kitchen area.

We’re in site #29, a nice end site with a few trees, a bit of lush grass and full hookups including cable TV.  There are a handful of full-time RV’s scattered throughout the park, and many overnighters.  The park caters to the full-timers by adding a telephone outlet to each site, presumably to allow for the use of DSL internet access.  However, the free park WiFi is adequate in our site.  All streets throughout the RV area are paved and the sites are gravel, fairly level and offer at least one small shade tree.

After 2 long days on I-80 from central Wyoming, across Utah and much of Nevada, we’ll turn north tomorrow and head into Oregon.  Our first stop is at Lakeview, Oregon – more from there…


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Categories : Olympic Peninsula - 2016, Summer Camping 2016

Another Night, Another KOA

16 08 2016
Wendover, NV, KOA

Wendover, NV, KOA

We’re in Wendover, NV at the KOA Kampground.  While only a couple blocks off of Wendover’s “strip”, and right behind the Red Garter Casino, this park is relatively quiet and convenient.  The gravel sites, many with a small shade tree, are wide and include a picnic table and fire ring.  After arriving, we selected a “downgraded” site with only water and electric for about $66/night.  With 30 over-the-air digital channels, there’s certainly no reason to pay for a cable connection.  And, since we’re only staying 1 night, no need to dump holding tanks.  We’re nearly as close as possible to the office, where the WiFi is slow, but seems fairly stable.  There’s also full bars of 4G T-Mobile coverage.

The office has a small on-site store of mostly RV supplies, clean restrooms and showers.  The pool occupies a nice shady spot at the end of the property, and seems popular with everyone in the 95 degree afternoon heat.  As it turns out, this is a big week at the Bonneville Raceway, and the campground is relatively full.

We’ll continue west on I-80 tomorrow, with a stop in Winnemucca tomorrow night.  More from there…


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2 Nights in Rock Springs

15 08 2016
Rock Springs, WY KOA (Site #66)

Rock Springs, WY KOA (Site #66)

Good Morning from Rock Springs, WY.  We’ve just packed up after spending 2 nights at the KOA here in Rocks Springs.  With a super friendly staff, including fresh baked chocolate chip cookies at check-in, this KOA is about what we’d expect in this dry desert of western Wyoming.  There are about 100 “short-term” sites and about another 100 long-term sites to the rear of the property.  The dog run on the east side and tent sites on the west side might be the best part of this campground.  The dog run has beautiful lush green grass for Fido’s enjoyment.  The tent sites are individually enclosed in a cedar privacy fence, include at least 1 shade tree, a grassy tent pad, an electric hookup, a picnic table, BBQ grill and nearby water and parking.

The gravel RV sites are arranged in 5 rows that run from east to west.  The front rows appear to be electric/water only.  We’re in the 3rd row with full hookups including about 30 channels of analog cable TV.  There are a few “super-sites” on the east end of these rows that include privacy fencing, a picnic table and BBQ grill – all for about $65 plus taxes.  Our site #66, also an end site on the far west side of the park,  has a couple of small shade trees and a bit more privacy for about $45/night.  Most of the sites share hookup connections, meaning the layout is staggered door to door.  If the park is full, you might end up sharing a picnic table area (with two tables) with your neighbor.    All of the park is gravel, but even with a mild wind, didn’t seem too dusty.  There are two shower rooms, a laundry room,  exercise room and a pool that is popular with the kids.  There’s also a well stocked store onsite, or a nearby Wal-Mart and K-Mart can satisfy most needs.

Today we’ll continue west on I-80, through Salt Lake City and on to Wendover, Nevada.  While we’re not expecting a lot at yet another KOA, we’re hopeful for nearly $72 it’s a bit better than Rock Springs.  More from Nevada!


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Categories : Olympic Peninsula - 2016, Summer Camping 2016

Glendo State Park to the Olympic Peninsula

14 08 2016
Glendo, Custer Cove Site #3

Glendo, Custer Cove Site #3

We’ve just departed Lake Glendo, after a very enjoyable 4 nights in Custer Cove site #3.  Once again we managed prime lakeside sites #3 & #4 thanks to pre-scouting by Shawn and Dana.  The lake is a bit further down than last year when we were here about 2 weeks earlier. With daytime temps pushing in the mid-80’s, the water is quite refreshing.

Instead of heading back to Colorado, this is our first stop of a 30 night trip to the Olympic Peninsula in Washington state.  Tonight we’re headed to Rock Springs, WY.  More from there…


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July 4th in Bryce Canyon National Park

1 07 2016

Bryce Canyon, North Campground Sites 15 & 13We’ve arrived in Bryce Canyon, and are set-up in the North Campground in sites 12, 13, 15 & 17.  These are 4 of the only 13 reservable sites.  The other 86 RV & tent sites are available first-come, first-served.  There are non-threaded water faucets scattered around the campground, and a RV fill faucet at the dump station.  Many of the sites are just wide spots in the road.  The pull-through sites that we’re in are separated from the roadway with a small island – some containing trees that make slide positioning a real challenge.  All sites are dry, generators are allowed in these A loop sites, but not allowed on all loops.  There are bathrooms on each loop with running water and flush toilets. Showers and laundry facilities are available for a fee near the General Store which is at the far south end of the campground.  CAMPGROUND MAP

We’re just a few steps from the trail that leads to the extensive Visitor Center.  We’re also very near the Rim Trail which leads north toward the Fairyland  area and to the south to Bryce Point.  With only 3 days in the park, we manage to hike most of the Rim Trail as well as the very popular Queens Garden Trail into the canyon.  There is plenty more to explore in Bryce, this will definitely need to be a return trip.  AMPHITHEATER MAP

Our last night on the way back toward Denver is spent at island Acres, part of the James Robb Colorado River area.  We’re in full hookup site #50, next to the river and furthest  from I-70.  But, even in this location the traffic is noisy – this campground is best for just a quick overnight.


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Green River State Park, UT

30 06 2016
Green River State Park, UT

Green River State Park, UT site #4

Our 2nd night enroute to Bryce Canyon is at Green River State Park in Green River Utah.  Situated along a gentle bend in the Green River and within the city limits of Green River, UT, this is an oasis in the otherwise brown desert scenery.  But, this park need some TLC.  Low tree branches threaten A/C units and vent covers on taller rigs.

Irrigation is provided by an antiquated system that over-waters in some areas and leaves brown spots in others.  After the park manager turned on the water in our section, we’re left with a muddy puddle under the picnic table and a soaking wet RV pad along with water running down the sides of the trailer.  As evening falls, the mosquitoes that the over-watering  encourages are evident.  There are not many alternatives in this area, but we’d probably try to find something else on a subsequent visit to Green River in July or August.  In earlier or later seasons when irrigation isn’t as necessary, this might be an ideal location.

Our group of 3 rigs utilized sites #4, #5 and #23.  All provided water and electric along with a picnic table and fire pit.  There’s a dual lane dump station available in the park.

Green River State Park, UT site #4
Green River State Park, UT

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Rifle Gap State Park

29 06 2016
Rifle Gap State Park

Rifle Gap State Park

After a camping lull due to a European trip in mid-June, we’re now back on the road, this time headed to Bryce Canyon National Park for the July 4th weekend.  Our first stop is at Rifle Gap State park just north of Rifle, CO.  Having never visited this park before, we’re pleasantly surprised to find excellent camping areas, most with a beautiful view over the reservoir and the surrounding mountains.  PARK MAP

We’re parked at full hookup site #12 in the Lakeview Campground. This is the upper campground, with some of the best views.  There is also Cottonwood, at water’s edge providing electric only sites.   Cedar campground is also along the water and provides electric sites. Both Sage and Pinyon campgrounds offer dry camping sites.  In Lakeside, sites provide full hookups including water, sewer and electric.  They also provide a gravel area for a covered picnic table, fire pit and tent space.  Other optimal sites at Lakeview include #28 & #27, on the upper loop with an even better view.  For water access, site #6 at Cottonwood would work well, and provides some natural shade.  There’s also a nice campers services building at Lakeview providing hot showers and restrooms.

Rifle Gap SP, site #12
Rifle Gap SP, site #12
Rifle Gap State Par
Rifle Gap SP, site #28
Rifle Gap SP, site #27
Rifle Gap SP, site #6

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San Luis Valley Campground

31 05 2016
San Luis Valley Campground

San Luis Valley Campground

We’ve just departed Taos where we spent a quick overnight at a favorite park, Taos Valley RV.  We were parked in site #86, an end site in the western “full hookup” section.  These sites are a bit larger and not quite so cramped as the water and electric sites in the center of the park.  Most of these still offer the door-to-door configuration, which might be a problem if you didn’t know your neighbors.  However, site #85 and #84 were both empty during our visit.  Site #80 is a nice end site, one row up and doesn’t offer the door-to-door configuration which might be more private for those traveling alone.  These sites do have a bit more noise from nearby Paseo del Pueblo Sur, highway 68, the main route through Taos.  There is a large construction project just being started directly on the northwest corner of the park.  We’ll stay tuned for the new neighbors…  PARK MAP  It should be noted that GPS navigation seems to always attempt an eastern approach through a residential area.  Ignore this mis-information – the park is just off the intersection of Highway 68 and Estes Es Rd.

With about 275 miles left to home, we opt for one more night in a campground near Villa Grove, CO.  The San Luis Campground is a unique oasis in the otherwise flat and fairly barren landscape along highway 285 through the San Luis Valley.  Set in a grove of pine and aspen trees, the 15 full-hookup, pull-through sites are long, spacious and very private.  Having driven through Villa Grove dozens of times, it was never apparent to us that this quiet oasis, off the highway about 2 miles, even existed.  Complete with shower and laundry facilities, for $29/night this is a great find.  There is also good WiFi available with a 8MB download speed but, unfortunately, no T-mobile cellular service.  We didn’t try the external antenna and booster, but it’s possible that a very weak signal could be amplified enough for phone calls if needed.  There’s also no over-the-air TV but even with the tall trees, it was fairly easy to find the southern sky for dish reception.  We’ll be back!

San Luis Valley Campground Site #8
San Luis Valley Campground
San Luis Valley Campground
San Luis Valley Campground
San Luis Valley Campground
San Luis Valley Campground

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