Camping New Years Eve

New Years in Estes Park, Colorado

Date of Trip:	12/31/2017 to 1/2/2018
Duration:	2 Nights
Round Trip Mileage:	141 miles
Rock Odometer:	446 miles
Weather:	Low 14°F - High 30°F, Mostly Sunny
Campground:	Manor RV Park In Estes Park, CO.

2017 has come to an end...

We've had a blessed year and the last month has been crazy. Both girls celebrated birthdays, holiday parties at work and a wonderful Christmas get together at our place. It's time to take a couple days to unwind and ring in the new year.

Better have a plan!

After talking with Marc Leach of Keep Your Day Dream it sparked my curiosity about snowshoeing in the Rockies. We found that nearly all the campgrounds and RV parks in Estes are closed for the season and either do not answer the phone or their websites explicitly state they're closed until spring. The only place we found that would really talk to us was Manor RV Park but they quickly stated they were closed too. They did, however, offer "dry camping" which to me means they are offering a piece of land. Well to them they were offering a spot, with power, cable, and sewer. They also have water onsite at select frost-free hydrants but not at the sites. 

Load up and head out.

It's cold! Really cold, I'm talking 10°F cold. We picked up the Rock from storage and brought it to the house to load up. The entire time I was loading stuff (and freezing) I was telling myself what a bad idea this was. I had a space heater running but the entire rig was so cold that it just consumed every drop of warmth that came out of the little box. Finally, we're ready, 3 kids, 2 dogs, and enough snow gear to pack nearly every crevasse of the Rock.

Up we go.

It's a quick drive, about two hours. The scenery is beautiful once you get out of the city and into the canyon on Highway 36. Grades are steep from time to time and turns get tighter but nothing too challenging. The recently installed airbags on the truck have greatly improved the ride and the control of the load.

We're Here!

Estes Park is undergoing some major street repairs since this is their offseason, which meant getting through town was a little difficult. We finally arrived just before the office closed and the lady at the desk was extremely nice. She explained that she was leaving for the holiday and we were some of the only people in the campground. She showed us where our spot was and where we could get water. We quickly pulled to the frost-free hydrant to fill the fresh water tank but ran into a couple of snags. First, our inline filter was frozen. So we ditched it. We hooked up direct, turned on the water and it filled the hose. Then it stopped! Apparently, there was just a little water somewhere in the fill line that didn't get pushed out when I winterized. Long story short, there will be no water in our rig this weekend.

We pulled into our spot, got leveled and started running some heat. The onboard propane heater kicks out some major heat. It was 70F in the Rock within about 15 minutes. From there we decided we better figure out what we are doing for water for the next couple of days. So we headed into town and grabbed some 2.5-gallon water jugs. 10 gallons should do.

While driving around in town we also noticed that the city center was still lit with lights from Christmas. It was beautiful. We walked around for a little while taking in the sights but it was soooo cold. We lasted about 20 minutes before heading back to the Rock. But not until we made a trip past the old Stanley Hotel which was also well lit and jumping for NYE.

That night we tried our hardest to get the ball drop on TV but the only channel we would get was airing 2 and a half men. They have cable hook-ups here but we do not have a cable. That'll get added to the list.

We pseudo watched it on YouTube and had our own unique celebration. 

Snowshoeing here we come.

We woke to a beautiful morning. Rocky Mountain National Park out the window and the sun shining. As we looked around we realized there really wasn't much snow. Rather than go rent gear we decided to head to the park and see for ourselves. As we suspected there really wasn't much but we were told that they had snow at Hidden Valley. This is an old ski area that has since been shut down and is now open to the public to sled on. We just so happen to have our sleds so we pulled over and went sledding. The area was great, it has a warming hut and restrooms. There were plenty of people but its a rather large area so the kids had no problem finding a spot to head down the hill.

After a good couple hours of sledding, we decided to continue on into the park and look for a decent hike. We came across a waterfall on the map and it looked like a decent shorter hike so we went looking for it. The name of the falls is Alberta Falls and you can get to it by starting at the Glacier Gorge Trailhead. The hike is 1.7 miles round trip and is fairly easy going. The trail was covered in snow but it was hard packed as easy to hike on. Once we reached the falls we were in awe. It was obviously frozen but we were able to climb it and see the water flowing behind it. It was really magnificent.

An evening on the town

The kids were pooped and wanted to go back to the Rock and watch movies and nap. We stopped by Estes Park Pie Shop & Bakery on the way back and had a great meal. Hearty comfort food and obviously pie! We had to take a whole cherry-peach pie back to the Rock with us.

After dropping the kids off Nikki and I thought this was a great opportunity to go check out the town. We found a little distillery called Elkins Distilling Co. and wandered in for something to warm us up. We had a taster flight of their whiskeys and had a great time in this neat little place. My more detailed review can be found on Yelp. From there we stopped in Estes Park Brewing but found it to be a letdown. We didn't stay long but here are the details if you're interested.

Final Thoughts

The next morning we threw down a hearty breakfast on the Camp Chef and then packed up. We were back home by 3pm and had plenty of time to unload and re-winterize the Rock. We made sure we got every last bit of water pushed out with anti-freeze so hopefully this won't happen again. 

This was a great trip even if we didn't have water! We need to do a better job winterizing, obviously.

I need to get the truck/trailer adjusted to utilize both the weight distribution hitch and airbags effectively. It had improved but I think I can get it even better.

We need a coaxial cable onboard. We seldom watch TV, but it would be nice in times like this.

Photos from the trip can be found here.

First Trip in the Rock

Weekend in Buena Vista, Colorado

Date of Trip:	9/29/2017 to 10/1/2017
Duration:	2 Nights
Round Trip Mileage:	282 miles
Rock Odometer:	302 miles
Weather:	Low 28°F - High 61°F, Mostly Sunny
Campground:	Arkansas River Rim Campground & RV Park

Packing up and hitting the road

Being that this was our first trip out in our new rig we had a lot to load. Not only did we need the essentials like food and beer but we also needed sleeping and cooking wears. Many of the items we had from the old pop-up camper but now we also had room to expand. After leaving work early around noon and spending 4 or so hours packing we were finally ready to hit the road. We had nearly everything we could think of.

Up the hill, we go!

Leaving late always causes me to stress, this is inherent in all of our travels. I know its unnecessary and just causes everyone else in the truck to stress but it happens. I'm working on tackling this but it's really hard. Needless to say, I wanted to be on the road much earlier but it's now 4:30pm. After getting on the highway we make it about 2 miles and it's tail lights as far as the eye can see. Ugh! We're racing the clock because Arkansas River Rim Campground & RV Park's office closes at 7pm. On a good day, without towing, it takes 2 and a half hours to get there.

Finally, traffic breaks loose and up we go. All is well until I realize I left my prescription glasses on the counter at home. I've got my prescription sunglasses but it'll be getting dark soon. Well, we ain't turning back!

I have never pulled a trailer this big so it's taking a little getting used to. It's a little stressful at first but you kind of find your groove. Our F-150 with the 3.5L Twin Turbo Ecoboost is doing great, plenty of power as we fly up I-70 towards the Eisenhower tunnel. The suspension is a little soft and squishy but overall it's doing great and we're passing diesels which makes me feel like we must have enough truck for what we are pulling. I have yet to put the trailer on a scale but I'm guessing she weighs a little over 8k as loaded.

Once we made it over the hill and through the tunnel we felt the extra weight behind us. Between the tunnel and Silverthorne, the westbound descent is 7% for 7 miles. The grade is steady for approximately 6.4 miles, where it lessens to a 5% to 6% grade for the next 2.2 miles. Our little V6 doesn't hold much back in the way of engine braking. Best I could do was about 55 MPH in second gear at about 6000 rpm.

The sun faded and I was really wishing I had my glasses. I continued to wear my sunglasses as my uncorrected vision was worse than a slightly too dark image. Just to add some additional challenge it started to rain just after Leadville. But before we knew it we were there! We were a little late as it was now 7:30pm but not bad considering.

 Arkansas River Rim Campground & RV Park

We rolled right up to the office and went inside. There was a nice note that read something to the effect of "I heard the bell but it takes a couple minutes to get from the back so be patient" so we waited and waited about 5 minutes went by and we're starting to wonder when in walks a gentleman. He was out helping another RV get to their spot. Jeff was his name and this was his place. He got us all set up and lent us a movie to watch. He had quite the collection right there in the office. He offered to take us to our spot but it was raining pretty hard and I didn't foresee any need for help. It was a pull-through site and it looked easy to find.

We pulled into the site and ran through the necessary steps as we understood them. We jumped out and leveled the trailer from side to side and got it dropped. Within a minute or two more we have, it leveled all four ways and the stabilizers down. Plugged her in, got water connected and zipped out the slides. Wow, that was quick! We unloaded the kids and everyone was inside. Not too bad I thought to myself.

We made a quick dinner and popped in the movie we borrowed from Jeff, UP!. I was pretty well wiped and crashed early. I think all of us slept like babies. We woke to a stunning view of the aspens changing and were ready to start our day. We tossed some flapjacks on the Camp Chef griddle and made a day plan.

Jumpin’ Good Goat Dairy

First on the list of things to do was visit the Jumpin’ Good Goat Dairy. We'd been here before and enjoyed sampling cheeses and other artisan items in the little country store but today they were having a Fall Farm Festival. There were many local vendors and plenty of goats. Our favorite, Donald Trump, the goat.

Deerhammer Distilling Company

A trip to Buena Vista wouldn't be complete without a stop into Deerhammer. This little artisan distillery is nestled right in the heart of town and offers some of the areas finest spirits and cocktails. They also have a semi-permanent food truck nearby that makes some great burgers. We were lucky enough to catch our good buddy Lenny before he headed out to host a whiskey tasting in town. It's always nice to visit with Len and see what's next on his horizon. Buena Vista was hosting the 14er Fest that day so the town was hopping.
After an amazing old fashioned we found a quick bite to eat and headed on.

St. Elmo

Our next stop was the little ghost town of St. Elmo. This is always a stop when were are in the area due to the long family history on Nikki's side of the family. Her great-grandparents owned a filling station for many years in the town before it was abandoned. Her Grandmother, mother and herself spent lots of time in the area hiking, fishing, and camping. There are many trails that start out of this area and the ghost town has a ton of history. We spent some time feeding the chipmunks then headed out for a scenic drive down county road 292.  We also found a neat trail that once was the Denver South Park & Pacific Railroad.

Mount Princeton Hotsprings & Resort

Our last stop was for a calming soak in the hot springs at Mount Princeton. This is always a great stop as they have a very nice facility with pools for everyone. During the summer months, they have a water park with an alpine type water slide. This time of year that is shut down but they still have several "resort patrons only" pools,  two public bathhouse pools and access to the river. Hot water comes up naturally into the icy river. You can move large rocks to create your own experience from freezing cold to boiling hot. We spent several hours soaking in the river and enjoyed every minute of it.

That night...

While sitting around we decided that we needed a name for our camper. Many were suggested, so good and some well, not so good. In the end, we settled on the Rock. This ties to our last name as well as the physical characteristics of the camper.

We made one hell of a delicious dinner that night with ingredients that we picked up from the farm festival that day.

In the morning we threw down a hearty breakfast, Nikki got some homework knocked out and we packed up.

Final Thoughts

We are probably going to need airbags to stiffen up the rear end of the pickup. The F-150 has plenty of power but it feels a little sloppy.

DON'T FORGET GLASSES!

This was a great weekend adventure, we learned a lot about our new rig, made quite a list of items to pick up for next time and came up with lots of ideas for future trips.

Photos from the trip can be found here.

Our new travel trailer!

After a couple years in a pop-up camper and a few too many cold, wet nights fighting with the heater, we decided it was time to trade up. We sold the pop-up that we had made many memories in and went shopping.

Old White Lightning 

A 1993 Palomino Filly Long Bed, boasting a king size bed on one end and a queen on the other with a dinette that converted to a full. This was our rig for the past few years. We wanted something to get us out and exploring and she did just that.

Old White Lightning 

Although we had some great times in this beast, she had her drawbacks. Size was always a factor, being that we have 3 kids, 2 dogs and I'm well over 6'. No one had very much room. Having little water on board and no toilet made things a little rustic, but we still had some great times.

Inside the old girl

Camping at Jackson Reservoir in March 2017

Even after our many adventures she still brought $2000 on Craigslist. These things really hold their value. Apparently there is quite a market for cheap, old pop-up campers.

So the Search Began

We found that they make a tons of different configurations in travel trailers, but with the size of our family and my large stature we needed a very specific model. We had narrowed it down to three models, 2017 Jayco White Hawk 24MBH - 27.75 ft, 2017 Forest River Flagstaff Micro Lite 25BRDS and the 2017 Open Range Light 221RQB.


The  2017 Jayco White Hawk 24MBH was nicely styled and very modern, but lacked storage. We thought the furnishings were very cheap. All the models we walked through had broken components and damage to surfaces.

The 2017 Forest River Flagstaff Micro Lite 25BRDS was also a decent option but it seemed dated and cheaply manufactured for the price point.

Both of these models were Murphy bed style trailers which meant you opened the door to a bed unless it was stored. When the bed was stored you have a couch, but you couldn't have both at the same time. They both did have a bigger dinette and outdoor kitchen. We really didn't want the outdoor kitchen, as it took up storage space and wasn't really as useful as our Camp Chef setup.

Winner-winner, chicken dinner!

The 2017 Open Range Light 221RQB. This is a 27" (when slides are out) trailer with 3 slides and a bunkhouse up front. The full size queen has plenty of room for Nikki and I, and the couch converts to a full size bed as well. It's arctic rated and has everything needed for cold weather travel. It also has a much larger refrigerator (8.0 ft3) and bathroom than the other two we considered. This will be nice for the long trips. Oh, did I mention it has a beer fridge outside!?

After thinking about it for a few weeks and haggling on the price we pulled the trigger! This Open Range Light 221RQB is going to be a great addition to our family and open a lot of opportunities to travel the county.

Nikki with the new rig!

A little about this blog.

So now that you know about our new rig, follow along as our adventure has just begun! My hope is to post details about every trip. Essentially a journal for us and hopefully inspiration and information for you. Please feel free to comment and ask questions.