Colorado, Part 5~Blue Spruce RV Park

I can't say enough good things about Blue Spruce RV Park. We camped in this small park last year for about a week on our way home from the Ouray area. This year was an entirely different experience! We enjoyed last year but this year was extra special!

For one thing, we met so many very nice people and made new friends this year! Many of them camp at Blue Spruce for months at a time during the summer, and have done so for many years. 

A big portion of these return campers are from Texas or a neighboring southern state. This park and the entire area is a perfect escape from the Texas heat! We noticed that there didn't seem to be many folks under the age of 50 (or so) here except for some locals that camped during Labor day weekend. 

The cute Blue Spruce office and store.

The office from the playground. 

Another thing that made this year special was the park's many activities in which we participated. The park offers a nice variety of events all summer long, most of which are hosted by the park but not all of them. 

Some of the park's activities are below:

Weekly Events 

Pot Luck Suppers

Pancake Breakfasts

Bingo
Texas Hold 'em 

Tai Chi

Other Events

Karaoke
Left Center Right

Live Music Events

In addition, an on-site craft fair is held every other week. Many interesting creative folks can be found selling their fun and functional wares under the pavilion, in the area outside the pavilion, and in the event center. 

Event center

Pavilion

Not only are some of the craft fair exhibits 

held under the pavilion but pickleball,

 karaoke, live music and more occur here.

Moving right along, we find 
access to even more activities:

The pool room

Ping Pong

Exercise room

In addition to the above, a stroll around the park in the evenings may just lead you past (or to) various RV sites where a happy hour or some other get together is underway like the one below. Except for Joe & Linda, we met all these folks on this trip and they're all from Texas! 

(l-r) ~ Joe, Bob, Jeannie, Patty & Debbie

(l-r) ~ Jan, Lawrence, Wayne & Judy

Sweet Judy gave me a cute pair of shoes that 

I've been enjoying and getting compliments on!

Jeanne, Debbie, Jan & Linda

Jan is signing her book No Motive in Murdoch. It's fiction and based on a murder that took place in their hometown of Clifton, Texas in 1985. Jan and her daughter wrote it under the pen name J.L. Bass. 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

That's it for Colorado 2018 my friends!

If you missed any of the previous posts in this series, you can find them by clicking below:

Part 1

A Cool Airstream Tour & Chuckwagon Dinner

Part 2

Durango, Fish Fry, and This & That

Part 3

Jeeping & Pagosa Springs

Part 4

Pura Vida Cafe, Left Center Right & Fur Babies

For more info about Blue Spruce RV Park, 

you can view last year's post here. 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The 2017 Colorado posts are in the archives on the sidebar of this blog and can be found in the months of August, September and October.

See you soon!

Smiles,

D~~~~

From Ouray to Durango~Part 5

We're off for another interesting day in the Ouray area. Today, we drive to Black Canyon in the Gunnison National Park.

We're here.
Look down...

...way, way down.
God's phenomenal handiwork abounds!

A lot of smiling occurs.

Can you see the lookout below?

Yep, folks are looking out!

They are the tiny colorful dots.

Next, we'll drive to the bottom.

We're here.
 Look up...

...way, way, up.

It's time to exit the canyon now.

We hope you found the short 

but sweet visit enjoyable.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 

Now we'll mosey over to the tiny town of Ridgway (population 979), only 7 miles from our campground. Being so close, we visited Ridgway several times during our trip. 

The town includes a handful of nice little shops which are spread out here and there, as well as a brewery, an Airstream food trailer, a small grocery store, a little hardware store, an ice cream shop, excellent pizza, and various other small businesses. We even attended an impressive Art in the Park event one day. 

While there, we encountered 
this old fire engine parked outside of...

...this 1882 stone & wood firehouse.
Notice the giant Eagle sculpture on this side?

With a little Googling, we found out that the firehouse is currently an artist's studio. 

Even more interesting, we learned that most of the 1969 movie True Grit with John Wayne was filmed in Ridgway and the surrounding area. The belfry on the top of the firehouse was added for the movie but it has never had a bell. 

For info about the making of True Grit in Ridgway, click here.

Here's a close up of the eagle. 

Isn't it cool?

We wonder if it was created by 

the firehouse's resident artist. 

See the busy white hummingbird hovering 

between the feeder and the ice cream sign?

Don't you love hummingbirds?

We all relaxed in a little sitting area next to the umbrella (behind the feeder) while indulging in some of the ice cream shop's quite tasty fare. 

Across from the ice cream shop is the park. 

Art in the Park was held here a few days later. 

We attended but sorry, no pics.

We sure liked the little town of Ridgway! 

It'd be nice to explore more in the future!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 

Next, we'll drive into Montrose, eat Mexican food, and go bowling! 

Carrie just picked up a spare!

(These two pics came out of video, thus the quality.)

Not sure what Rick just did but 

we have no doubt, it was good!

We don't think more pics are necessary.

After all, you know what 

bowling looks like, right?

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 

Another day, Linda and I painted rocks while Joe & George decided to go hiking. We posted about that day on my Yak Yak Art blog which you can read by clicking here. 

Our two weeks in Ouray are about over! That was quick, wasn't it?

Moving down to Durango for a week is next on the itinerary. 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 

This blogger was talked into riding to Durango via the Million Dollar Highway which I said back in 2010 would never happen again! But guess what? Yeah, it happened! 

The Million Dollar Highway has been dubbed one of the most dangerous highways in America and for good reason! It runs 23 miles from Ouray to Silverton on the way to Durango. While it's 23 miles of spectacular, majestic views, about 12 miles of it also navigates hair-raising curves on the edges of deep ravines with mostly no guard rails and little to no shoulder in most places. 

We opted to follow Joe & Linda since they've been up and down the Million Dollar Highway a lot over the years! Rick & Carrie chose to go around another way.

Here we go!

There's Ouray below as we leave 

on the Million Dollar Highway.

Bye Ouray!

As you can see, they actually 

have a guard rail here. 

Notice how the road just drops off on the right!

Plop!

(I took these two pics out of some video.)

Look at the curvy road ahead,
 and the abrupt edges! 

See how it winds with barely any shoulder, 

no shoulder in some places. 

Below is a very deep ravine!  

Phew! 
At last, we're on better ground.
Aren't you glad?

It's definitely a gorgeous drive and, 

as you can see, the sky was a rich blue today!

I must say this trip is on the better side of the Million Dollar Highway. Coming the other direction is even more harrowing!

We stopped in Silverton for a few hours but we mostly shot video so there's not many pics, however, you can see pics and get additional info from our 2010 and 2011 trip by clicking the links below. 

To read about our 2010 experience in 

Silverton and Ouray, and on the 

Million Dollar Highway, 

click HERE.

To read about our 

2011 train ride 

to Silverton from Durango on the 

Durango Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, 

click HERE.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Alas, we're not too far 
from the RV park now as we 
begin passing pristine Vallecito Lake. 

The RV Park is in Bayfield, 
about 45 beautiful minutes from Durango.

AND

We're here!

We love this RV park!

We will tell you about it in the next post.

Stay tuned for the final Colorado post.

Smiles,
D~~~~

Hooray for Ouray~Colorado Part 2

After leaving Grape Creek RV Camp in Westcliffe, Colorado, we moved on over to the KOA Campground in Ouray. (If you missed the first post about Grape Creek, you can click HERE to read it.) 

As usual, I'm inviting you 

to come along on our trip.

It's a 3-weeker this time. 

"Weeker" 
I made that word up.  

Two of our three weeks will be 

spent at this KOA Campground in 

Ouray, and then we'll move down 

to Durango for the final week. 

We think these KOA sites are a bit 

too close but the treed view outside our

back window (the living area) is pure delight!

Beneath the trees we find 
a lovely narrow stream.

(Sorry about the inside reflection here.)

I cherished the early mornings, 
drinking coffee, 
doing daily devotions, 
reading artsy magazines,
and all while enjoying the happy view!

Of course, I wasn't reading and looking out the window at the same time but please know that if I was capable of reading with one eye and looking out the window with the other, I would have done it!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Now let's go into Ouray (population 1,000 as of 2010 and, as I mentioned in my previous post, it's pronounced Yoo-Ray). It's a short five mile drive so that's a good place to start out. 

Surrounded by the San Juan Mountains on three sides, Ouray is known as The Jeeping Capital of the World. In fact, the guys went jeeping twice but that's another post. 

After a bit of shopping, my friend 
Linda and I spotted the guys 

seated atop the Ouray Brewery.
(Rick was with them but left to go catch 
up with Carrie who was still shopping.)

  How about we go up and get a birds-eye view.

Look right.

Look directly across the street.

Now look to the left.

You've just seen Main Street, Ouray, Colorado.
Small and very cool!
Don't you love those mountains 
in the background?
I sure do!

Of course, there are side streets and a few backroads that run parallel to Main on both sides, some of which are not paved but add to the charm. That is, unless it's raining! In that case, I suspect it might lose some of it's appeal and we wouldn't enjoy it as much, would we?

A summer feature is the Hot Springs Pool & Park at the end of Main Street which you did not see when you looked to the right (above). 

Don't go back up there to look! 

"Why?, you ask.

Mainly because I'm concerned that 

if you stick your head out too far,
STRETCHING,
STRETCHING,
trying to see the pool, 

you might 

smash it,

smack-dab 

into your computer screen! 

Ouch! 

Instead, click here 

and you'll find an 

excellent aerial photo of the 

pool, park and Main street, 

along with some info. 

It's much gentler on the old cranium!

Below is Ouray from the
Million Dollar Highway 
(U.S. 550). 

This pic was taken in 2010 and 
from the opposite end of where
we traverse in and out of Ouray 
to and from our current campsite.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Meanwhile, 
back at the Brewery...

Here's Geo and Joe enjoying the view.

And Linda smiling as always!
She's fun!

I'm sitting with Geo & Joe now.
Somebody's gotta do it!
LOL!

We grabbed a bite to eat at
O'Brien's Pub and Grill 
where we sat outside
to relish in the warm weather.

For the moment it was warm.
It changed all the time 
throughout the day, 
almost every day
while we were in Colorado.
We loved the cool temps!

No pics of O'Brien's but it was very tasty.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

About a week later, the four of us explored a couple of Ouray's side roads during a stroll to check out an RV park. Passing some colorful, spots along the way, we found it necessary to take advantage of the photo op.

Joe & Linda affectionately carrying their 

sweet owners--Tootie left and Harley, right.

Harley on a bridge over busy water.

Definitely not troubled water!

Just busy.

The wild flowers and rock-lined 
bank makes for a nice view!
The pic really doesn't do it justice.

My, my but aren't we colorful!

I hope you're not blinded by it!

We didn't see any chain restaurants or shops in Ouray. They all seemed to be friendly, down-home entrepreneurs -- very nice! It's a lovely little town in which to shop, eat, roam, and hang out a bit. 

That's it for now.

I hope you enjoyed it!

We'll do more of Colorado very soon.

Smiles & Hugs,

D~~~~

Colorado Time! ~ Part 1

We spent our first night in Westcliffe, Colorado at Grape Creek RV Park, a very small and cozy little park with a gorgeous view of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. We met up with our friends, Joe & Linda and Rick & Carrie there so we could all enjoy Colorado together.

Early morning view out 
the back of our RV (the living room).

Left

Right

Panoramic view.

The Grape Creek Park stop was merely an overnight stay. It's off the beaten path, and the town of Westcliffe is very small but it looks like a fun place to do a little bit of exploring in the future. 

The next morning, we all headed to camp about 5 miles outside of Ouray (the locals pronounce it Yoo-Ray). 

This purple barn quilt was a cute 

goodbye as we pulled out of Grape Creek.

Outside of Salida, CO.

A pretty photo taken near Gunnison

but, of course, everywhere is pretty here.

Elmer with his butt plopped on  

George's chest the first night.

See ya soon.

Smiles & Hugs from Ouray,

D~~~~