Salida, CO/Ridgway, CO

Tuesday, August 7.  We left Chatfield State Park and headed towards Salida.  Hwy 285 is a beautiful drive from the Denver area over the mountains and through some very pretty valleys.  The weather was perfect so we didn't have to run the a/c in the coach.  Mike had made us reservations at a Passport America park in the town of Howard about 10 miles east of Salida on Hwy 50.  It is on the Arkansas river but because we waited so late to make our reservation we had to take a site that didn't have a river view.  That's ok, $14 a night is not bad for full hookups and wifi!  Besides, it was an easy walk to the river.  Here are pictures of our site and the river deck where we enjoyed our wine.

Wednesday, August 8.  We both wanted to explore Salida so we drove into town and stopped at the Visitor Center and got some information about local hiking trails.  The town is cute, about the size of Cortez but is on the Arkansas river.  The woman at the V.C. suggested a hike that was on the way back to the campground so we drove to the trail head and had a nice walk with Jenny.

Thursday, August 9.  Today we drove from Salida to Ridgway via Hwy 50 over the Monarch Pass.  I don't know how many of you are familiar with the Monarch Pass but it is one of the longest and highest passes in Colorado at 11,200 +/- feet.  We've been over it before and knew what to expect but even so, it was still a pain.  The diesel engine really does a good job in the mountains but this pass is a real challenge.  About half way up the engine started overheating and then the transmission light started flickering which means the trans. is struggling.  I had to pull over to the side of the road twice to let the engine and transmission cool off.  We finally made it to the top and I thought, whew, the worst is over.  Wrong!  Going down is rough on the brakes and the transmission because of the steep grade and how far you have to go.  This time my brakes started to over heat even though I was using the exhaust brake and also had downshifted as low as I could go without stressing the transmission.  Again, I had to pull over a couple of times to let the brakes and the transmission cool off.  I hope that's the last time we have to go over Monarch Pass for a while!!

We made it to Ridgway State Park, Dutch Charlie Campground and got set up in time for cocktail hour.  Now that we're back in pinon/juniper country I don't have to worry too much about trees blocking the satellite dish.  This campground is on a ridge overlooking a reservoir that is very low because of the drought. It's pretty sad, same thing with the Blue Mesa, we couldn't believe how low it was when we drove by.  Here are a couple pics of our campsite at Dutch Charlie.

We had some pretty good storms while we were here, thankfully we have the drugs for Jenny now so we can keep her calm.

Friday, August 10.  There are some awesome hot springs in Ridgway that we have been to before so that's where we went today.  We had a nice long soak at Orvis and then came back to the RV and chilled out.  We took Jenny for a walk and had a nap.  Such a rough day...  We're both excited about returning home tomorrow, we've been on the road 3 months and 1 week.  That's a long time!  8,500 miles!!  Whew!