CALLING IT HOME

Annette and Shug strolling at waters edge

Rugged rock walls covered in pinyon pine, Utah juniper, and big sagebrush  cradle the deep blue water of Eagle Valley Reservoir, the main attraction in Spring Valley State Park. This  park offers a beautiful setting for camping, hiking, biking and kayaking and we take full advantage.

Bobbing with birds

After our morning hike with Shug, Annette and I throw the kayaks in the truck and head to the water. As we paddle along, little pods of birds float and bob on the water with us. Before long, we realize we're paddling in a bird extravaganza. The late-morning sun illuminates brilliant reds and blues, satiny blacks and whites -- colors so vivid  they don't seem real. A six-pack of eared-grebes paddle past us wearing rusty orange and yellow plummage like Mardi Gras masks around intensely red eyes. We spot the baby blue bills of the ruddy duck, unmistakable even from a good distance across the water. They scoot their ruddy brown bodies over to a grassy edge, their stiff, spikey tail feathers raised above the water. We focus our binoculars on a flash of white chest to our left and see a northern shoveler. His green head plows the water with his spatula-shaped bill searching for food.

Ruddy Duck

As we paddle further towards the north end of the reservoir, we notice the distinctive black and white markings of the ring-necked​ ducks floating in the distance, holding their black heads high while peering through bright yellow eyes. But wait, what's​ that splash of red in the mix? Looks like a redhead duck making his presence known. We know we're seeing something spectacular and we're glad to be floating​ beside these beauties.

Just cruising

We ditch the kayaks, eat lunch, jump on our mountain bikes, and follow the dirt road north of the reservoir to explore several stone cabins built by Morman settlers in the 19th century. We take in the beauty of these old buildings and admire the  craftmanship involved. Settlers cut blocks from the pinkish-white volcanic tuff from the surrounding cliffs to build their cabins. A root cellar, dug underground and against the cliff wall is tucked away behind the cabin. We peek in at old dusty shelves, tools, and jars through the doorway imagining lives lived 150 years ago.

Stone cabin

Root cellar

Valley overlook

Besides kayaking and biking, we also explore the area on foot. We stroll along the dirt road which cuts through the valley floor and offers great views of volcanic tuff walls rising up and  outlining the lush green meadows. A  meandering stream, dotted with geese, parts the meadow and winds its way emptying into the Reservoir.

Beautiful meadow

Our final morning, we hike the Ranch Camp Trail starting at the stone cabin and finishing at the Ranch Campground for two and a half miles of beauty. The trail leads us over the pinkish-white volcanic cliffs and down through green meadows. A pair of geese flying overhead honk their sharp clear call and it echos through the canyon as they disappear from view.

Volcanic tuff ridges wear their erosion well.

As we approach the end of our four day stint and ready ourselves to move on, we reminisce about our time spent in this beautiful park. How lucky are we to be so close to the natural world and all who live here. The beautiful sights, the fresh air, the clarity of sound, and the excitement of being connected to the wildness of ourselves and our world......and calling it home.

Shug lovin'

Shug, on the other hand, gives this park a 3 paw rating due to the MILLIONS of goat head stickers covering the ground at our camp site!! Wait. Did I say millions? Shug says billions.

#enjoyandvotetoprotectourpubliclands #getoutside

Sweet camp spot

Walk on down a country road

Ain't no valley low enough

HITTING THE JACKPOT IN NEVADA?

Shug daydreaming about marmots

Stretched out in the backseat of the truck, one eye open, I listen to my moms bark about being done with the desert and craving mountain air and adventures. I completely agree with this analysis and start daydreaming about  the smell of pine trees in sunshine, clear mountain streams, and whistling marmots diving into their holes in the alpine meadows. I, too, am done with the desert and all of the prickly things that grow here. I've been speared by yuccas, pricked by mesquite trees, and suffered the pains of having cactus spines pulled from my paws. Give me a good old dirt trail that leads to an aspen meadow.

Boulder Beach camp

As we round the corner near the edge of Boulder City, NV, we head towards our campsite at Boulder Beach campground in Lake Mead National Recreation Area. My moms start howling about "winning the recreation jackpot". Sure, I see the great bike trails like the historic railway trail that winds along a stone ledge above Lake Mead and leads riders through five carved-rock tunnels on the way to Hoover Dam. And my moms go all waggy about the River Mountains Loop Trail, 34 miles of non-motorized paved bike path climbing up and down through desert beauty, connecting Boulder City, Henderson, the Las Vegas valley, and Lake Mead NRA--it passes right through our campground.

Historic Railway Trail

As if the bicycling trails were not enough, the blue green waters of Lake Mead beckon just a short walk down the road. My moms start dancing and turning circles about kayaking on these calm and windless days. Oh, it's been such a long time, and oh the water looks so inviting. Sigh.

Shug working on her cycling skills

So what do I think of Lake Mead NRA? The early morning walks are pleasant, but I have to be on a leash, a common practice in populated areas like campgrounds, but demeaning nonetheless. All I do is plod along and observe the rabbits hopping and lizards skittering under bushes...boring! I spend time working on my cycling skills and ride around the campground in my bike trailer, but it's not that comfortable and not that challenging​. On one occasion I fell out onto my hip and nearly got run over by my own mom. I tried not to make a big deal of it, but I was a little embarrassed, mostly for her.

Kayaking bliss

Here's the real deal: While my moms are out biking and kayaking and having a great time, I am left alone in the trailer listening to the same CD over and over. I prefer listening to NPR on the radio, but, and I hate to sound overly negative, the radio reception here sucks and plays all static all the time. I drag myself up onto the bed and mope myself to sleep. On a more positive note, I am racking up some serious guilt hugs and treats when they finally make their way back home. Who knows how many more days I'll have to suffer like this.

Suffering

Start of Railway Trail

Tunnel on Railway Trail

Historic bridge behind us.

Hoover Dam

Big bike/mountain bike area

River Mountains Loop Trail

Bonkered

River Mountains Loop Trail

Annette kayaking/Lake Mead

Shug enjoying the ride

What a dog

Colorado Is a Hard Place to Leave

We said our final goodbyes to Colorado Springs and rolled out on September 13, 2015. Our first destination, Lake Pueblo State Park, is only about 45 miles south of Colorado Springs. Kristy's parents live in Pueblo so we had planned to spend a couple of weeks here, spending time with her mom and dad and kayaking around the reservoir. Our time in Pueblo stretched a little longer than planned when unforseen medical issues and the appointments that go with them required that we stay within driving distance of Colorado Springs. Plus, we decided we wanted to bring our kayaks along on our full-time RV adventures so we ordered a kayak/bike rack from RVKayaks.com and we were waiting for the rack to arrive.

Staying at Lake Pueblo ended up being super fun. Lake Pueblo offers hiking and mountain biking trails,  great kayaking, fishing, and a paved bike path that follows the Arkansas River into downtown Pueblo and beyond. Friends from Colorado Springs drove down to spend a day or even an overnight with us. Sitting with friends around the campfire watching a lunar eclipse was an experience not to be missed. While at the campground we rode the bike path to the downtown River Walk, lunched at Hopscotch Bakery, and brunched at a cute little restaurant at the Nature Center on the river. We loved kayaking and bird watching. From our kayaks Kristy spotted  a sweet little cluster of American avocets on a grassy sandbar. And several times as we paddled around we watched ospreys hover and then dive splashing into the water. Pueblo Lake has camping on both the north and south sides. We like the campground on the south side better because it's closer to the paved bike path, has easy access for the kayaks, and has newer bathrooms with showers.

 Although we were having a great time in Pueblo we were anxious to start our road tripping in earnest. From Lake Pueblo, it's only about an hour and a half drive to Lake Trinidad State Park so we headed south again. We had made reservations in advance which we realized was a mistake when we got to the campground and saw that our site was going to be our biggest parking challenge to date. The road through the upper part of Lake Trinidad campground is curvy and narrow, but we mustered our courage and gave it our best shot. After backing and forwarding and angling and rebacking and trying several different approaches, we gave up.  Admittedly, we were backing novices and we were just plain out of our league. We found a different site in the lower part of the campground and had no problems backing in. Then we encountered a new problem--our fifth-wheel hitch wouldn't release. Annette looked up information on a user's forum which gave us a strategy that saved us: Pinch the trailer brake and hold it, back up a tiny bit and kick on the emergency brake. It worked like a charm. We're grateful to knowledgeable RVers out there who share their expertise. (We've had to use this strategy a few times since when the ground that the truck is on is uneven and works every time). We  won't be making reservations for awhile so we can choose a site to match our backing skill level. After our ignominious beginning at this campground, we enjoyed kayaking and hiking at Trinidad Lake State Park and got a kick out of exploring the little town of Trinidad.      

I'd like to give a shout out to Ray at loveyourRV.com who posted a video on how to back a fifth-wheel. His video clicked for both of us and transformed our backing technique almost instantaneously. After watching Ray's video we improved by a factor of 10 and just felt less stressed out.