Full Time RV Travel: Canon City CO and the Royal Gorge Bridge

Driving south towards Canon City on

Colorado State Rd 115. . .this was our view.

The Sangre de Cristo mountain range. . .

Not sure which snow covered peak

we are seeing, but I do know that

on the other side is New Mexico. . .

Canon City (pronounced Canyon) is a cute little tourist town. . .

Much bigger than I had anticipated. . .

they even have a Super Walmart. . .

but we were headed about 7 miles away

to the Royal Gorge Bridge. . .

which was the highest bridge in the world until 2001. ..

isn't that cool?

Since I don't do history lessons here on the blog. . .

this sign post pretty much covers the basics

There was a bit of a dispute about how far down it is

to the Arkansas River below. ..

the sign post says 1053 ft. . .

I believe the actual record is 955 feet. ..

but hey, I only know what I read. . .

I do know that when you are standing in the middle of the bridge,

reading the NO FISHING SIGN (really?). . .

you can hear the roar of the river. . .is is awesome.

and yes, believe me, vehicles do still drive across the bridge!

I didn’t know John F. Kennedy had a mountain

named after him. . .

but you can see it from here.

We rode the incline rail car to the bottom of the canyon. . .

where we could see the Arkansas River. . .

up close and personal. . .

The Royal Gorge train from Canon City

made it into the Canon, while we were at the bottom. . .

The folks in the open air car were very friendly!

there’s nowhere for the train to turn around,

so when they get to the end of the line,

they hafta back out of the canyon.

as hostile as the environment at the bottom seems,

there are still beautiful cactus and wildflowers growing down there. . .

and last thing. . .before we head back to the top. . .

although it is collapsing. . .

the water flume is still very recognizable. . .

We spent about four hours at the Royal Bridge Park. . .

and enjoyed most of it immensely. . .

You can read our more about our

  personal  Royal Gorge experience here, 

if you would like. . .

and because once a fireman, always a fireman

of course Dave had to have a pic of the

Royal Gorge Fire Engine. . .

Full Time RV Travel: Mountaindale Cabins & RV Resort

Our original intention had been to stay in Canon City. . .

go to the Royal Gorge,

and then move the rig over to 

Colorado Springs and go to 

Seven Falls, Garden of the Gods,

and Pike's Peak,

but Mountaindale Cabins & RV Resort, 

a Passport America Park,

 was just too good a deal to pass up, and boy, 

are we glad we chose it. . .

       Passport America - Discount Camping Club

We are parked right smack dab in the midst of the 

Rocky Mountain foot hills. . .

a lot of the pull through spaces are tiered, 

so there is so much privacy. . .

The mule deer come across right behind our rig. . .

we have enjoyed watching them. . .

and there are birds everywhere. . .

along with these great signs posted at the office. . .

                           While I would be thrilled to see either of these 

creatures from the safety of my rig. . .

ummm. . .up close and personal is not really on my bucket list.

We are sad to leave here tomorrow. . .

we have enjoyed sitting outside so much. . .

but Denver beckons. . .so away we go!

We have determined that in our truck, 

it costs us about $10 per trip to drive

in to either Canon City or Colorado Springs.

We could not have stayed in any RV park 

in either town, and enjoyed it near as much

as we have enjoyed being here. . .

and I feel sure we would have paid the 

extra $10 we spent in fuel,

 plus some to have done so.

Evans Escapades: Conquering the Royal Gorge Bridge

In 1988 we took our boys on a

Colorado Rocky Mountain vacation

the Royal Gorge Bridge was one of our stops. . .

just about the time we got a third of the way out on the bridge,

a vehicle started over behind us. . .which caused the bridge to

feel like we were walking across a trampoline. . .hellooooo. . .

that was it for me. . .I headed back to solid ground,

while Dave and the boys, much braver than their Mom

headed on across. I have always regretted that decision. . .so. . .

24 years and lots of pounds later here we are. . .

I’m bound and determined to conquer my fear

and do just as this billboard says. . .Walk across this crazy hanging in the air

with no supports bridge. . .as it bounces and sways with every footstep. . .

I can do it. . .I can do it. . .I even gave myself the pep talk. . .

“Every day, hundreds of people and vehicles cross this bridge. . .

and you’ve yet to read a news report about a collapse.”

Right! . . .here we go. . .

all was going well until I discovered there is only

a fastener about every fourth plank. . .WHAT?

Are they crazy. . .every single board should be

screwed and bolted down. . .

then Dave took great delight in pointing out the cracks

that were big enough to lose a small child through. . .

with the Arkansas River roaring by a thousand feet below. . .

okay, okay. . .stop looking down. . .just keep your

head up and look forward. . .OH LORD! OH LORD!

not helping. . .good grief. . .

My son required proof that I actually made it. . .so I took

this pic of his Dad in the very center of the bridge. . .

seriously. . .I really took it!

and please. ..wouldn’t you love to hear the story

behind the need for this sign. . .really?

We finally made it all the way across. . .and was taking a break on one of the

restaurant patios with a great view of the bridge when I had this bright idea. . .

I told Dave. . .I’ll go back up on the bridge. . .and you take my pic. . .

THAT was going very well. . .until. . .

this stupid car came across behind me. . .too late to do anything but hold on and pray!

Dave laughing at my moment of sheer terror. . .thanks honey!

So glad to have conquered my fear. . .

will I ever walk across it again. . .NO!

Evans Escapades: Summer Trip 2012 - Travel Days

We’ve traveled a lot of miles since we last spoke. . .

First, we stopped by Granbury TX for a wonderful weekend visit

with Dave’s Aunt Barbara and Uncle Wendell. . .

His brother Curtis and wife Brenda met us there

for a great visit, and delicious eats.

next stop. . .

Lake Texoma Thousand Trails in Gordonville TX.

This butterfly picture is the only pretty thing we have to show

from our visit there. . .way off the beaten path. . .

internet and phone service. . .nonexistent.

We had scheduled a week there, thinking it would

be right on Lake Texoma, the way the other parks are on

Lake Conroe, and Medina Lake. . .not so.

The lake was a long ways away. . .too far to walk to,

but we had a project that needed to be done, so we stuck it out,

and got some water damaged flooring repaired and replaced.

Never a good idea to go bouncing down the highway

with damaged wood in strategic places. . .

Leaving Lake Texoma, we drove 437 miles. . .

past beautiful Oklahoma farms. . .

and ranches. . .

to Dodge City Kansas. . .where we had stopped on a vacation

25 years earlier. . .aren’t those Evans boys adorable?

We didn’t even unhook the truck. . .just pulled in to

Water Sports RV Park and Campground. . .

got the electric only hooked up. . .ordered a pizza

and kicked back for the evening.

Bright and early Tuesday morning (read 9:30). . .

we rolled out of Dodge. . .City, that is. . .

past the feed lots Kansas is famous for. . .

and the beautiful Kansas prairies. . .

it’s easy to see why it’s called the breadbasket of America. 

You would drive past miles of just fields and prairies,

and then, in the distance you would see a copse of trees,

which told you the farm and ranch buildings were coming up.

All the buildings had windbreaks of trees

planted on at least three sides. 

I’m sure it’s the only way to survive the winds

that must whip across there in the winter.

In Garden City KS. . .we paid $4.15 (gulp) for diesel. . .

we had known we would find, and had prepared for

higher fuel prices. . .we just didn’t think we would

find them ‘til we got to Colorado. . .ouch already!

Speaking of which. . .we crossed the State Line

about noonish Mountain Time. . .which meant

we had gained back the hour we had lost

a couple of weeks ago to DST. . .

isn’t that great?

About an hour into Colorado. . .

we started to see the mountains to the south. . .

and about a hundred miles out of Colorado Springs. . .

we saw what we think is Pike’s Peak. . .

still covered in snow. . .and definitely under a cloud cover.

 

Although rain was promising on all sides,

it held off until we got set up in the most beautiful

RV Park we’ve ever stayed in. . .

Mountaindale RV Campground between

Canon City and Colorado Springs.

Today, we re-visited Royal Gorge Suspension Bridge

after 25 years. . .more about that later!

Until then. . .safe travels!

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