RV ALASKA - Fun & Frolic in Fort Collins

When Alan and I left Ridgway State Park, we made our way back to Interstate 70 and headed east through the Rockies.  We’ve crossed this magnificent mountain range many times, but one particular crossing stands out in my mind.  It was late March of 2017, and Alan and I had just purchased the Creek Side in Everett, Washington.  We were on our way home with our brand new travel trailer, and it was snowing on Interstate 70 in Colorado by the time we hit the Eisenhower Tunnel (elevation: 11,000'+).  I still remember how bad the trailer looked covered in snow and mud.  What a mess!  This time around, we had a blue sky day that allowed us to relax and enjoy the spectacular scenery.  We arrived at Inlet Bay Campground on Horsetooth Reservoir just outside of Fort Collins, Colorado, on Tuesday afternoon, excitedly anticipating the arrival of long-time friends who had booked sites just down the loop road from us.

Date(s) – September 10th – September 12th

Total Miles Traveled to Date – 18,017 (We’re racking 'em up, aren’t we?!)

Wildlife Sightings to Date – Over the course of these three days, we saw our first turkeys – 12 of them! (including 5 half-grown young’uns), 3 swans and 5 deer (including a fawn that still had its spots).

Our updated wildlife sightings now total: 1 fox; 4 feral horses; 3 loons; 2 ptarmigans; 6 ospreys; 101 dalmatians eagles (including 2 fledglings); 4 seagull chicks; 19 swans (including 2 fuzzy cygnets); 12 turkeys (including 5 half-grown young’uns); 9 sea lions; 33 seals; 17 sea otters; 1 river otter; 4 cow moose; 1 bull moose; 5 grizzly bears (including a sow with 2 cubs and the back end of one grizzly retreating into the brush); 8 black bears; 1 coyote; 1 snowshoe hare; 8 rabbits (including one cute little baby bunny and one very fast bunny that just managed to cross the road safely); several small herds of bison with at least 2 dozen young calves; 26 deer (including 3 fawns and 2 bucks with their racks covered in velvet); 9 mountain goats (including 3 tiny and adorable kids); 23 bighorn sheep; 62 elk (including 7 calves that hadn’t yet lost their spots and a number of bull elk with full racks covered in velvet); several small herds of pronghorn antelope (including 2 mamas with 3 newborn fawns between them); 4 great blue herons; dozens of American white pelicans; at least a half dozen families of adult geese with goslings; and several dozen ducks (with lots of little ducklings).

Highlight(s) of the Day – Fort Collins was an absolutely delightful stop for us!  The brightest highlight of our stay was being able to spend all three evenings with our long-time friends Peg, Mary and Dave.  Peg and I met a “few years back” in first grade.  Mary is one of Peg’s younger sisters, and Dave is Mary’s husband.  These are all folks we try very hard to connect with whenever we’re passing through the Denver area.  And, fortunately for us, they always make an effort to connect with us whenever they‘re back east.  In 2007, the year we took our first cross-country National Parks trip with the kids, Peg was living in Ohio, and we overnighted at her house on our way out west.  When we had reached out to Mary and Dave to see if we could meet up with them on our way out or back on that trip, we found out that they wouldn’t be home.  Did we let that stop us?  No way!  We managed to catch up with them at a steakhouse in Grand Island, Nebraska, as we were all traveling back to our respective homes.  Any time we get together with these old friends, we know that a good time will be had by all – and this get-together was no exception.  Because Mary, Dave and Peg are all still working, we ended up gathering in the evening - at Mary and Dave’s new rig on two of the three nights.  All three of our sites were right on the inlet – so lovely and so peaceful.  Despite the fact that we ate at Mary and Dave’s, Peg gets credit for doing all the work, since her flexible schedule (and the key to her sister and brother-in-law’s travel trailer) allowed her to prep for supper.  The third evening was spent in our rig because Mother Nature decided to rain on our parade.  Did that dampen our spirits?  Nope.  And we were even gifted with a rainbow to cap off the evening!  These are the kind of friends with whom it doesn’t matter where you go or what you do or what the weather is like.  Just being together means that stories will flow, tons of memories will be dredged up to be enjoyed again, and laughter will be the icing on the evening’s cake.  At least at this stop, we remembered to take a photo!

Since Alan and I had free time during the days we were in town, we started our adventures in Fort Collins by having the oil in the truck changed at the Grease Monkey location on Oakridge Drive.  Not only was this Grease Monkey highly rated (and, yes, we’d recommend it without hesitation), but it was just a hop, skip and a jump from The Original Pancake House on East Harmony Road.  We’d also recommend the Pancake House without hesitation.  In fact, we scoped out potential parking options for the truck and trailer the first time we were there, already planning to stop for breakfast on our way out of town on Friday.  Easy parking on the side street followed by a delicious breakfast made for a delightful start to our travel day.

Shortly after our arrival in Fort Collins, we got to talking about Alan’s cinnamon roll experiences, and Mary insisted that Peg needed to take us to Ault.  There was absolutely no argument from Peg, and she managed to fit in breakfast with us on Thursday morning prior to an early afternoon engagement on her work calendar.  Why was Mary so insistent that we drive 30 miles for breakfast and why was Peg so agreeable?  Cinnamon rolls!  Apparently, Gray’s Café in Ault is well-known for their cinnamon rolls - and rightfully so.  We only ordered one to split among the three of us, and it was humongous!  (Photographic proof below!)  We couldn’t even finish it.  And believe me, we were all working very diligently at it, too, because it was scrumptious!

On one of our days in town, Alan and I headed over to Lee Martinez Park to access the Poudre River Trail, a 43 mile multi-use trail that connects Greeley to Windsor.  Alan and I biked the area around Fort Collins, and enjoyed the ride – with one exception.  This is a really popular trail for both walkers and cyclists – and Fort Collins has a big cycling community.  We passed seniors out for a stroll, adults walking for exercise, families with kids who were splashing in the river and even a dog walker with six dogs!  So, a very busy trail.  Some of the cyclists – and one in particular – were traveling way too fast for a trail that gets such heavy use.  Although we both enjoyed the trail, itself, I don’t think I’d bike it again because it felt just a little too dangerous with speed demons racing around blind curves.

No one was more surprised than we were to see a giant-size can of Campbell's Tomato Soup on the lawn at Colorado State  University.  Here's the story behind this unusual piece (credit to AtlasObscura.com): "In 1981, the Colorado State University Department of Art created three giant Campbell's Soup Cans for the opening of the 'Warhol at Colorado State University' exhibit.  They followed specifications provided by Warhol himself, including purchasing a soup can from a local store and copying it exactly, barcode included.  In September of that year, Warhol arrived in Fort Collins with much fanfare and signed the artwork in front of an audience of thousands."  It was definitely an eye-catching piece of art.

We strolled past the Tomato Soup on our way to visit the gardens.  The Flower Trial Gardens at Colorado State University's Fort Collins campus were absolutely stunning!  Alan and I aren't usually big on gardens; in fact, botanical gardens aren't even on our radar when we're traveling.  In this case, though, when we drove past the gardens at CSU, we were so impressed that we just had to stop and take a closer look.  They were gorgeous!  According to CSU, "The outdoor display and test areas at the Annual Flower Trial Garden were established to allow students, researchers, industry representatives, homeowners and extension personnel to learn, teach and evaluate through horticultural research and demonstration projects conducted in the unique environmental conditions of the Rocky Mountain/High Plains region."  Worth the stop?  Most definitely!

Lowlight(s) of the Day – I almost died.  Well, not really.  But I did nearly get creamed by one of those speeding cyclists who came around a turn on the Poudre River Trail.  Not. Going. Back.

Campground(s) – Alan and I had originally planned to stay at the KOA in Fort Collins.  That was until Peg mentioned Horsetooth Reservoir.  There are two Larimer County campgrounds at the Reservoir – Inlet Bay and South Bay.  Since Peg’s family prefers Inlet Bay, that’s where we booked.  We got lucky – site #27 was available.  This site was at the end of the loop near the small marina (right up our alley) and only a few sites down from the campsites that Peg, Mary and Dave had booked.  Except for the cyclists coming through at 5:30 in the morning, this campground was wonderful!  (The cyclists weren’t loud or obnoxious; it was just weird to see all of their individual headlamps bobbing around at o’dark-thirty.)  The water in the reservoir was obviously lower than usual, but it was a really pleasant place to camp – picturesque, quiet, and not at all far from Fort Collins proper.   Be aware that, although these campgrounds are in a County Park, not a State Park, there is still a $10.00 per day fee for a daily park permit.  (What is it with these Coloradans?!)  We paid $35.00 for a site with electric; a water spigot was nearby and a dump station was available.  Even if you add a $10.00 daily permit fee, the $8.75 reservation fee and the required tax, Horsetooth Reservoir is still quite a bargain over the local KOA which is where we had stayed in the past.  Hands down, Inlet Bay Campground will be our first choice anytime we’re back in town to visit - and you have to know we’ll be back.         

Laugh(s) of the Day

After biking, I needed to use that porta-potty.  Guess what!  No toilet paper!

Guess what else!  Having just come from the wilds of Alaska, we were prepared!

Pics(s) of the Day

A few windshield shots of our trip through the Rockies on I-70

A gorgeous day . . .

. . . and impressive mountains!

Inlet Bay Campground on Horsetooth Reservoir - Site #27

So peaceful here!

A delightful surprise!

Me, Alan, Peg, Dave and Mary - intrepid adventurers, every one of us!

I'm thinking, "World's Largest Cinnamon Roll."

Alan's thinking, "I wonder if I can eat this whole thing?"

The Poudre River

Free advertising for Campbell's!

The Colorado State University Flower Trial Gardens were amazing!

Up Next – After leaving our friends in Fort Collins (sniffle, sniffle), Alan and I worked our way south and east through Kansas, spending two nights at an Army Corps of Engineers campground near Dorrance, Kansas, then continuing on to Dam West, another COE campground in Illinois.  Coming up, a damn fine story about our time at Dam West.