Colorado River and Winter Park; No Plan? No Problem

[Mon 6/20 - Tue 6/21]

Arrived at our new campsite in Timber Creek Campground around 6, a nice but small site. Enjoyed leftover chicken & rice by the fire on a clear and chilly evening. Climbed into the van around 9pm. It got cold overnight and we both layered up as the night went on, but both of us slept well - til almost 8am (guess we were tired)! Woke to frost on the ground that melted quickly under a cloudless sky.

Packing up camp after a frosty night

Tuesday was a rare day with no specific plans - including no campground or hotel reservation - other than to work our way closer to Denver, where we have a hotel reservation for Wednesday night. We packed up camp and headed out of the park, south toward Grand Lake, then continuing on along the western shore of Shadow Mountain Lake. We decided to check out the dam at the southern end of the lake which flows into the Colorado River, then decided to do a short hike along the eastern edge of the river. We hiked a little over 2 miles, stopped and had lunch on the shore of the river, then headed back to the van.

Shadow Mountain Lake

Spillway to the Colorado River

Trail along the Colorado

Lunch spot

We drove another 30 miles south to the ski town of Winter Park, where Karri had scouted a couple first-come-first-served campgrounds. Around 1pm, we pulled into the first, Idlewild, and found a large, private site that was one of a few still available, so we snagged it and setup camp. Then we hopped on our bikes and rode a couple miles along the Fraser River Trail (which runs through the campground) back to the main strip in Winter Park. 

Welcome sign at Idlewild!

Our site

Fraser River Trail to Winter Park

Decided to stop for a beer at The Ditch on 40, a roadside bar/restaurant with an inviting upstairs patio. We ordered a couple beers, glanced at the menu (a mix of southwestern fare and bar standards), and decided a late-lunch-early-dinner might be in order. We shared fish tacos and a burger - both very good - and had a 2nd round of beers before biking back to camp. Setup the hammocks and relaxed as the afternoon started to cool off, then lit a fire, poured a cocktail and are now sitting fireside, snacking on cheese and crackers, our 'dinner' for tonight. This will likely be our last night camping for the trip.

During our leisurely day, we also decided on a modification to our plan. After Wednesday night in Denver, we planned to continue on to Chicago, drop the van at my cousin's, then fly home before returning a few weeks later for our annual 'Lange Open' family reunion & golf outing (being held for the first time in Michigan). Instead, we're going to drive home and then decide whether we drive or fly to the family reunion. We'll have time on the road to discuss.

Going to be another early night to bed. Tomorrow we will explore Denver a bit, then are meeting up with a college buddy of mine and attending a concert at Red Rocks - a bucket list venue for both of us.