Garden of the Gods RV Resort- Colorado Springs, Colorado (May 2018)

The ride between Estes Park and Colorado Springs was eventful. Our caravan took the backroads so that we could enjoy the scenery and avoid Colorado's Memorial Day traffic. What should have been a two hour trip turned into a six hour drive because the holiday traffic was heavy and there were too many easy-to-miss turns. On a more positive note, we learned that we can pull Rosie, out 25 foot Airstream trailer, through the Rocky Mountains and turn around when we need to.

Looking at the side mirrors while on the way to Colorado Springs

Our first impression of Colorado Springs was tainted by a major road construction project that engulfed the park's entrance. We had to squeeze Rosie between concrete barriers and clouds of dust to navigate into the park.

Arriving at the campground

We were escorted to our site by someone from the park. Our site was short. Very short. Too short. Rosie barely fit in it and we had to park our truck across the street. We weren’t alone as all of the campers on our row also barely fit into their sites. 

Rosie parked in the Garden of the Gods RV Resort

The campground staff was impatient and kept trying to hurry us as we unhitched since we were partiality blocking the road. I’m not sure why we were being hurried because everyone on our row was also blocking the road while disconnecting.

We arrived on a holiday weekend and the park was full with families kicking off their camping season after a long winter. Needless to say, there were many excited children in the park and that made it very festive. 

The view outside our panaramic window was of a retaining wall about a foot behind Rosie. Instead of looking at concrete, we simply kept the curtains closed on that window.

There are some amazing natural sights to see around this park. Weather and time have worked together to sculpt some breathtaking rock formations. 

Garden of the Gods

Helping with the Balanced Rock

Here are some specifics about this campground:

• Our site had 20, 30 and 50 amp electrical service 
• Our site had both water and sewer connections 
• Our site was gravel and not level
• The park provided WiFi, but it was terrible. It was annoyingly slow and required you to constantly keep logging back in with their passcode. 
• We had no AT&T phone or data service from our site
• The park provided a cable TV connection. We only saw one station using their cable. 
• We raised Rosie’s TV antenna and saw ABC, CBS, FOX, PBS and NBC. We also saw digital channels Antenna, Escape, Grit, ME-TV and THiS
• The park had two swimming pools 
• The park had a nice laundry room. 

One of the drawbacks to this park was the sketchy looking people outside the park who would occasionally drift through the campsites. We felt we needed to be very diligent in making sure nothing was left outside and that everything was constantly locked away. Our instincts may have been on-track since a bicycle was stolen from one member of our caravan.

Enjoying a Native American dance at the Garden of the Gods

Riding on the Royal Gorge Route Railroad

Elk Meadow Lodge and RV Resort - Estes Park, Colorado (May 2018)

Before starting our Airstream Springtime in the Rockies Caravan adventure, we knew we needed some time to get used to the altitude in the mountains. After all, going from an elevation of 221 feet to nearly 8,000 can cause physical problems for some people. We arrived at the caravan's rendezvous location five days early to make sure we were ready to participate once the other 25 Airstream trailers and motor homes arrived.

Elk Meadow Lodge and RV Resort

Better make that before 24 Airstreams arrived because one from our group was already set up in the park when we backed in to our site. We were not the only people thinking we needed some time to adjust to the altitude!

Rosie in the campground

We were not surprised when other members of our group started arriving early. Nearly half of the rigs in our caravan were in the park three days before our official start date. This gave us an opportunity to meet some of our fellow campers who would be with us on this adventure.

Other Airstream trailers arrive

The views outside Rosie’s windows were breathtaking. (Rosie is our 25 foot Airstream trailer.) We were staring at the snow capped peaks of the Rocky Mountains. Google Maps helped us figure out that Long's Peak was framed in Rosie’s panoramic window. This is the tallest peak in the Rocky Mountain National Park.

Long's Peak

The temperatures dipped below freezing several times during our visit to this campground. Rosie’s heaters were up to the task and kept us warm during these times. 

Watching out for elk grazing on the vegetation became one of our favorite pastimes in Estes Park.

Elk in the campground

It was amazing how this campground changed as Memorial Day Weekend approached. It was about one-third full on Friday morning. The park approached capacity by that afternoon. This placed a strain on the campground's facilities. Of course, the staff didn’t help the situation by locking the bathhouse and restroom that served our area from 8 p.m. until 8 a.m. every day. To make matters worse, the staff usually unlocked the bathhouse then immediately closed it for another 30-45 minutes for cleaning. We were puzzled by this policy as to how it served their paying customers. 

Of course, the real star of this area was Rocky Mountain National Park. One of the roads leading into the park ran parallel to one side of the campground. That meant we were close to some of the hiking trails and sights of this incredible national park.

Rocky Mountain National Park

There were water issues while we were in this campground. Water was suddenly turned off for an hour at a time to repair the water connection at one site and the water to the entire campground was turned off for about three hours when a water main broke. We felt sorry for anyone who may have been caught in the showers when the water was turned off. 

Here are some specifics about this campground:

• This is a large campground with approximately 200 sites
• Our site had 20, 30 and 50 amp electrical service 
• Our site had water and sewer connections 
• Our site had a basic TV cable connection that delivered 36 channels 
• We were unable to pick up over-the-air TV stations
• The park provided a decent WiFi signal over the park 
• AT&T placed two bars of 4G voice and data service over our campsite 
• The park had a good laundry room
• The park had clean and well maintained restrooms and showers. We discussed earlier in this posting the park's practice of closing the restroom serving more than a third of the park after dark and until 8 a.m. This didn’t make sense to us. 

We enjoyed watching the critters in the campground. It was full of what we think were uinta ground squirrels. They were interesting to watch as they scurried around the many campsites. 

It was fun to watch the elk that roamed the campground in the evenings. We got the feeling that the elk actually owned the place and we were in their backyard. 

We were surprised at how fast the weather changed while we were camping in Estes Park. It would be cold in the mornings and warm in the afternoons. Thunderstorms were common in the afternoons. In fact, we had a hail storm on Tuesday. Moments later, the ground squirrels and the elk were grazing by the empty campsites.

Snow in the Rockes

Heavy Duty Snow Plow

Church near the campground

Rainbow over Rosie

Limon KOA Campground- Limon, Colorado (May 2018)

We needed a rest.  After four long days of dragging Rosie, our 25 foot Airstream trailer, across America, we needed a day off to do laundry, wash Suzy, our Yorkie, and to clean both our truck and trailer.

There was another reason for wanting to take a day off. We started this trip at 221 feet above sea level and were climbing in altitude ever since we left the Deep South. Limon was a little more than 5,300 feet and our next stop would top out at about 8,000 feet. We needed an extra day to adjust to the altitude.

Altitude reading from our iPhone

After looking at Rosie and our truck, I decided that there could not be a bug left alive on I-70. They were all smashed on the front of our vehicles. A bucket of clean water, some microfiber cloths and  “elbow grease” removed the bug graveyards.

Campground sign

We were told when we made our two day reservation that there isn’t anything to do in Limon. That may have been an understatement because we discovered there is NOTHING to do in Limon. We didn’t even unhitch Rosie from our truck because there was nowhere we wanted to go. Nothing, nada, zilch.

If you want a day off from driving to rest, having nothing to do is music to your ears. 

OK, there were a couple of things to do in the park. It was fun watching the many rabbits hop around the park. This was also a golden opportunity to catch up on the laundry. Then you could watch the rabbits. Did I mention that rabbit watching was about the most exciting thing to do here?

A rabbit

Another rabbit

More rabbits

We noticed in the morning that the park quickly cleared out. I guess it isn’t common for people to stay more than one night in this park. In other words, this is an overnight stay park and not a destination. The park started to fill up again the second afternoon.

Rosie in the campground

Here are some specifics about this campground:

• Our site had a 30 and 20 amp electrical connection. You can pay extra for 50 amp service 
• Our site had a water connection. We were warned to use a pressure regulator because of the high water pressure 
• Our site had a sewer connection. The park designer knew enough about physics to place the sewer connection lower to the ground than the sewer connection on most RVs 
• The park had one dump station 
• The park had a clean and well maintained bathhouse 
• The park had a laundry 
• The park provided WiFi service. The connection's speed was decent enough to actually use your wireless devices
• AT&T provided between one and two bars of 4G voice and data service over our site. This wasn’t reliable enough to depend on for anything 
• The park offered 24 channels of cable TV. The stations were the usual ones you would find on a basic tier of cable service 
• We were able to find eight stations using Rosie's TV antenna. The wind was strong enough that we lowered the antenna and simply watched the cable stations 
• This was a pet friendly park 

There was a big wind storm during our second day in this park. The weather apps on our iPhones said that we saw sustained winds of 25 mph with gusts to 30. We were safe and comfortable inside Rosie.

Rosie in the campground

Our site

Curtis Creek COE Campground- Junction City (Milford), Kansas (May 2018)

Our GPS instructed us to turn onto Brinkley Road to get to the Curtis Creek COE Campground. I couldn’t help but wonder if this road was named for the infamous Dr. John R. Brinkley, who practiced during the 1930s in Milford, the town on the other side of the lake.

Following the GPS

Students who suffered through my media law undergraduate class probably remember that Dr. Brinkley and his  radio station in Milford were the focus of one of the more bazaar cases we talked about during the term. 

As we checked in with the campground hosts, I asked if they knew of any monuments or other recognition of Brinkley in Milford. They had never heard of Brinkley, so I gave them a quick summary of what he did and why I included his case in a media law class.

Sign at Curtis Creek Park

Our water connection didn’t work and the camp host was able to repair the problem. He said that he and his wife looked up Brinkley after I asked them about him and they could not believe “that” happened just a couple of miles from the campground. 

(If you are unfamiliar with Dr. John R. Brinkley, his practice in Milford, Kansas, and his KFKB radio station, you will have to look it up. This was a three day lecture in my classes and I’m not sure I can condense it down to a paragraph.)

We reserved a site that backed up to the water. Curtis Creek Campground is on Lake Milford and the view out Rosie's windows were amazing. As with many Corps of Engineer parks, camp sites were large and the location was beautiful.

Our site in Curtis Creek Park

It seemed that most campers in this park brought their fishing poles. Fishing boats were also popular around the campground. We were happy simply enjoying the peaceful scenery surrounding Rosie. 

Here are some specifics about this campground:

• This campground is about 12 miles off the Interstate. You will head down some very narrow roads to get there 
• There were two loops in this park. We did not explore the other loop
• Our site had 30 and 20 amp electrical service 
• Our site had a water connection 
• Our site did not have a sewer connection 
• There were two dump stations in an area we thought was outside the park. 
• We were able to watch CBS using Rosie’s TV antenna. We also saw digital channels CW, Get, H&I and Justice 

This turned out to be a great find.

Another failed attempt at a "selfie"

View from our site

Our site

Laura Ingalls Wilder RV Park and Campground - Mansfield, Missouri (May 2018)

If you have read any of the “Little House on the Prairie” books or watched the TV show, you are familiar with Mansfield, Missouri. Wait a minute, the Little House books were based in Walmut Grove, Minnesota. So, what does Mansfield have to do with anything?

Laura Ingalls Wilder RV Park

Mansfield is where Laura Ingalls Wilder, her husband Almanzo and their daughter Rose lived while Laura wrote the Little House book series. The home Laura designed and Almanzo built, the Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum and their grave sites are all located in Mansfield. 

Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum Sign

Laura and Almanzo Wilder's home

The Laura Ingalls Wilder RV Park is across the street from the museum and Laura’s home. The campground host said the park was designed more than 60 years ago. Wow! Campground designs have greatly improved over the past six decades. 

For example, there are about ten sites carved out on a hill.  Maybe those sites approached level 60 years ago, but not today. We needed every leveling tool we owned to come close to correcting Rosie's lean. (Rosie is our 25 foot Airstream trailer.)

Our site

Another 60 year old design trait was that connections were shared between sites. That meant the water, sewer and power connections were on the correct side for half of the trailers and had to run beneath the rest because the hookups are on the wrong side. Fortunately, we arrived early enough to choose a site with the utilities on the correct side.

Our utilities were on the proper side

Finding the park was an adventure. Our GPS, Ford's navigation system and Google Maps all agreed the best path was a dirt road. We ended up with lots of dirt and road grime on both our truck and Rosie. Things were scary as the dirt and loose gravel road ended with a downward slant to a highway. Rosie and our truck were sliding on the loose rocks and didn’t stop until we were slightly in the traffic pattern of the highway. An approaching truck was able to steer around us avoiding an accident. Whew! If presented with a similar situation later, we will elect to skip the dirt road and let our navigation systems come up with Plan B. 

Since we arrived early, we walked across the street to Laura’s home and museum. The memorable thing in the museum was Paw's fiddle. Probably the most fun thing we saw wasn’t part of the displays but a young girl wearing the style of clothing associated with Laura Ingalls on the TV show walking towards the museum with her family. It was great to see that girl's excitement in visiting the museum.

Paw's Fiddle

Photo of Laura and Almonzo Wilder

Poster from the TV Show

Here are some specifics about this campground:

• This is a small campground with less than 25 sites 
• Our site had two 50 power outlets. There was a 50 to 30 amp converter cord chained to the utility box. Since this was a shared power connection, you may need to bring a power converter cable if your neighbor is using the supplied converter and your rig also requires 30 amps
• Our site had a water connection
• Our site had a sewer connection. Unfortunately, it was uphill from our trailer.  Since water does not flow uphill, you have to manually “walk the line” when you empty the tanks. 
• The camper sharing your utility connections has to run his sewer hose under his rig. I doubt I had enough hose to make that run. 
• Our site was mostly dirt with some gravel and wasn’t level
• The park provided a usable Wi-Fi signal
• AT&T provided three bars of 4G service for voice and data. We were at the top of the hill and the camp host said that was the “magic” spot to connect to AT&T. 
• The park had a bathhouse and laundry. Both passed as “OK.”
• There is a stocked fishing lake in this park
• This has to be a great park for children. There are lots of things for them to play on scattered around the campground 
• There is a chicken coop at the top of the hill and we saw the chickens regularly stroll through the park
• We were able to see ABC, CBS, FOX and NBC using Rosie’s TV antenna. The digital channels that came in were Antenna, Bounce, Cozi, Escape, Laff and ME.
• This is a pet friendly park 

There was a strong rain storm during the night. It made our exit a little muddy. You need to be extra careful exiting the park because it is easy to slide a little on the gravel as you head down the hill. 

Tom Sawyer's RV Park - West Memphis, Arkansas (May 2018)

We were heading west to join a WBCCI (Wally Byam Caravan Club International) caravan and one of our goals for our second day of travel was to find a campground west of Memphis, Tennessee. We didn’t want to drag Rosie, our 25 foot Airstream trailer through morning rush hour traffic there, so we planned to stop for the night after passing through Memphis.

Crossing the bridge into Arkansas

We used the AllStays app on our iPhones to find the Tom Sawyer's RV Park in West Memphis, Arkansas. The reviews were positive so we decided to take a chance on this park. 

Our confidence in our choice started to wane as we turned on the access road to the campground. We were hoping that our GPS wasn’t taking us down some poorly graded roads that we would have to back out if we hit a dead end. Even the sign announcing the campground appeared to need some maintenance.

The sign announcing Tom Sawyer's RV Park

Our tune changed once we were escorted to our campsite. Rosie ended up being parked about 25 feet from the Mississippi River. The views outside Rosie's windows were amazing. 

For example, we enjoyed watching the tugboats push barges loaded with coal toward New Orleans. We were also amazed at the number of fallen trees being carried down river by the swift current.

Tug boat headed down the Mississippi River

Tug pushing barges

What a jewel of a campground!

One of the most frequent comments from other campers in the park was about the incredible location along the Mississippi and the views. 

Needless to say, we were glad we continued down the access road and stayed in this park. 

Here are some specifics about this campground:

• Our site had 20, 30 and 50 amp electrical service 
• The voltage was low during the afternoon when everyone’s air conditioners were running full blast
• Our site had a water connection with 42 pounds of pressure 
• Our site had a sewer connection 
• We think the park had a dump station, but we didn’t find it (we didn’t look too hard since we had a sewer connection)
• Our site had a concrete pad. We still needed to use our leveling tools to correct a slight lean 
• The park provided free WiFi, but it was embarrassingly slow
• AT&T provided two bars of 4G voice and data over our site
• There were two bathhouses in the park. Since the park floods nearly every year from the Mississippi River and the bathhouses were underwater three months earlier, we can cut the park a little slack on the condition of the bathhouses. They were clean and maintained. It appeared that the walls were freshly painted black to hide the water line from the most recent flood, which was only three months before we arrived
• The park had a laundry for guests to use 
• We were able to watch ABC, CBS, FOX, PBS and NBC using Rosie’s TV antenna. We also received digital channels Antenna, Escape, Get, Grit, H&I and ME
• This is a pet friendly park 

It cost a few extra dollars to get a site along the mighty Mississippi River. It was well worth it and this is a park we would stay in again when traveling through Memphis.

Tug on the Mississippi

Tug heading up the Mississippi

Hawk sitting along the bank of the Mississippi River

Rosie at sunset along the Mississippi River

Bathhouse

Whiten Park COE Campground- Fulton, Mississippi (May 2018)

Our GPS decided we needed to take the scenic route off I-22 to Whiten Park COE Campground. In the 12 mile process, it made sure we saw all of the sights and stop lights in downtown Fulton, Mississippi. 

Our GPS wasn’t the only one coming up with this route. A big fifth wheel caught up with us at a red light. It appeared that this rig was also following its GPS off the Interstate, through town and into the park. 

Somehow, our GPS came up with a new route back to the Interstate when we left the park the next morning that avoided the town, the traffic lights and the traffic.

Sign at entrance to park

Our first impression was that Whiten Park may be one of the older Corps of Engineers (COE) campgrounds. It had many mature trees around the campsites. Also, the utility connection points were showing a little age. The same was true of the bathhouses in the park.

View of trees from Rosie's window

We were a “walk-up” and arrived without reservations. The camp host gave us a map marked with available sites in the park's three loops and asked us to let her know which one we chose for the night. We did a fast run through the loop nearest the water and ruled those sites out because they were too short and we would have to disconnect Rosie, our 25 foot Airstream trailer from the truck. We planned to leave early the next morning and simply wanted to stay hitched up over night. 

We saw a deep site at the end of the middle loop and quickly backed in. We knew the site we picked wasn’t one of the prime spots that people try to reserve months in advance, but it was good enough for the night.

Rosie in Whiten Park COE Campground

Later, we walked through the third loop and realized that the available sites in that area were deep and had water views. I guess we settled too fast on a site in the middle loop. 

Here are some specifics about this campground:

• Our site had 20, 30 and 50 amp electrical service 
• Our site had a water connection with 38 pounds of pressure 
• The water had a high level of iron. I had to rinse out our water filter several times when I disconnected the next morning 
• Our site did not have a sewer connection 
• We saw one dump station in this park
• Our site had a concrete pad 
• We had to use leveling tools to fix a slight side-to-side lean 
• There were three loops in the campground 
• Each loop had a bathhouse 
• The bathhouses were clean and well maintained by the staff
• The park does not provide WiFi service 
• AT&T provided marginal 4G voice and data service over our campsite 
• We were able to watch CBS using Rosie’s TV antenna. We also received digital channels ME and THiS 
• This is a pet friendly park 

We were amazed at the number of small children in this park. It appeared to us that this is a campground that young families tend to stay in. It was nice to hear the “happy” sounds of young children playing in the park.

Trees in the park

Main road to the camping loops