Little Molas Lake, CO, Day Three

​August 10, 2022

What a beautiful morning as I brought my chair down to the lake for an early morning chill out. There was a truck with two pop-up tents that must’ve spent the night here. It’s the day use parking area. I have yet to see a park ranger or anybody official going through this area. Either way I sat there watching a young man take an artic plunge, and washing his hair in the lake. I was definitely tempted myself, to do the same thing. At that point, on my way back to the RV, I decided to spend a third night here. I’ve become more and more spontaneous, the older I get. Which for older people, is really not the norm. I’m not sure my mother would approve, as she was more rigid with her plans, and not willing to spontaneously bend plans. But after hiking on this trail, where she did eight years ago, I figured it was worth a bend.

On day three my house batteries were showing significant discharge. I either had the option to run my engine in idle mode, which is not ideal, or to start driving around to charge these batteries, or run the generator. Running the generator is the best option and I tried at least 10 times to roll it over to run. And just as in my previous spot in Ironton, I had a heck of a time getting it to start and run. And yes, I’m up on the ladder, on the roof, to clean the solar panel. It was dirty. I was frustrated, and it was time for a hike, which I did in the opposite direction of yesterday’s hike, on the Colorado Trail. This time heading straight up the mountain towards the timberline. On my way, I met a man in a white van, In the same day use parking area, and asked him if he was going to camp here. I noticed him the other day and he said yes, I’m back, just for the day, but not camping, as I mentioned meeting the other campers there this morning. He seemed surprised. One thing led to another, and I found out that this was his conversion van, and he converts vans into rv’s, as a living. I was fascinated with the high clearance and the huge mega tires on this vehicle. He drove up Alpine Loop, near Ouray, which I passed by earlier this week. That is a 4 wheel drive road straight up the mountain which I wouldn’t imagine in 1 million years that I could ever do in the Sylver Gypsy. He mentioned enjoying camping in remote places that no one else goes. I was envious. I thought I could reach those remote places, but in reality I can’t. I did mention my issues with the generator, and he offered to take a look, assuming I would be back before he left. I tried to make it a quick hike, but spent an hour and a half in this round trip. He was still there, and as I walked back to my RV, I really hoped he could take a look. Within 15 minutes he was here, underneath the Sylver Gypsy. He checked the air filter which was actually not too dirty, and in the end he held the throttle open, as it finally turned over, and stayed on. We waited a bit to make sure it would stay on, and in the end I let it run for two hours. I gave him a bag of Reese‘s peanut butter cups and profusely thanked him for his help. I so appreciated it. I know my house batteries need to be replaced at this point in time, since they are struggling with staying charged.

I finally managed to get some lunch when I heard a vehicle pull up. Two people got out and started walking towards my space. It was rather confusing as nobody really does this. They came around to my open sliding door, which of course made Jo Jo go ballistic, as he rightfully should. As head of security, that is his job, and he does a really good job of it. I pick him up while he’s going nuts, and say hello, how can I help you? Well, this couple was wondering if I was planning to spend the day, or to camp overnight, and yes, I am. They wondered if I was leaving in the morning, and I said yes I am leaving, so they wanted to find out if they could arrive in the morning, just upon my departure to take this spot. They scoured the whole area and there wasn’t any other space available. I said of course, I don’t know when I’m leaving, probably by 10 AM. They asked if they could set up a tent in the morning, even before I left to secure the space? I said certainly, but if you have the tent with you now, you can set up now, which is what they did. So just as I was very thankful to Josh for helping me with my generator, they were equally gracious and appreciative to set up their tent. No Reese’s peanut butter cups were exchanged.

I managed to relax, and after a rather late lunch I went back to the lake to enjoy some time there with Jo Jo. I put my feet in the lake and even though it wasn’t warm it felt very soothing to have some cold feet in this beautiful lake. It suddenly got busy with a family and seven fly fisherman that wound up launching in this very narrow beach area. For a Wednesday, it was quite a busy spot! It was an interesting and eventful day leaving me feel really good with a second wind of hope for humanity, and compassion, and a desire to help others out.
















Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Bryce Canyon National Park, then almost home

Image
​ A great night in the Utah desert, and a rather chilly morning, surprisingly, but I got up and hurried out of there with the intention of getting to Bryce Canyon National Park. I wondered if I would have enough time and decided it was only 20 minutes one-way, out-of-the-way as I continued on my route home. This would be my third time visiting Bryce and I’m so glad I did. As with any National Park, there are some new changes and the Ranger told me that because I’m over 20 feet I would have to park in the main parking lot and take the shuttle bus in to see the viewpoints. She gave me a tag to hang in my window. My heart sank to the bottom, since I know the shuttle buses will not except pets, and I was not willing to leave Jo Jo. However, upon examining the tag, it indicated vehicles over 23 feet to park and shuttle. My Travato is 21 feet. Hmmmm, I was annoyed. So I ignored the directions and went straight to the parking area at the sunrise amphitheater and not only did I see other campe...
Read more

At home now… from the great 2023 Alaska Road Trip!

Image
​ Jo Jo and I are home, from the trip of a lifetime! 106 days, 11,539 miles, 675 gallons of gasoline, a ton of fun, beautiful views, and amazing experiences. Other than a brief head cold, no other mishaps, except my souvenir windshield chips. The Sylver Gypsy performed wonderfully. She kept me safe and warm. My last days were drive heavy, but I managed a quick stop at Bryce Canyon National Park. My last night was in the Coconino Forest near Flagstaff, where I also made a brief stop at Sunset Crater. I’ll need a few moments to adjust being back to reality, but it’s nice to be home!
Read more

Montana to Blackfoot, Idaho

Image
​ Well, other than spending the day driving I didn’t do much else. Unless you consider the excitement of filling up my gas tank for $80.00. It’s the first time in a long time when I looked down I saw my gauge in the red and the yellow warning light came on indicating low fuel. I never do these things, but I must’ve been in “the zone” while driving. Either way, I made it to the next gas station and I also have 2 gallons as a spare mounted to my ladder. I wound up staying in the same place that I stopped in May, as I was traveling up north. It’s Rose Pond Park near the town of Blackfoot, Idaho. I even recall exactly where I stayed and it was open and available. However, there was a radio concert going on right around the corner. I wasn’t into listening to the “boom boom.” I found another spot just as a truck came with three ATV, mini bikes and kids who spent the next two hours driving around, mostly in the parking lot. I was actually concerned that they would come by too closely or lose ...
Read more