By When we last saw our heroes of this saga they barely made it out alive from the backcountry hike at Black Gunnison National Park. It was time to pack up for the second half of this adventure with much of Colorado left for the picking!
Where will we go next? Great Sand Dunes National Park of course! The toughest part of these road trips has always been the long drives between destinations. The break up from adventuring and an opportunity to catch up with my friends as we drove onwards was much needed. Before us laid a three-hour trip so we added a hot spring stop at Mount Princeton Hot Springs Resort, we’re on vacation after all! With a dip in their pools and a refreshing one in the stream we made it to camp just outside Poncha Springs. Have you ever thought about staying at a welcome center with a bathroom open 24 hours? Neither did we and this was a SUPER welcomed surprise.
When the sun rose again the temperatures followed suit. Today would be a slow day with us having only an 80-mile trip to Great Sand Dunes. Wildlife is abundant in CO and for breakfast, no wildlife as harmed, we had a coffee in one hand while the other was waving to mule deer and elks. I keep getting surprised whenever I see one come up close.
Before our next main adventure started I took the guys on a side quest to Zapata Falls, because one) side quests and two) waterfalls. Need I say more? All the online reviews regards this as a refreshing dip after spending a hot day on the dunes. Were we getting ahead of ourselves by attempting these falls before dipping our toes in the hot sand? We’ll find out soon!
There was not much of a hike or a struggle to get into Zapata Falls which we enjoyed after some long days of hiking. Its path leading into the cavernous cave reminded me of the Narrows in Zion, wet, rocky, different around every corner. What no one tells you is that it’s s a DOUBLE waterfall inside a cave! The water is BRISK, but refreshing to the senses after days spent in the 90s+. Times like these I wish I packed a towel.
By now afternoon was in full swing and being outside of the rig without air-con was a death trap. We decided it was the perfect time to hit up the dunes. As with most parks, we scouted it out that afternoon, talked to some of the rangers, and got our souvenir shopping done early, before making a game plan for the next morning. On the way to our camping spot for the night, Smith Reservoir State Wildlife Area, we stopped at SpinDrift SandBoards in Blanca to pick up a couple of boards for the morning. I’m getting Peru vibes all over again and I love it!
There’s campervan spots and then … THERE ARE CAMPERVAN SPOTS. The reservoir was an amazing little gem to stay overnight at, plus the views were spectacular, not to mention FREE. ONE HUGE DOWNSIDE when the mosquitoes come out past dusk. Do not, I repeat, DO NOT STAY OUTSIDE AFTER DARK.
Alarms went off at 6:30AM and we all motioned into gear, slowly. I love getting early morning starts, especially when it involves hiking, trying to beat the day’s heat and crowds. Who thought traversing up 700 feet worth of sand would be difficult? Certainly NOT ME. In Peru we had dune buggies ripping us around, here we had our feet and arms to carry ourselves and our boards. You don’t have a depth perception of how far things are at Great Sand Dunes until you stand atop High Dune and realize everyone looks like ants.
Having had an early start by 8:30 that morning I can feel the sand getting hotter by the minute. Gassed and tired with my extremities feeling like they’ll fall off it was time to board our way back down to the parking lot. The key is lots of wax and lots of speed, equal parts are best, but if worried go for more speed. Wipeouts don’t hurt as much but sand gets everywhere. And I do mean EVERYWHERE. Shoes > bare feet might sound contradictory when hiking in sand but the surface area of the former will provide better stability. Plus you won’t burn your feet like I did! Sand was in everything once we trekked back down to parking lot. The hardest to clean were the ears! The parking lot has a rinse-off station that we opted to use as a shower because it’s anyone’s guess when the last time we had a proper rinse was.
With some parking lot sandwiches in us and a long chat with a soon-to-be local, we ventured out of Great Sand Dunes for a 150+ mile trip to Colorado Springs. Our adventure was winding down to its last couple of days and the feeling was surreal. By this point, we’re all tired of not getting enough sleep, those early mornings, longer that advertised hikes, and temperature extremes from cold to sweltering. Maybe we were a little tired of each other, it happens. Colorado Springs would be a wind down back into society after a week in the wilderness.
Garden of the Gods was the draw for us in Colorado Springs and we arrived in the late afternoon. Admissions are free, and so is the parking, beware of kids running out into the street though, it gets BUSY here. The 1300+ acre public park in the middle of the city was pretty nifty. It even boasts an outdoor climbing area that you can partake in, with permits and know-how of course.
After an hour of a leisurely stroll, we left to tackle the rest of the day with some Top Golf and electric carting to see who really was the very best. I did terribly at Top Golf but redeemed myself by placing first at carting, were there any questions on who would win though?! That evening we hunkered down at a Bass Pro Shop parking lot for our dispersed camping, to my surprise I never knew you could just blatantly set up camp here. Pretty sweet in the middle of a bustling city I’d say.
The next morning was the slowest of all mornings, and we needed that. Before leaving Colorado Springs for Denver we took a morning trip to Pikes Peak. This is something I have been wanting to see since my days of watching the hill climb events held annually here. It would mark the highest elevation the group would encounter the whole trip: 13k+ which reminded me of the times spent in South America, I was ready!
If you want to get to the very top of Pikes Peak you need to book a permit entry AHEAD of time, we did not. Devil’s Playground would be our pull-off spot.
Driving up here is SUBLIME, but NOT without being cautious. You should put your vehicle in low gear for the climb and descent, with emphasis on the latter. In between going up and down Devil’s Playground played host to some incredible 360 vistas that we thoroughly enjoyed. It can get cold so pack yourself a light jacket. We watch cars queue up for their chance to head to the very top, somehow that day was a Porsche day, ha. On the way down we stayed in 1st or 2nd gear not riding the brakes as much as possible. Before the last third of the descent, rangers are stationed to check your rotor’s temperature. If they deem it TOO HIGH you have to pull off and let them cool down or risk brake failure. You do not want your brakes to fail let me just say that right now.
Arriving at the bottom unscathed we bid farewell to Colorado Springs for Denver, our last night on this trip together. The 80-some-odd miles it took us to get back into Denver we filled with conversations that carried from the days on the road together. Before we knew it the early evening hours had set in as we saw Denver on the horizon.
Good drinks, food, and … karaoke? Yeah, what’s a way to end up a trip other than singing our hearts out?
We rolled into a Cabellas on the outskirts of Denver around 2:45am before setting up camp at yet another outdoor sporting goods store. I really like this easy-to-find dispersed camping sites out here in Colorado. Hungover and dehydrated we moved at a snail’s pace to clean the rig, dump the gray tanks, and fill the water back to acceptable levels before dropping it off. The excitement that started the week has finally fizzled out to wanting to get to the airport. That is not to say we didn’t have an amazing time, we did! A lot goes into trips like these; the planning, the oversight, permits, parking, and places to sleep. By the end, you are just drained.
The upside, because there will always be an upside, is the new memories and experiences you’ll be writing home about. It was an amazing trip for everyone involved, and by the time we boarded our flight, we had already decided on this year’s location: Washington State! Until then keep exploring conscientiously!
theroamingnoodle 