A Few Days at Saratoga Lake Campground

   Last Thursday we had to move out of Deer Haven RV Park for 3 days. They had booked 11 spaces months ago for this time period so we had to move for 3 days. There happens to be another campground about a mile north on Saratoga Lake so we moved up there. It's not a bad place to camp even though they don't have full hookups, just 30 amp electric, so we filled up the water tank and took off. There wasn't any shade to speak of but it's right on the lake. There was no internet access so I wasn't able to post. We have AT&T for internet but it doesn't work in the Saratoga area and many other areas we like to go in the western US. I'll look for some other options when we get back to the Kansas City area.
   We settled into a routine while at the lake. I would get up early and drive up to Pick Bridge to fish while Barbara would sleep in and then go for a walk when she got up. I would arrive back at the RV around lunch. We would spend the remainder of the day resting or taking short trips around the area. It's been a little warm here lately with highs in the upper 80's and low 90's. With a low relative humidity it's not that uncomfortable however at this altitude can be intense. The nights are really cool. As soon as the sun goes down the temperature drops very quickly. By morning it's usually in the low to mid 50's, perfect sleeping weather.
Barbara's been helping out this week with Vacation Bible School held in town this week. All the churches got together and combined to put it on. She's having a great time with a great bunch of kids.

 

Our RV is the one just left of center. The Medicine Bow Mtns. are in the background.

 

 

We visited the Saratoga Museum and saw the original RV, a sheep herder's wagon.

 

 

It has the comforts of home; bed, table that slides out below the bed, seating, stove, oven, and storage.

 

 

I caught a 16" rainbow trout the other day. Fishing has been good!

 

 

Words can not describe the beauty of Turpin Lake early in the morning, and yes, there are trout in the water.

 

 

 





High Country Fishing Day

   I awoke yesterday to hear the coffee maker start up at 4:45am.. I quickly got up and turned off my alarm (set at 5:00am) and got dressed for a long day. Pre-dawn light was already prominent in the eastern sky. The day before, I got all my fishing gear ready including my waders along with food, water, bug spray, extra cloths, and rain gear. I put a cooler with ice in the truck, optimistic about the fish I would be bringing home later in the day.
   After breakfast and a couple of cups of coffee I left around 6:00am for the high country just north of Medicine Bow Peak. I started out on Hwy. 230 driving south for 7 or 8 miles before turning east onto Hwy. 130 for 12 miles. I turned north and drove another 20 miles onto forest road #100, a gravel road that winds north and then east up to about the 10,000' level. I then turned onto forest road #103 for another 2 miles, a narrow one lane gravel road, arriving at the trail head at 7:00am.
   After a tough 4 mile hike, gaining another 400' in elevation I arrived after a 2 hour hike at the most beautiful high mountain meadow I've ever seen. I checked the time. I arrived  at 10:00 am, not bad time for the distance and altitude. In that moment I was convinced that the earth truly does proclaim God's Glory. This is one of the most remote places I've been. This is nature untouched with wildlife ranging from bear, mountain lion, elk, and moose. I didn't see another person from the time I left on foot from the trail head.

 

As soon as I got here I noticed brook trout rising without stop the whole time I was there. This high up the fish need to eat all day in the short summer in order to survive the winter. After a hard 4 mile hike this lake sure was a welcome site.

 

 

As soon as I arrived, I noticed this little fellow coming down the hill right at me. Porcupines don't have the best vision so I didn't think it knew I was there until I yelled at it as it got about 10' feet away.

 

 

On the trail. Actually this is a forest road, just wide enough for a vehicle. This section is one of the only level, smooth sections.

 

 





  This part of the trail crosses a large meadow that I named Vail Meadow in honor of a friend that went to heaven a few years ago, Bill Vail. It was Bill that first brought me up to this place in 2005. I've since been back almost every year.

 

 

Around 1:00pm I heard a clap of thunder. It was time to leave. The one place you do not want to be is in the mountains, out in the open during a thunderstorm. You kind of make a nice lightening rod standing out in the open. I quickly packed up and started back to the truck.

 

 

For the 3 hours fished I caught a lot of fish. These were the ones I kept. These little brookies were great eating.

 

Last Saturday we decided to attend a rodeo just outside of Saratoga. It was a real fun time and only cost $5 bucks per person. I would estimate there were around 300 people in attendance. During the summer, numerous rodeos occur out west. 

 

The Bareback Riding was exciting. If you zoom in on this guy it looks like he's laying down on the horse's back.

 

 

We went to church on Sunday, the Platte Valley Christian Center. It' a small church, I estimate around 60 people or so were in the worship service. We attended here last year during our stay in Saratoga. The pastor teaches using a heavy dose of scripture throughout his sermon. Barbara got recruited to help during the upcoming Vacation Bible School for the kids.

 

Barbara and I went for a walk the other day. We left the RV park, crossed the bridge, and were in downtown Saratoga. I took a few interesting photos.

 

 

The North Platte River from the Veterans Island Bridge

 

 

 



 



1st Week in Saratoga

We've settled into our new location at Deer Haven RV park, directly on the North Platte River, just north of downtown. I've spent some time relaxing time fly fishing up and down the river. I've caught a few small rainbows and browns, still looking for the the big ones. The fish appear healthy and well fed this year. I can walk all over the river in my waders. It averages 3-4 feet deep in this area.
It's been a few days since I posted. We have AT&T internet service and 4G service is not available in this area. I've found that many locations out west don't offer the kind of service we need. We may look into another service provider soon. In the mean time, I'm using the free internet from the RV park.

 

Looking south from our parking spot

 

 

Yours truly fishing up in the the mountains at Lake Marie

 

 

Bridge Street in Saratoga. Population 1690, elevation 6700', with no red lights or fast food restaurants, Saratoga is an ideal small WY town. There is some tourism, mainly for the fishing and hunting in the area. They are also noted for their "Hobo Hot Springs", open 24/7, and the best part, free!

 

 

The Snowy Mtn. Range, just east of Saratoga on Hyw. 130 is one of the most scenic drives in America.

 

 

 



Busy day #2 in Wyoming

I got up today at 5:38am, a little earlier than my normal 7:00am. I think the reason is moving from CST to MST. My body clock is still an hour ahead of mountain time. I took the opportunity to get outside for some morning photos (after making and consuming part of a pot of coffee). Barbara never seems to have any problem sleeping in which is exactly what she did this morning. It was 64 degrees inside the RV this morning....51 degrees outside - perfect sleeping weather.
Around mid morning we decided to head into Cheyenne for a few hours. We had a great time visiting a couple of parks, shopping at the Sierra Trading Post, and doing lunch at Old Chicago. We drove to Cheyenne via a back road called "Happy Jack". There were lots of campers along the way, enjoying the great outdoors in this beautiful place. I learned that this area is one of the best for rock climbing in the USA. I love to climb but my joints just aren't as strong as they used to be so the tough climbs will be left to the young people. I did manage to scramble up a few places to get some photos however.
Tomorrow...we head to Saratoga for the next month, camping on the bank of the North Platte River. I hear some trout calling my name.

 

 

An early morning photo. We just love our campsite.

 

 

A closeup of the same photo above. The whole earth is certainly filled with God's Glory!

 

 

I couldn't resist a little shadow art.

 

 

The largest steam locomotive ever built. In Holiday Park, Cheyenne

 

 

Also toured the Botanical Gardens. Well worth it!

 

 

Not sure about the type of flower but they sure were pretty

 

 

Interesting rock formations are all around us. God's sculpture work is amazing!

 

 

One more photo for the road.

 



Arrival in Wyoming

We are camped this evening in southeastern Wyoming at the Vedauwoo Wilderness area. We'll be here a couple of days, enjoying the beautiful scenery and taking in a few hikes. We don't have hookups at this location but we're prepared with plenty of water and power from our batteries and generator. The altitude here is around 8700' so it's much cooler than down on the plains. I expect it will drop into the 40's tonight...perfect sleeping weather.
We left Kansas City yesterday and made it all the way to Sidney, NE around 6:30pm. We stayed at our first Walmart parking lot. There were lots of trucks staying as well so it was a little noisy but it beats paying for a campground stay.

 

 

 

Sidney, NE Walmart. The RV is near the center of the photo.

 

 

 

The western Nebraska prairie

 

 

Dry camping in Wyoming



Trip to RV Dealer & Tennessee Photos

We made it back to Kansas City today after a two day trip to the RV dealer in Arkansas for some work on the 5th wheel. We did a lot of little things this afternoon in preparation for our leaving in the morning for Wyoming. After setting up at the campground we filled our fresh water tank (100 gal.), washed cloths, went to the bank and hardware store, cooked supper, and ironed cloths.
We hope to make it to North Platte, Nebraska for tomorrow night. I think we'll overnight in the Walmart parking lot. We should get to the Vedauwoo region of Wyoming, between Cheyenne and Laramie on Friday. I should have some neat photos to share once we get there. We'll be dry camping for the couple of days while there. We'll have all the comforts of home while there including AC, hot showers, and satellite TV thanks to our battery bank, inverter, and generator.

Ready to leave for our short trip to Arkansas

 

 

 

Last month the boys and I, along with grandson Brody made a short trip to TN to visit with Mom & Dad. Here are 4 generations on a day hike on Roan Mtn.

 

 

With brother Mike and sister Lisa and Mom

 

 

Another photo on Roan Mtn. with my two boys, Jared and Matthew, Brody, and Dad