A Better RV Park

Where Pookie was welcome

The story so far: I had just returned to Colorado’s West Slope after being gone for more than a year. I went to an RV park in Olathe, Colorado where everyone is “better than you,” and Pookie was not welcome.

My last adventure while still in that RV park was to a gnarly four-wheel-drive road over Engineer Pass, in the San Juan mountains above Ouray, Colorado. Except I got distracted by another 4WD road up there and never made it to Engineer Pass.

Here’s a shot of Poughkeepsie Gulch, as seen from the Engineer Pass road:

Poughkeepsie Gulch, an old mining district in the San Juan mountains

Paid subscribers received a full-size, full-resolution copy of this photo, suitable for printing and framing, two months ago.

It looks lovely. I never made it back up there to explore that road. I’ve heard that it’s seriously gnarly.

I didn’t take any more pictures. The light was terrible.

On the way home, passing through Ridgeway, I stopped to shoot the mysterious and picturesque Cimarron Ridge

The rugged and mysterious Cimarron Ridge, east of Ridgeway CO.

and the Sneffels Range.

The Sneffels Range of southern Colorado. Mt. Sneffels, a 14er, is on the left.

I would later venture up into both for more exploration and stunning photography. You will be seeing more of them when I get to that part of my ongoing story in this Substack.

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I found an RV Park in Cedaredge, Colorado - a town partway up the side of the Grand Mesa - that suited my style. The owner/managers were good people. Its name is Shady Creek RV Park and I would recommend it, but I doubt that they own it any more (when I left, they were trying to sell it and retire).

It was lined with trees. I love trees. They gave me a spot in the back corner next to some old apple trees that will provide a couple of good stories later.

Phone shot of my spot at Shady Creek RV Park, with apple trees

Another phone shot view of my little piece of paradise with Pookie on the chair

Pookie was happy.

(Phone shot) Pookie loved that camp chair.

Sometimes, she would even allow me to use the camp chair.

The Queen of the camp

I didn’t like Cedaredge all that much while I was there, but now I look back on my time there with fond memories.

I was living on the Grand Mesa. Not on top - nobody lives on top of it¹ - but partway up the south side of it, with the top only a few miles away. I was employed, working at my job in Santa Fe remotely. There was a whole lot of God’s Country only a few minutes’ drive away.

Life was good, and I did a whole lot of photography while I was there. What was not to like?

1. It is possible that a very few people do live up there. There are two resorts (that I know of) on top of the Mesa that, as far as I know, are open year-round. It is possible that there are staff that actually live up there. What I meant by my statement that “nobody lives on top of the Grand Mesa” is that there are no homes up there.