monakayk wrote:



nebmike,

Looks like the CO we live in during the winter in all those 'snow' photos....BRRRRRR!

BTW....where did you camp in the above photo....looks great! Thanks for sharing.

nebmike wrote:



Hwy 14 west of Fort Collins is Poudre Canyon... at mm71 is Chambers Lake. County Road 103 (also known as Laramie River Road) goes north from there, and that camp site is 3/10th of a mile past mm9. There are several points along Laramie River Road that are good for boondocking -- tent or small camper (like pop-up size) camping can be had from mm1 thru mm3, then from about mm4.5 to mm9.5 there are several places you can get bigger rigs into (my 5'er is 35'). Not organized campgrounds, just places where people have worn trails back into the trees.

Elevation along there is around 8,500ft give or take. LOT's of moose in the area. A drive along that road around dusk will pretty much guarantee you'll see at least one, if not several. Its not uncommon at all to have them right in your campsite -- so be on the lookout. There are also black bears in the area, but its remote enough that they rarely encounter or bother people.

Be aware though, the closest diesel fuel is at least a 1 hour drive (either into Red Feather or west into Walden), so anybody venturing into this area should fill up when leaving Fort Collins if coming from the east or in Walden if coming from the west. Gasoline, propane and groceries are available at a couple spots near Rustic which is approximately mm90(ish) on Hwy 14, along with a couple more small shops that have limited groceries and supplies (but no gas) a little farther up the canyon near mm78 or so.

There is water available (to fill water jugs) at the Chambers Lake campground which is just off of Hwy 14 at mm71, as well as at the Tunnel campground (which is the only organized campground along Laramie River road -- at approx mm6). The closest dump station (that I'm aware of) is at the Ranger Lakes Campground which is on over the west side of Cameron Pass along Hwy 14 at (I'm just guessing) approx mm60.

Also, once you leave Fort Collins, there is no cell phone signal anywhere along Hwy 14 until you get clear over the pass to around mm58 or so, then there is spotty service on into Walden. If you go into Red Feather (which is north of Rustic), there is good cell service there (along with groceries, hardware, gasoline, diesel and propane... and an ice cream shop!). The only emergency call box anywhere near Chambers Lake or the camping areas I described above is on Hwy 14 at mm78 -- so if you have an emergency, you're about a 20-25 minute drive to call for help.

Come to think of it... all of those pictures (except the beach pic) were taken at various spots along / off of Laramie River Road. It seems to be where we camp most often.

Have a great weekend everybody!
Mike