Home via the Mountains and Craters of the Moon

We decided to stay in the mountains as much as possible on our return trip to avoid the worst of the hot weather. I try to plan a route with some new places for us to see each time we travel between Aztec and Tacoma. Our first overnight stop was Ouray, CO. We've driven past many times, but because it is fairly close to the final destination in New Mexico, we've never stayed. Ouray is a fantastic mountain town. Once know for mining, it is now a tourist and recreation destination. I was impressed with the Ouray Perimeter Trail that circles the entire town on the slopes above town. The city sits in a hole basically, with high, steep sides of stone and the  Uncompahgre river running through the middle. They also have a public hot spring (we didn't use it). We stayed at the 4J + 1 +1 RV Park and ate at Ouray Brewing downtown on their roof deck.

Ouray, CO from the Ouray Perimeter Trail.

Nice trail, but some daunting exposure.

The Uncompahgre River. The RV park was along the river next to downtown.

 

The roof deck at Ouray Brewing.

Russ checks his socials.

Beer with a view.

Our spot at the RV Park.

We gave Zack a ride down from Molas Pass into Silverton, CO.

The big view at Molas Pass.

Molas Pass lunch stop.

Red Mountain Pass.

Red Mountain pass near Ouray as you approach the town. Hwy 550.

We gave a ride to a back country camper that we picked up at the Molas pass viewpoint. Zack was a professor from a small town in Northern California and was on vacation, hiking and camping in Colorado. There have been times when we have needed a ride when backpacking, so we always try to help out when we can.

We continued our trip to the north, through Rangely, CO and Kemmerer, WY. Nothing particularly new here except the locations were we stayed the night. I really enjoyed Kemmerer; it sits downslope of the main highway, so we've never stopped there, except for gas. It's a nice place, especially the Riverside RV Park, where we backed up to the riverside embankment. It was quiet and pleasant. This highway goes past Fossil Butte National Monument. We've seen it many times, and I usually make a point to stop in, but we slept late in the idyllic conditions and decided to pass it by this time.

The Sunset from our R-Pod at Silver Sage RV Park in Rangely, CO.

The viewpoint outside of Vernal, UT. Lots of mining in this area.

Top view.

The phosphate mine (one small part of it).

As soon as we crossed over Douglas Pass, the aspens appeared.

The bridge right before the flaming gorge dam.

US-191 has a lot of these geology signs, pointing out the roadside rocks.

Another favorite road.

Love this viewpoint.

There is a pronghorn by the fence. This group was the first one we've seen on this trip.

Russ in his natural environment with is shooter.

These reflectors have seen better days. I think it snows big here.

Backed into the view at Riverside RV Park.

The Hams Fork River in Kemmerer, WY.

Dinner outside. Pasta with pesto, zucchini, and spinach.

Thistle.

Sunset on the Hams Fork River.

A nice place to stay.

Tonight we enjoy our second night at a KOA in Arco, Idaho. We stayed an extra night so we could finally see the Craters of the Moon National Monument. We got going a bit late this morning, after a free waffle breakfast at the RV Park. The monument is only about 20 miles from here, and it was fantastic. We drove the loop road and stopped to see the Snow Cone (spatter cone containing snow year-round) before we did the North Crater Trail. I definitely suffered more on the trail than I expected to. We are not used to hiking at altitude anymore, and the heat made me wilt, even though it has cooled off considerably. The trail had very little shade, but it had spectacular views and exposed geology. I was impressed with the blue lava, which is apparently unique to this place (according to the ranger). When we got back to the trailer, we took showers and had the local ice cream that they serve here at the KOA every day at 5 pm for one dollar a scoop.

Free is the best kind of waffle.

Nice bench. Splatter cone behind.

The view over the basalt from the spatter cone trail.

Love the lava formations. We couldn't go into the caves.

Big view of the monument from a big cinder cone on the North Crater Trail.

Impressive.

An excuse to pause and take a selfie.

Death and life twist together. Bitterbrush with a dead tree trunk.

The blue lava. The color is difficult to see in the photo.

These white plants grew everywhere on the basalt and pumice.

Russ views the ancient lava flow.

The splatter cones as we descend the North Crater Trail. Our truck is parked on the other side of these.

Huckleberry or vanilla? A big scoop after a big day.

We were unable to go into any of the caves because I was wearing clothing items (and Russ' boots) from two years ago when we toured through Carlsbad caverns. The fungus that causes white nose disease in bats can live on items for up to ten years even after multiple washings! The park staff take precautions to protect their bat populations from people like us. I would not want to inadvertently spread this terrible scourge to healthy bat colonies. We're continuing north tomorrow and hope to visit a friend in Missoula, Montana.