Durango Colorado

Monday September 28 2015

We departed Kamp Kolman (Dave and Rae Anne's driveway) this morning at around 10 am. We drove down the long winding cliff side road, coming into town we always come up the truck route around the back side of “the lab” as the nuclear research facility is known by the locals. Millie drove the jeep to the bottom of the hill where we hooked to the motorhome and purchased fuel.

Our original intended destination for the day was a Corp of Engineers campground at the 5200 acre lake known as the Abiquiu Reservoir. It is only about 55 road miles from Los Alamos and before I got there I changed the plan. We did drive through the campground for future reference but continued on to our next Destination. Our next stop is Durango Colorado and we easily made the run of less than 200 miles arriving at Alpen Rose RV Park by 4:30 pm.

Tuesday September 29 2015 – Wednesday September 30 2015

Besides being an outdoor enthusiasts destination, Durango is probably most associated with the Narrow Gauge Train that runs from there to the town of Silverton. Our original intent was to visit the historic section of Durango one day and take the train on our second day in the area. We decided not to take the train ride even though several people recommended it. Eight hours just seemed like a long time to be on a trip, we rarely drive more than 4-5 hours in a day. 

We did take in the town on Tuesday and enjoyed a meal at the historic Diamond Belle Bar. Wednesday morning was spent doing some motorhome housekeeping. We returned to town in the afternoon for an early dinner at one of those gourmet pizza places, and ice cream after a walk in the old town. My definition of Gourmet Pizza is; overpriced, undersized, and with strange toppings, but ours today wasn't bad. Besides, I could probably eat rocks and enjoy them as long as I'm with my lovely wife

After dinner we drove through some of the back streets just to see what kind of houses the residents lived in. There was not one style that was prevalent, architectural types ran the gamut from cottage to English Tudor, most had some age to them and were generally small. One interesting house had a narrow facade with most of the house built into the mountainside. We also passed several new construction houses that had rusted tin sheeting as siding.

Tomorrow we are heading to Yellowstone National Park, winter comes early up there and all the campgrounds will close soon.

Fuel=$2.33 per gallon, 40.6 gallons, $95.00 total

meals while traveling, eaten aboard cost $0

meals in Durango; Diamond Belle Bar= $26.00, Fired Up Pizzaria= $20.00, Top That Frozen Yogurt= $5.85

Three nights at Alpen Rose RV Park=$127.45

T Shirts and Sweat Shirts=$42.56