Paddling the Niobrara River, and Smith Falls

 

On Saturday, after organizing a bit and moving some boats around, we headed for the put in at the Fort Niobrara Wildlife refuge. We got on the water about 10 AM, with eleven people and seven boats. We took a brief hike to Fort Falls, and when we got back to our boats, we saw a lady in her kayak, towing a submerged kayak. Richard headed over to help, and we were able to get most of the water out. We took the kayak to shore. The occupant of the kayak was walking on the shore, but was on the opposite side of the river. We took a canoe over to ferry him across the river. They paddled with us for a while.

Fort Falls

We continued paddling until we found a lunch spot. We conti­nued on, with the winds increasing. The river is pretty and shallow in many places, with a rock bottom in the shallow spots. When we got to Smith Falls, we pulled the boats out of the water, and ran the drivers back to the put in. We announced we would serve ice cream at 7 PM, and everyone showed up. We had a nice group and some nice conversation.

On Sunday, we dropped some vehicles at Sunnybrook camp, and then came back to Smith Falls to start our paddle. The paddle was scenic; we had a bit of rain in the morning, and sun in the afternoon. We had lunch on a sand bar. We saw osprey, a great blue heron, a group of buzzards in a tree, and a bald eagle. We got off the river about three PM. We again had ice cream at 7; Kit bought wood for a fire. We swapped stories around the fire until 9 PM.

Monday we slept in, and drove to the Fur Trade Museum in Chadron, the best museum of its kind in the world.  We then headed for Chadron State Park.  The park looked nice, but we had some trouble finding a campsite that our rig would fit into; the campground host was nice and helped us find a spot.  Tuesday we drove home, using a Circle Tours booklet, which described the points of interest.   We stopped in Dalton at the Round Robin bar, with an early junkyard decor.  We saw Courthouse Rock and Jailhouse Rock,  and made a stop in Potter at the Tin Roof Soda Fountain.  The folks in Potter are working hard to make their town attractive and fun; Dalton was kind of dead, but had an old fire truck for sale.

Fort Robinson and Northwest Nebraska

 

On Sunday, we drove about 200 miles to Fort Robinson State Park. Google took us through the wilds of eastern Wyoming, including quite a bit of gravel road.

We arrived in Fort Robinson without reservations, but were able to get a full hookup site. Fort Robinson was built in the late 1800s, and used by the military until after World War II. It became a state park in the 1950s. Normally they would offer trail rides and a swimming pool, but all activities were canceled due to Covid. We walked around the grounds, which contain numerous old buildings now converted to lodging. We were told that it is very popular for family reunions, and we can see why.

Richard had printed road trips from DiscoverNebraska.com. On Monday, we decided to take the longest of the road trips, largely on gravel or dirt roads. Our first stop was at the Cheyenne Outbreak monument, commemorating when the Indians at Fort Robinson broke out and tried to go back to their homeland. The fighting killed 70 Indians and 11 soldiers, but ultimately the survivors were taken back to Fort Robinson. We then went north to Sowbelly Canyon. The name came from an Indian ambush that left the soldiers trapped with nothing to eat but sow bellies; they escaped after several days. This was very picturesque, with a small stream running down it, and cliffs on both sides. We stopped at Coffey Park for a picnic, a very pleasant spot. 

 We turned north near Harrison, and headed into the Oglala National Grassland. This is ranch country, and ranch homes are very far apart. We turned east, and stopped at the church and cemetery in Montrose. The only house in Montrose was falling down, but the church of the Immaculate Conception was in very good condition. The church was open, and we went in. We also walked around the cemetery. Across from the church was the Warbonnet Battlefield, where the 5^th Cavalry stopped a large group of Cheyenne who were attempting to link up with Sitting Bull. The only casualty of the battle was the Cheyenne Yellow Hair, killed and scalped by Buffalo Bill Cody, who was a scout for the military.

Our next stop was Toadstool Geological Park. We took a one mile hike through the badlands area. The toadstools are not as impressive as those of Goblin State Park in Utah. We continued on Toadstool road until we reached the paved road north of Crawford. We got back to our camper around 5 PM, after stopping at the gas station liquor store for beer.

It was a lot of driving on dirt and gravel roads, and tiring. We resolved not to go as far on the next day. Sandy cooked pork chops for dinner.

Death of Crazy Horse

Tuesday was laid back; it was too hot to hike. In the morning we went to the museum, which covered the long history of the fort. Crazy Horse was killed here. The fort was repurposed multiple times, including as remount facility for training Army horses, and a German POW camp in WWII. The black Buffalo Soldiers were here. In the afternoon we followed the White River Road along the White River, which paralleled the old Chicago and Northwestern railroad grade. We stopped at the Glenhaven cemetery, with many graves from the early 1900s. We saw antelope and turkeys, in a pretty valley. Sandi cooked shrimp kabobs for dinner.

On Wednesday, the weather was cool, so we went for a hike. We drove up the Smiley Canyon road, and saw the herd of bison. The road was blocked by a herd of horses, who may have been hoping for a handout. We pulled forward slowly until the horses moved out of the way; some of them may have gotten bumped by the truck. The Turtle Rock trail goes from the Smiley Canyon road to the top of the cliffs overlooking the valley, and back again. It was a steady climb, with some nice views.

We decided to drive to the town of Harrison to have lunch, as there were no picnic areas off the Smiley Canyon road. After lunch, we noticed that the historical museum was open, and decided to take a look. The cattle brand display in the window drew our attention; the barb wire collection was excellent. Our guide was a retired school teacher, who had taught at one room school houses. We learned that Sioux county still had two one room schools. The Harrison Hotel, built in 1886 as a railroad hotel, is still open. We took a little tour. Sandi cooked bison burgers for dinner. ;-)

On Thursday, we had hoped to do some hiking, but the smoke was bad. In the morning, we visited the sites of the Red Cloud Indian Agency, and the German POW Camp. We also stopped at the museum bookstore to pick up some gifts. After a lengthy nap by Richard, we drove to the Council Tree, the site of a large council in 1875, during which the US government attempted to buy the Black Hills from the Indians. We also drove up Soldier Creek, to the end of the road, and found the small primitive campground there.

On Friday, we decided to visit the Crawford Livestock Market. We pulled our rig next to the stock trailers and chatted with a cowboy named Ferguson, who went to the University of Nebraska at Lincoln, “East Campus.” Richard took some photos of the cattle being moved. Sandi did her best “Hi y'all”, and mentioned that she had grown up on a farm. We did get some heckling, and people asking us why we were there. They sell thousands of cattle per week.

We drove east to Smith Falls State Park, stopped in Valentine for provisions, and managed to make a wrong turn. We got there about 6 PM, after losing an hour for the time change. Our group started to show up, and we met some folks. The campsites were huge, but no utilities. The park has bathrooms and pay showers.

Fleeing the Apocalypse

 

We had been reading about fires in Colorado. We had a campsite reserved up the Poudre Canyon, at Chamber's Lake, near the top of Cameron Pass. A few days before we were to leave, we learned about a major fire near Chambers Lake, called the Cameron Peak fire. Our campsite reservation was canceled by the Forest Service. We had to make a decision.

The night before we were to leave, the dark cloud from the fire was high over Fort Collins, looking very ominous. The sun was blood red, adding to our unease. We knew that there were multiple major fires in Colorado, and considered where we should go.

Since the Poudre Canyon road, and most of its campsites, were closed, we decided to head west by going north, through Laramie Wyoming, and then go to Teal Lake Campground, southwest of Walden Colorado.

On the morning of our departure, the smoke was very bad, causing us to cough. We desperately wanted to escape the smoke, to flee the Apocalypse. The smoke cleared as we headed up US287 to Laramie. Outside Laramie, the skies were clear, but we could see pollution in the Laramie Valley. We refueled in Laramie, and considered our options. Our backup plan was to head for the Wyoming Snowy Range mountains. As we looked west, the choice seemed clear; turn south towards Colorado and dense smoke, or turn north towards the Snowy Range, which was clear.    We decided to head for Rob Roy Reservoir, which we had never seen. We drove through the tiny town of Albany, population 55, with a fire station and one business, and headed uphill on washboard dirt roads. Everything was jolted by the washboards. Eventually, we arrived at Rob Roy, and were glad to be in clear skies. There were plenty of campsites, perhaps due to it being Sunday afternoon, and due to the bad road. We chose a campsite overlooking the lake, with a good number of trees, and were happy to be there. The campground was somewhat primitive, with hand pumps for water.

The lake is popular for fishing for Kokanee Salmon, but one needs a boat, which we did not bring. We saw a few boats tied up to shore. We planned to fish for trout from shore. We had bought two day Wyoming fishing licenses, starting Monday.

Looking to the south, we could see smoke, but there is no smoke here to speak of. The air is a bit thin, at 9500 ft elevation.

On Monday morning, Richard went out and fished for a couple of hours, but only foul hooked a small fish. Sandi communed with the chipmunks and ground squirrels, and studied her “Field Guide to the Rocky Mountain States.” Midday, we took a driving tour around the lake to Keystone, an old mining town, now with summer cottages. We saw an impressive bull moose in Keystone.

Sandi cooked shrimp for dinner, and we went back to the lake to practice fishing. Richard caught a small trout. Morning and evening, there was a lot of feeding on the surface, but they outsmarted us.

Tuesday, we fished in the morning, no luck. We took a drive to the Spruce Mountain fire lookout tower. We thought that it would be a hike, but we could drive almost to the base of the tower. They apparently take reservations to stay overnight. Richard could walk up the stairs almost to the top, where he had a good view of Medicine Bow peak. We wandered further to Cinnabar Park, a large meadow, where a few RVs with ATVs were camped. We walked over to a cross dedicated to Joyce and Fred, next to one of the only trees in the area, probably planted by their family. We got back and had salmon for dinner. Richard fished for an hour, and had one good fish on, but the fish jumped out of the water and got off. The skies were very cloudy, so our star watching plan will have to wait for another day.

Wednesday we decided to try to move to one of the campgrounds off the Snowy Mountain Scenic Byway road. We had lunch outside at the Beartree Tavern and Restaurant, in Centennial Wyoming; the patrons outside outnumbered the ones inside.  The town of Centennial is a funky place.

 The views from the Snowy Range Road were great, very alpine, but the trailheads were crowded, and there were no campsites to be had, even on a Wednesday. The license plates were mostly Colorado. We decided to go home a day early.

Paddling the Smith River

Debbie in front, picking the best line

Five of us headed for the Smith River in Montana to paddle the Smith River.   The trip had been in doubt due to concerns about low water, but rain made the trip possible.

I drove up to Tongue River State Park in Montana, where I joined Debbie and Tim for the evening.   The next day I drove to Billings, where I picked up my fishing license.   We all met in the Conestoga Campground in White Sulphur Springs.   Don and Sonia drove up in one day.  Randy had been meandering his way northeast from Arkansas, including Yellowstone National Park.  

Randy and I in front.  
Thanks to Debbie for this picture.

On July 25th, we drove to Camp Baker to put in.  The Ranger gave us his talk and tags for our boat.   I struggled some with organization, not atypical for a first day on the river.    The river was low, 200 cfs, and we dragged a fair amount.  We paddled 12 miles to Upper Scotty Allen camp.  The night was cold.

One of the many bald eagles we saw

Randy in camp.
Note the electric bear fence in the background.

Day two on the river we went 12 miles to Upper Sunset Cliff Camp.   There was more water after Tenderfoot Creek entered, and the dragging from that point was not bad.  We saw a marmot, several deer, and two snakes.   We did have quite a few bugs, the only night we had that problem.  Randy caught a couple of trout.   We took a short hike to the top of a cliff for the view. 

Day three we went 14 miles to Parker Flat #1.  We saw many bald eagles.   Don swam often, as he did almost every day.   Sonia and Don moved their tent after seeing a rattlesnake.    We continued to have beautiful weather, with minimal wind. 

Thanks Sonia for this photo

Day four we hiked up to the cave with pictographs.  It was a steep climb with poison ivy, but the view was good, and the pictographs were interesting.   We saw a bear cub above camp, and a deer and two fauns in camp.  We went 7 miles to Lower Ridgetop camp.   

Day five we paddled 15 miles through ranch land to the Eden Bridge takeout.  I headed for home, and overnighted in Big Timber.   

The drive home from Big Timber was uneventful, although 560 miles is a longer day than I typically drive.

Overall, an excellent trip, good folks, good weather, and a beautiful river.

Poudre Canyon - Covid summer, chapter 1

In early June, Sandi and I drove up the Poudre Canyon to scout campgrounds. At Kelly Flats, next to the Poudre River, the campground host suggested that we show up Wednesday morning if we wanted a campsite, as it is first come first served. It has been a busy summer in the Poudre Canyon campgrounds, so it takes strategy to get a good campsite. The campgrounds just opened June 1^st, and people have been feeling cooped up and wanted to get out.

On June 17^th, we drove to Kelly Flats campground, and spoke to the campground host. She told us who was leaving that day, and we chose one of those sites. We waited an hour or so before they left. The campsite was right next to the river, at the end of a cul-de-sac, so an excellent campsite.

We decided to head up the canyon, and stopped at Glen Echo Resort, where we had hamburgers outside. We continued up the canyon to Long Draw Road, where we hoped to drive up and find the trailhead to the ghost town of Lulu. However, the road was gated closed, so that was not going to work. We instead walked on the Blue Lake Trail. We did not walk all the way to Blue Lake, but we did get some views of Chamber's Reservoir. The creeks and rivers are running high. The photo of Sandi was taken at one of the creeks; I was experimenting with longer exposures to get artistic photos of water.

Small Rainbow Trout

On Thursday the 18^th, we headed up to Chamber's lake to go fishing. When we parked, the map showed a smaller lake nearby, called Lost Lake. We took a short hike to Lost Lake. Sandi practiced with her new rod and reel. Richard caught and released a couple of small rainbow trout. It was cold, so we knocked off after a couple of hours, and headed back down to the camper. We worked on our relaxing. Sandi cooked salmon for dinner.

Friday the 19^th, we again headed for Chamber's Lake. This time we walked past the closed gate, to the campground. We started to fish, but the thunder got closer, so we headed for the only available shelter, the porch of the campground pit toilet.

We saw rain and sleet, and were glad to be out of the weather, while we ate lunch. After the rain stopped, we resumed fishing. Richard caught and released about five 8 inch rainbow trout. Sandi continued practicing, and had a couple of nibbles. We scouted the campground for future reference, and saw that it was very good. We walked back to the truck, and headed down the canyon, taking a photo at Poudre falls. We stopped at Archer's resort, which had a little of everything, including the fishing lure that I was looking for; Archer's is similar to Glen Echo, but with lower gas prices.

Sandi grilled Italian sausage outside; the leftovers will be used as part of a pasta dinner on Saturday.

Columbine - Colorado State Flower

There are about twenty butterflies in this photo.

On Saturday we took a hike up Dadd Gulch. The trail follows the small stream. There were literally hundreds of butterflies near the stream, I am only including two photos out of many that I took. The columbines were also gorgeous. The hike was pleasant but warm. There were quite a few parties on the trail, as this is not far from Fort Collins. Saturday night we had a campfire.

Sunday we got up early so we would not miss our ancient Greek class, via Zoom.

San Antonio

On Monday morning, we pulled out of Port Aransas in a misty rain, and headed north on I-37. The rain continued throughout the day and evening.

San Jose Mission

We found our RV campground, dropped the rig, and drove to the San Antonio Missions National Historic Park. We started at the visitor center, and took a walking tour with a ranger. The San Jose mission is large and impressive, including some excellent stonework. These missions are about 300 years old, and were in operation for about 100 years, converting Indians into Spanish Citizens and Catholics. We drove to the small San Juan mission, and then walked along the river to the Espada mission. All in a drizzle.

We had dinner at theYard House pub, where the national college football championship game was on the TV; we had to ask who was playing. The food was good, and they had 170 beers on tap. Our waitress had just returned from Telluride, and was considering a move to Denver.

Everything is damp, it seems, nothing is drying. We thought about turning up the heat to dry things, but the outside and inside temperatures are about the same. The forecast for tomorrow is more rain. We hope that we don't mildew.

Alamo

Wednesday started out drier, and we headed downtown. We decided to get a bus pass and use the bus that runs in front of the campground, to avoid parking hassles. Our first stop was the Alamo, which Sandi had never seen. We then headed to the riverwalk, where we ate at Casa del Rio. About that time the sun came out, which we were very happy to see. After a bit of walking on the riverwalk, we headed for La Villita, a craft and shopping village, where we spoke to interesting people, and Sandi bought earrings. The copper store was run by a family from Micheoacan; most of the family has left Micheocan due to the violence and insecurity there.

We stopped at Mission Conception on the way back to the campground, completing our circuit of 5 missions, including the Alamo.

After resting in the camper for a while, we headed for the free evening at the San Antonio Art museum, which included many antiquities from all over the world, in addition to art. We had a nice dinner at their restaurant, overlooking the river.

Houston

I bought a new battery Friday morning, and we headed south on I-45 towards Houston. The scenery was wooded, unlike the high plains in the panhandle region. The traffic in Houston was intense, and the drivers are aggressive, so a challenge with a large vehicle. We found our campground, the Highway 6 RV park, which was quite nice. We paid a bit extra to get a site on the lake.

After we got settled, we headed the Brazos Bookstore, a local institution, and bought a few books. Then we drove to Ryan's bar, Darwin's Pub. We ordered food and beer, and waited for Ryan to arrive; it was good to see him. Ryan describes the pub as a five star dive bar, and explained how he runs the place, with many activities and events. They don't open until 4 PM; many of the clientele are waiters and servers, who want to relax with their friends after work, so it is a late night crowd.

On Saturday, we headed to the Johnson Space Center, which has many artifacts, the most impressive of which was a 747 jetliner with a shuttle on top. The jetliner was used to return the shuttle to Florida after it landed in the California desert. The visit to the restored Apollo mission control room was memorable, with a simulation of the first moon landing. The mission had to change landing sites on the fly, and had only 17 seconds of fuel left by touchdown. Of course, we remember the 1969 moon landing, so this was very meaningful to us.

We then visited the San Jacinto Battlefield and Memorial, which is slightly higher than the Washington Monument in DC. We did not elect to take an elevator to the top. The monument commemorates the victory of the Texans over Santa Anna, who was taken captive, in 1836. This battle gave the Texans their independence, and led indirectly to the Mexican-American war of 1846. This was an important part of US history, since that war resulted in Mexico seceding California and most of the west to the US. The battleship Texas is located nearby.

We had dinner on the picnic table next to our camper, as it was not too cold with jackets on. We did not need a jacket during the day, which was quite pleasant.

On Sunday, we went to church at St Catherine of Sienna in Houston. The priest was a very funny Irishman. The gospel was the Three Wise Men, but he reminded us that the scripture does not say if there were three wise men or some other number, or even if they were men or women. We were drafted to bring up the gifts, and he joked that maybe there were two wise men (us).

After mass, we went to Goode Company Barbecue to take out lunch. The décor was 100% Texas, down to the stuffed bison with a saddle. ;-) We headed to Ryan's house, where Sandi met Cindy, and we both met Orren, about three months old. They have a cute house that they bought a couple of years ago. We had a nice visit, and then headed back to the campground.