Summer Trip 2026 - Colorado / Yellowstone / Tetons

After a trip to California for our 2025 summer heat escape, we returned to Colorado for 2026 - with an extension to Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks. Here is our route plan:

Summer 2026 Trip Route Plan

We departed a few days after our Winnebago Travato 2022KL turned 5 years old. The first two days were long drives to power through Texas and eastern Colorado. We stopped at St. Vrain State Park on the doorstep of the Rocky Mountains. Colorado was experiencing a heat wave, but at least the humidity was lower than home. 

We spent the next four nights in Rocky Mountain National Park at Moraine and Glacier camprounds. Wildlife sighting were a little sparse compared to past visits as the heat had driven many animals up higher in the mountains. 

Elena & Paul in Rocky Mountain National Park

Sprague Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park

After traversing the highest continuous paved road in the continental US across the park we stayed a night in Stillwater on the west side before beginging the trip up to Tetons and  Yellowstone. On the way we stopped at Sinks Canyon State Park near Lander, WY. At some point the creek found a soft spot in the limestone wall and cut an underground path through the wall. It re-emerges a bit downstream. 

Water sinking at Sinks Canyon

We stopped for a whitewater rafting trip on our way into Grand Teton NP. We rafted on the Snake River. We've rafted many rivers and this was the first time either of us got tossed overboard in a rapid. We hit a double wave at the Big Kauna and Elena was tossed out into the river. We got her back in and she was fine.

Just after Elena's rescue, she was paddling again

We hiked around at Grand Teton, but our best wildlife sighting was going to/from our campground. We saw a large male Moose twice, and a female once.

Sunset behind the Tetons

Bebop at Jackson Lake.

Paul & Elena at the Tetons

Paul & Elena at the Tetons

Our next destination was Yellowstone. We booked five different camprounds around the park so we could take our time and visit many areas.  

After Yellowstone, we made our way back south. We stopped at Flaming Gorge and drove the Sheep Mountain Geologic Loop. And we visited Dinosaur National Monument. 

 

Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone

In Colorado, we stayed a couple of nights at Rifle Falls State Park. Our daughter flew out to Denver and drove in to spend a few days with us there and in Glenwood Springs. 

Rifle Falls, CO

Elena at Rifle Falls

Paul & Kendall at Rifle Falls

In Glenwood, we hiked to Hanging Lake and did a rafting trip on the Colorado River. We did the double Shoeshone Canyon trip where you raft the rapids, drive the raft back up, and raft them again. Elena stayed in the raft this time.

Paul, Elena, and Kendall at Hanging Lake

Hanging Lake

We headed down to Carbondale and hiked Red Hill. We also visited my energy efficiency mentor Amory Lovins and his wife Judy at their home in old Snowmass. 

The following three nights were spent in the Silver Queen campground in the Maroon Bells Wilderness. There is no connectivity in there - just beautiful mountains and streams. Elena and I hiked to Crater Lake, which is more like Crater Puddle this year. Lakes and streams were way below normal on most of our trip. The next morning I challenged myself with a 9.5 mile RT, 3,000 foot elevation gain hike up to Buckskin Pass. The hike STARTS at 9,500 feet elevation, so that last section feels a little light on oxygen. It's such a beautiful view from that pass, that's it is worth the effort. 

Elena & Paul at Crater Lake

Elena at Maroon Lake

The Maroon Bells at Sunrise

Paul at the top of Buckskin Pass 

We added a new town to our list this year - Marble, CO.  On our way to Marble we stopped and soaked in the free roadside Penny Hot Springs. We arrived in Marble and ate at one of only two restaurants there - Slow Groovin' BBQ. It was delicious, and they even had menu items for dogs. Bebop scarfed down a small bowl of brisket.We also hiked to the Yule Creek Falls.

Paul & Bebop at Yule Creek Falls

The next morning we took a jeep tour to the old mining town of Crystal. The primary desination is the old Crystal Mill. The mill was built in 1893. The remaining structure is the water turbine penstock that powered an air compressor to run jackhamers for silver mining. The river has the cleanest, most beautiful water I have ever seen. Crystal is an appropriate name for it. We saw a bald eagle on a pole about 5 minutes into the tour, and turned around to see a juvinile on a wall about 20 feet behind us.

Elena & Paul at the Crytal Mill

The Crystal Mill

Bald Eagle on pole

Juvenile bald eagle on wall

From Marble we headed to a stop we always make in CO - the town park campground in Telluride, CO. We often stay for 4 nights, and the van gets to rest. Everything is walkable - trails, the town, etc. The weather finally changed and the monsoon kicked back up. We had rain and clouds for most of visit, but the high temps stayed in the 60s. We hiked a few old favorites - Cornet Creek Falls, Bear Creek Falls, and Bridal Veil Falls (on our final day when the sky cleared).

Bear Creek Falls

Bear Creek Falls

Bridal Veil Falls

Looking back toward Telluride

Elena

From behind Cornet Creek Falls

After Telluride, we camped along the Uncompahgre River near Ridgway, CO. We drove the million dollar highway through Ouray to a bit north of Silverton. We boondocked at the start of the Ophir Pass Road in the mountains at about 10,000 feet elevation. The photos are from a stop at Crystal Lake, which is nearly empty. Everything is so dry.

At Crystal Lake north of Silverton, CO

At Crystal Lake north of Silverton, CO

To begin our final week I took on another challenging hike. This was another 3,000 foot climb to 12,500 feet. The destination was Columbine Lake. And it was worth it, as I've never seen an alpine lake with such a deep blue color. I did an entire blog on that hike with many additional photos. Blog Link.

Columbine Lake

Columbine Lake

We stayed the next night at 10,500 feet at Molas Lake. We had a nice lakeside site, and Elena paddled around the lake in a kayak.

We departed Molas Lake and drove to Pagosa Springs for a couple of nights. We have many friends who live there full or part time, so we cna always find a driveway to camp in. The river was very low, like all the other rivers, creeks, and lakes on our trip. Tubing was not possible, but we did enjoy some nice soaks in the free riverside hot springs. 

We then headed to Echo Amphitheater and Abiquiu Lake for a night before the driving trek home - where the temperature is still outrageously hot (106ºF). At least we had a nice 6-week break from the heat. i just hope my neighbors haven't melted.

Stormy Skies

Echo Amphitheater

Pedernal with a glimpse of Abiquiu Lake

Bebop watches the sunrise on Pedernal

We plan these trips over 6 months in advance and everything ran smoothly. We had no issues with campgrounds, the van, bad weather, roads, . . .  So many things went well. You have to have the right partner to be cooped up in a van for six weeks, and I do. Elena is a delight to travel with (and to be at home with), and that makes the trips so much more fun. Bebop is a perfect traveller too, and she serves as a campground and trail therepy dog for people who couldn't bring their dog, or recently lost their dog. 

The trip highlighted several concerns. First, the climate chamge impacts were very visible with significantly reduced river/creek flows and depleated lakes. Temperatures were well above average everywhere. Continue to find ways to reduce your climate impact, and boycott the companies responsible for the large impacts and continued denial of the issue. And vote for people who get it, and are prepared to take action.

The continued attack on our shared park lands is also very visible. From reduced staffing to deferred projects, the parks experience is being compromised. Theft of the park service funds by the current administration, and the reductions in staff, are having a very negative impact on our parks. Vote in November to help reverse this tragic period in our nation's history. 

Now, for the data fans, here's our trip summary in endless detail:

DATA

Miles Driven: 4085 miles
Average miles/day: 95
Time Driving: 99 hours
Avg Speed: 41 mph

MPG: 17.1(vehicle calc); 16.3 (actual)
Gas Used:  251 gallons, average of 5.8 gallons/day
Gas Cost: $997 ($23/day) - avg of $3.97/gallon
Campground Cost: $1,337 (avg $31/day)
Food Cost Total: $,1084 (avg $25/day)

Total Trip Cost: $79/day

Paul

 

 

 

 

 

 

Read More

River Rafting II and Black Canyon of the Gunnison

Our final day in Cañon City was hot and sunny, and Elena was wishing she was on the water again. Fortunately, the following day was a flex day on our plan, so I booked a rafting trip down Browns Canyon on the upper Arkansas River. We did this trip about 16 years ago, and it is one of our favorites. That earlier trip also led to one of our favorite family stories. We had just launched, and were in a calm section of the river as the guide was giving instructions and safety tips. No one had their feet locked in as we were floating very slowly sideways. Suddenly, we hit a submerged rock just below Elena’s bottom, and all I remember was her feet flying up as she rotated over backwards into the river. After we all stopped laughing, I got to demonstrate the "pull back in the boat" technique.

On this trip, the river was flowing very well after some rain the previous day. Our 10-mile trip featured 12 class III rapids with names like toilet bowl, widow maker, and raft eater. We ended up on a lightly loaded small raft with just the guide and two other people. Our guide helped us navigate the obstacles perfectly, and we had a great time. It was a pristine morning - mostly sunny and in the upper 60’s. No photos, just great memories.

After the raft trip we headed to our campground at Elk Creek in the Curecanti National Recreation Area. The lake, which is fed by the Gunnison River, was very low. Over our decades of travel, we continue to see the increasing impacts of climate change - from glaciers receding rapidly, very low lakes, increased forest fires, prolonged droughts, flash flooding, and many other changes. We did see an evening rainbow in front of our camper. 

Campground Rainbow

The next day we arrived at the South Campground at the Black Canyon of the Gunnison. The black canyon is over 2,200 feet deep and is very vertical. Our camp site was occupied well after checkout with a trailer and no vehicle or people. The camp host moved us a couple of spots down. He said a couple had hiked into the canyon that morning and was reportedly having some trouble. Rangers were going down to assist them. Sure enough, about 4 hours later the couple finally appeared, hooked up their trailer, and drove away.

This canyon is over 2,200 feet deep and very vertical. We enjoyed several stops and hikes along the canyon rim. On our evening walk, Bebop lunged at dozens of chipmunks, rabbits, and even a deer. This is where we spent July 4th. The National Parks really are one of America’s best ideas. There were no artificial celebrations or fireworks - just the beauty and quiet of nature.

Bebop's favorite photos from Black Canyon of the Gunnison

Black Canyon of the Gunnison

The next morning while walking Bebop I saw four little owls in the trees next to the trail. 

Owls at Black Canyon

Today we arrived at Telluride, and we have three nights at the downtown city owned campground. It’s currently 55ºF and raining.

 - Paul

 

Read More

Cañon City - Raft, Rail, and Rocks

We spent a few days in Cañon City, CO. It is one of the warmer winter cities in Colorado due to its modest elevation (5,200') and the position of the mountains. Winter lows are modest, as is snowfall. Summers have warm to hot days, but cool nights.

We arrived in the early afternoon on Thursday, June 30th, and it was a warm day of just over 90ºF. We headed to the Garden Park area, where a couple of the early dinosaur quarries were located. In the 1870's they discovered dozens of specimens including Apatosaurus (Brontosaurus), Diplodocus, Stegosaurus, and Allosaurus. Most of the finds were Jurassic era (150 million years ago). These were some of the first and most complete finds in the world, and many are housed in major museums, including the Smithsonian.

One of the high producing quarries was right above the horizontal rock layer

With rain clouds building around us, the air cooled a bit, and we visited the Tunnel Trail. This trail is an old road, which started as a water project around 1900, and runs for 2 miles along the Arkansas River. There are three tunnels blasted into 1.7 million-year-old rock. 

Tunnel Trail along the Arkansas River

On Friday, we did a rail and raft day. In the morning, we rode the train into the Royal Gorge. It was a beautiful morning, and we enjoyed the gorge and watching the rafts come through the canyon. In the afternoon, it was our turn to be on the rafts. We rafted a bit upstream in Bighorn Canyon. Some storms dropped a little rain on us, so we got wet from above and below. That evening we camped at a lovely city campground near the rim of the gorge.

Royal Gorge railroad and bridge

The next morning, we hiked to the Royal Gorge canyon rim overlook. Then we drove back toward town and drove along Skyline Drive. This narrow road, with no guardrails, offers some great views of the area. The neatest feature is some reverse dinosaur footprints. The layer below the prints eroded, leaving the view of the underside of some Ankylosarus footprints as they walked past around 68 million years ago.

Dino tracks, Bebop gazing out, and the narrow road with no rails

After Skyline Drive we walked the full Tunnel Trail again, then stopped at the Geologic Time Map adjacent to the local community college. At both places, Bebop wore herself out chasing lizards she spotted along the trails. Elena said she sure wished she was rafting again, so I booked another raft trip for Sunday near Salida in Browns Canyon on the Arkansas River - quite a bit upstream from our trip on Friday.

Bebop says don't forget to take the time to smell the flowers.

- Paul

Read More