Friday, July 21, 2017

More from Heaton Bay Campground


While at Heaton Bay we enjoyed biking on the Dillon Reservoir Recpath, a lovely trail with breathtaking views and breathtaking hills.

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We did a hike to Lily Pad Lake, deemed an easy family hike of 1.8 miles to a lake full of lily pads. It’s a popular trail since it’s close to Silverthorne and not very long or steep, although we are finding just brushing our teeth gets us out of breath at 9,100’, so we didn’t find the hike all that easy.

There is a nice open view at the start, but then the trail climbs through a forest of dead trees from pine bark beetle damage, so it isn’t very scenic.

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The vegetation was more lush near a creek.

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There are two lakes, a small one full of lily pads.

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And a larger lake with only a few.

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It was entertaining watching a family of ducks swimming amongst the lily pads.

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Dragonflies were plentiful, too.

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Strange looking creatures.

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The Old Dillon Reservoir trail is about a quarter mile walk across the road from the campground. It’s a short, easy trail but we added some distance and difficulty by taking a dirt road up a hill to some communication towers.

You can see the bike trail winding through the woods on the lower left, and the campground to the right.

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The hill we hiked up is across the reservoir. It seemed much higher than it looks.

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On the way up.

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Looking down over Dillon.

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We also visited several times with Kurt (The Kuhl Odyssey), who was staying at another campground just a few miles away. He seems to be hanging in there after losing Toni in February, and we were happy to share a few beers with him. He’s an even bigger craft beer fan than we are, so we followed his recommendations and went to Broken Compass Brewery in Breckenridge and Outer Range Brewing Co. in Frisco. Both were good but the IPAs at Outer Range were outstanding.

Kurt and Jim deep in conversation at Outer Range.

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We’ve also gone to the very nice Silverthorne Recreation Center to work out several times. It’s a good place to hang out during the afternoon thunderstorms we’ve been having.

Yesterday we had to move from our site at Heaton Bay, and although we still had 4 more days before our 14 day limit was up, there were no sites available. Lucky for us, Kurt had to leave Pine Cove Campground yesterday for a reservation in Denver, so we stopped at the dump on the way and then slipped into his waterfront site at Pine Cove, which does not take reservations, just as he was leaving.

Our view is fantastic for $11/night with the senior pass. No hookups, but a water spigot and vault toilets.

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Unfortunately it’s just a big parking lot. We can stay 14 days here but not sure if we will. We’re closer to Breckenridge and there are a couple more hikes I’d like to do near there, and bike and hiking trails begin right behind the campground, so there is plenty to do. It’s hard to complain!

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8 comments:

  1. Loved the comment about brushing your teeth at 9100'. We've lived above 8000 and I still have trouble moving and breathing above 9,000.

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    1. I guess that makes us feel better :-) It just doesn't seem to be getting any easier when we exert ourselves at this elevation!

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  2. nice close-ups of the insects :)
    Speaking of close up, not sure about that last photo of nuts to butts rvs on asphalt. You need to get some astro turf like your neighbors. :)
    You're in fine country, but a little too close to I 70. When are you going back to Steamboat?
    FYI: your campsite is open here :))
    mark

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    1. It's so nice being on the water for a change, it makes up for having close neighbors! And with all the rain we've been having, we are thankful for asphalt instead of mud :-) The camp host is really good and tells people to be respectful and keep their generator use to a minimum, so it's been surprisingly quiet.
      Not sure Jim will go through the leveling ordeal in Ouray again anytime soon!

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  3. Beautiful biking trails!! I know you enjoyed those views!!
    Great that you were able to snag Kurt's site and what a nice view!!

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  4. You found a great area with trails near by so you can get out before the daily storms. This little ducklings could lose their mother in that maze of lily pads:) Love the dragon fly photos!

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  5. That is such a beautiful area. The baby ducks are so cute, we want to rub they little heads.

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