Day 14: Gunnison NP, Crawford, Co to Lake George, CO

'On Day 14 we got up bright and early with the pups in tow, left the scamp at the campsite, and piled into the truck to make the drive along the rim of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison around sunrise(ish).

This park is one of the few that allows dogs on most of the overlooks, but I was a nervous wreck at each of them when we brought the dogs the last time.  So, since it was early morning and still cool, we decided to leave the dogs in the car for a few minutes with the windows down when we went to check out the views.

Oh! The views!  Pictures don't do it justice, and the park allows you to get right up to the edge of the vast canyon pretty much wherever you want!  It is breathtaking and nerve wrecking at the same time.  Carved entirely from water, the canyon has only deepened five feet in the entirety of human history.  The rest was carved long before we ever arrived on this planet.

After enjoying our drive, we returned to camp for a quick breakfast before heading to our next destination.  Little did we know that our day would end with another canyon!

We had our sights set on a few possible campsites, but after a few hours of driving decided to check out a few inside down a canyon drive in Pike National Forest in Colorado.

After paying a $7 recreation fee to drive in the canyon, we drove 7 miles down a bumpy gravel road to our eventual home for the evening.  It was quite a journey to reach our site, but the views were spectacular.  There were fisherman everywhere fly fishing, and the giant rocks and pine trees of the canyon were spectacular.  Kevin and I both agreed we would be willing to return to this spot--site #1 in Springer Gulch Campground.  Maybe just not on a weekend--we have a feeling that place gets some heavy use from locals.  It's so beautiful and tucked away like a secret in the canyon.

 

Scout loved playing in the river that rushed alongside our campsite, so we played with him for a few hours until he was good and worn out so we could relax at the campsite for the evening.  Which is exactly what we did...after Kevin took a short hike to explore the area of course.

It wasn't long before we were all tucked in for the night.  Tired from an afternoon of fresh air and cool breezes.'