Stagecoach State Park

July 26-28, 2022

After camping a few days at Camp Hale, I wanted to find a site with an electric hookup and perhaps a cell signal. I also needed a location near Steamboat Springs, as in August I will rendezvous with friends from Minnesota. We wanted a good spot in the backcountry for a few days of camping. When I got down along the I-70 corridor and found a cell signal, I got online to reserve a couple of nights at Stagecoach State Park along the shore of Stagcoach Reservoir.

This body of water is an impoundment of the Yampa River as it flows out of the Flat Top Mountains toward Steamboat Springs. The river curves to the north and then west before arriving at Dinosaur National Park and entering the state of Utah. The park is in rolling hills of grass and sage grazing land. Cattle ranches abound. The lake itself is very clear, bright blue, and contains several varieties of trout. Personal water craft are popular and there are some intrepid souls who brave the cool mountain water to ski.

The campsites are on sage covered hillsides overlooking the water. Suprisingly, there is a small population of White Pelicans that are often seen, as well as a few sea gulls.

While I could not get reliable cell service there, if I needed to check email, the road over the hillside at the park entrance enjoyed a signal. Steamboat Springs is only a 15 minute drive to the north. In the early 90s, when I visited, it was a town. Now it is more like a city. The surrounding mountainsides are covered with large second homes and townhouses and chalets for the winter ski crowd. One thing is still the same however. Friday and Saturday evenings at 7:30, you can attend the rodeo.

Campsites were in good shape and mostly level. Restrooms have flush toilets. Without many trees (a few Aspens), you can see every campsite around you. I noticed a couple come in to the site just below me. They had a Ford Ranger and a small Escape Trailer. On the morning I was hitching up to leave, the gentleman, from Kansas, approached and wanted to compare my thought on the Ford Ranger as a tow vehicle. We both agreed that for the size trailers we had (max 3500 lbs.) that the truck had plenty of power, and the 10 speed transmission was wonderful for pulling and braking on the mountainous roads. We have our fingers crossed that their longevity is good too. His was a 2020 and mine a 2021. We talked for well over an hour. As I was preparing to depart, he returned and handed me a small fossil of a plant from millions of years ago. It was found upstream near Tonopas.