April 30th, 2023
I left Trinidad on Monday, April 24th with a destination, 1 hour away, of Lake Pueblo State Park. It looked to be a little warmer during the night there. and I would not have to worry so much about frozen plumbing. The lake is actually a large reservoir filling the valley of the Arkansas River. It provides water and power to the city of Pueblo.
The campground was situated in grasslands overlooking the lake. There was a trail along the bluff overlooking the shoreline, but the park wasn’t really a great place for hiking. This was alright, as I was resting after having pulled the muscle in my right upper calf. It is kind of an “old person thing”. It seems you can injure yourself, but not really know when or how you did it. You are just sore and/or bruised the next day.
On Wednesday evening, it was partly sunny and calm. But, just after sundown. all in a single minute, we had 40 mile per hour winds and driving rain. The trailer shook and the noise of the wind and rain made sleep impossible. So, I read a book. Suddenly at 12:45 a.m., again in an instant, the wind and rain stopped. It was like a switch was flipped.
On Saturday, I left the trailer and drove an hour north to visit the Garden of the Gods (Gog), just outside of Colorado Springs. I arrived shortly after sunrise, to discover that it was a “Motorless Day”. No motorized vehicles could drive through the park. This was fine with me, as it meant my hiking would be noise free. Well, it would have been except for honking geese, small songbirds, and tapping woodpeckers.
The trails are well maintained and the geologic formations with a backdrop of snow covered Pikes Peak were remarkable. I hiked the main loop, about 2.25 miles, as I was still nursing a sore leg.
If you are ever on a trip near Colorado Springs, I highly recommend this park. And, it is free.
Starting All Over 