June 1-17, 2018
On June 1st we got out for our next hike. Just 1/2 mile up the road behind Alpen Rose is an access point to the San Juan National Forest. We headed out to find the waterfall and trails, the trails we took are part of the trail system we hiked early on in our stay.
As we were almost off the trail guest from the rv park were hiking up, they commented on the smoke behind us. This smoke would soon become the 416 Wildfire and would impact on our lives. They have not determined the cause of the fire. The Durango Silverton Railroad shut down indefinitely and they closed the San Juan Forest to all activities.
On June 3rd our friends Mike & Liz arrived at Alpen Rose. We first met Mike & Liz on our AK caravan in 2016 and last saw them on the AL Gulf Coast in April 2017.
We had to work a few days so we left them to their own devices but once we were off it was time to get out on some jeep trails. Our first drive was in the Vallecito Lake area on Middle Road. Beautiful scenery in the Rocky Mountains.
Due to the 416 Fire the road north of Durango, US 550, is down to one lane (8am-6pm) and sometimes closes depending on winds and where the fire is. Any time the road is open pilot cars are mandatory, much of the area 5 miles north of us has been evacuated. We wanted to do the San Juan Scenic Byway, a 240 mile loop, so up and on the road so we can be some of the first through the fire area. Police pilot cars take 10 vehicles at a time, with enough escorts to take 50+ vehicles at a time.
Conversation on the front porch every afternoon was about the fire, all the while managers are encouraging us to leave when we felt uncomfortable. There are more cancellations than reservations, the park's occupancy rate has dropped, the park is mainly made of workampers, evacuees and a few who came despite the fire. On June 9th mandatory evacuations are only a mile up the road, the smoke came into the valley in the evenings permeating the rv, ash would be on everything in the morning, smoke settled into the valley and remained until later in the day. A few days after the start of the fire we started doing some prep in case of evacuation, on the 9th we moved into full travel mode. On the 10th we let the managers know we were relocating 55 miles to the south and we'd keep an eye on the fire and head back when things cleared up.
After 90 minute ride, along with Mike and Liz, we were settling at the San Juan County Fairgrounds-McGee Park in Farmington NM. 500 sites, $30/night 50amp and water, some sites are 30amp only, dump station on site, 24 hour security that was present. It worked well especially considering what was in the area.
Our neighbor for our stay; we didn't see here as we were backing into our site but soon learned she was there. We all came to an understanding and we enjoyed checking on her from inside the rv.
We did some tourist things while in Farmington. One day we took a ride to 4 Corners since Liz and Mike had never been there, we've been there a few times over the years.
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| 2018 Mike & Liz |
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| 2004 Our son Tom |
Took a jeep ride near Farmington looking for arches.
Tomorrow, Friday the 15th, Mike & Liz head on and we will hang out here through Father's Day.
We had a great time with Mike & Liz and look forward to more good times when we see them in FL this winter.
We'll not only celebrate Father's Day but our 33rd wedding anniversary is the 15th and Dave's birthday is the 17th. Always a fun time of the year.
416 Fire Time Line Pictures 6/1-6/9
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| 6/1 |
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| 6/5 |
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For a variety of reasons we've decided not to go back to Alpen Rose and to find a position somewhere else. We've put out inquiries at UT State Parks, Laramie County CO and COE IA where we saw they might be needing help. Meanwhile we've made reservations in UT to carry us through 4th of July.
Until next time...
