Devil's Canyon Campground | Wilson's Arch | Utah

 

On one of my morning hikes, I noticed a few deer in the distance and as I kept sneaking up on them, noticed this one just sitting calmly among the others.  I kept sneaking up on her, taking photos of her with my zoom lens, until I got this close.  Then she decided it was enough and got up to follow the rest.

 

I had been to this National Forest campground 3 years ago and really enjoyed it.  This is my spot this time, a little bit unlevel, but I made it work.  Recapture Reservoir is nearby, and looks like a great place to boondock, but by the time I saw it, I was all settled.  This area is Route 191, about halfway between Monticello and Blanding, Utah.

Mother Nature got a bit artistic with this tree root.

 

 

Some silly person decided this tree needed an occupant.

 

Even though the campground is at 7000', there are mountains in the distance.

 

Not too far away is Wilson's Arch, which I didn't get to climb last time I was in the neighborhood.  So a little exploring trip was in order, along with great scenery on the way.  This is Church Rock, right by the road and quite large.

 

Wilson's Arch.

 

I decided I needed to climb up to at least under the arch.  This is about halfway up and I decided the other side would be easier to climb.

 

It may not be easier to climb on this side either, but I finally made it.  The trail was quite steep. 

Did I mention I don't like heights?  Here I am, sitting on the rock, looking at how tiny those people and vehicles are.  It looks like I could slide down easily.  I will take me longer to get down safely than it did going up.  The next photo shows the view on the side.

 

Part way down, I turned around to see my progress.  I'm still not that far down, but it gives another perspective of the arch.

 

I was very relieved to get back on level land, congratulating myself that I made it down without incident.

 

 

 

Mud Creek | National Forest | Utah

 

This is my view of some of my neighbors after a storm that included 3 episodes of hail and lots of rain.  The storm lasted until late in the evening, but even before that, my site was full of muddy areas.  The photo below was one of my campsites.  This is National Forest land and locals usually bring in their RVs days before the weekend.  They will leave them until the weekend, and then come in on Friday or Saturday.  They bring boats and 4 wheelers for the trails.  On weekdays, it feels like a ghost town.

 

 

It's a pretty area.

 

 

I love to see the lake, which is Strawberry Reservoir, and this is  shot from my other campsite.

 

 

One of the other campers told me that the dirt road up into the aspens ended with a very large camping area, so I took a drive up there.  The further I drove into the aspens, the more the dirt road got rougher, with some big ruts.  I didn't want to drive my truck any further up, and I certainly didn't want to even think of taking my 5th wheel up there.  It sure was pretty up there though.

 

 

I took a drive around other areas of the neighborhood, very pretty.

 

 

Quite a few of the BLM camping areas have cattle on them.  Most of the time, the cattle are separated by a fence.  My cat has to see what's happening outside and loves the critters.  I think the cows are the largest animals she has seen. 

 

 

An entire herd of them were in the campground this day, well maybe only a partial herd.  They started moving down the hill in a large group, mooing all the way.  I knew someone had to be herding them, and soon, I saw a man on horseback with his dog.  The dog was having a great time, and doing a wonderful job also. 

After they invaded my neighbor's campsite, they moved on down the road.

 

 

Javelinas | And Trashy Campsites!

Just this past summer I was saying that I had never seen a javalina in the wild.  Be careful what you wish for!  I had pulled into a Casino parking lot - one that is very RV friendly in Sahuarita, Arizona.  I mumbled as I picked up a few plastic bags that were blown around the area, as well as a few other items of trash. 

That evening, as I was sitting outside my fifth wheel, 5 of these critters wandered into the area, probably about 10 feet away from me.  I had heard that they can be aggressive and that they stink.  I went inside and watched them.  I didn't smell anything that evening, but after another couple evenings, the slight breeze was blowing toward me and that time I smelled them before I saw them.

These few photos were not taken in the casino area, but at a national forest during one of my many visits to the forests.  It's just an example of things I have found in certain camping areas.

Every campsite I go to, especially boondocking areas, have trash in the area.  I usually clean up after I set up my camp.  Then I have the problem of where to take the bags of trash that I've accumulated.

I don't think these campers are RVers, at least I hope not.  At least not the ones I know.  I encourage all campers to pick up after themselves.  As a reminder, most of us know that food cans do not burn.  For some reason, they are often found in firepits - charred, but intact!

If we don't take care of our boondocking areas, whether it's forest, BLM or other - we will lose our privilege of using these lands.  I know many RVers and other campers who love to boondock in these areas - help keep them clean!   Thanks to those who leave the campsites cleaner than when they arrived!



Boondocking | Check it out first!

 

Free camping!

 

 

Most of us like free camping.  Sometimes it's National Forest land or BLM (Bureau of Land Management) where there is usually a 14 day stay limit.  The limit is not a problem for us, we enjoy it while it lasts.  What may become a problem is finding good roads into these areas you never really know until you get into it.

 

Recently, the internet was full of photos of a triple-axle toy-hauler fifth wheel that looked at least 40 feet.  It was stuck on some boulders in an area that looked way too rocky to be driving anything into!  There have been multiple photos posted of this person's problems and it was quoted that it cost $3500 for multiple tow vehicles to get the trailer to safety. 

 

I have always checked out boondocking areas before going into them with my rig.  I have seen some roads where I wouldn't think of towing my fifth wheel.  In some areas, there  is no room to turn a truck around, let alone a truck and any type of trailer.  Sometimes, as shown below, there has been a tree that has fallen on the road.  You might be able to turn around in this area, but if it happened in a forest that was more dense than this, you might be in trouble.

 

 

Sometimes, especially during rainy season you'll find muddy pools that you might be able to go around, but sometimes not.  Going through some of these muddy pools will create other issues - they may be too deep and you'll bog down or you may create ruts that will ruin the road for others trying to use the area.

 

It's not always easy to check out boondocking areas, it requires time and extra fuel cost.  I love to find a great road to get into a spot - not one that requires miles of rutted or washboarded dirt roads.  I am possibly a little too cautious where I want to take my truck and fifth wheel - but it is my home! 

So, RV friends, be careful trying to find the perfect boondocking spot - sometimes it's not easy!  Try not to recreate that scene from Robin Williams' movie "RV"!

Luna Lake Campground | Alpine | Arizona

Luna Lake Campground is in the Apache National Forest near Alpine, Arizona.  It's a small lake at about 8,000 feet elevation. Since most people consider that summer is over, it's quiet here, only a handful of campers in what is actually quite a large campground.

The lake is quiet with only a few fishermen at the boat ramp. The rules say that boat motors can only be 10 horsepower or less.

The day after I got here was rainy all day and  I noticed a few cows wandering around in my yard.  For some reason they were very interested in the fire pit.  As large as they are, if I go outside they're very skittish and run away.  These animals eat nothing but grass, and they are fat!  Makes me wonder about eating salads to lose weight!

When I was exploring around the baitshop and boat dock, I noticed this bird nest under the eaves.  It looks like it's made of dried mud and lined with feathers.  I'm pretty sure that it was empty since there was no chirping from inside or parent birds squawking at me.

This was sunset the first night I was here.  It had been cloudy in the afternoon but it sure did provide a nice sunset.

This is how big my site was - you can see my truck off in the distance.  It could easily fit two rigs - and it was level!

Off to the side of my rig beyond the fire pit and the picnic table was enough space and trees so that I couldn't see any other campsites beyond the trees.  This is by far the most spacious National Forest Campground I've been in.  Below are a couple of shots taken around the area. 

 

 

National Forest Hiking - Flagstaff, Arizona

Since I've been camping in the National Forest near Flagstaff for a week now, I'd like to share some of my hiking experiences. Most all the roads in the Forests are dirt, very few that are paved. This region has quite a bit of hard red dirt except when it rains and gets muddy, and that's when vehicles make ruts in the roads. Unfortunately, quite a few of these rutted roads are just about impossible to safely use for any kind of trailer or Class A motorhome.

For hiking, they're perfect. There are multiple varieties of wildflowers in this area.



I found a wonderful split-rail fence that zig-zagged along the road.

Unfortunately, in one area, I found trash that people bought out and left - a love seat and a full size sofa!  In my own campsite, I found an old truck radiator behind some bushes, as well as the usual litter people leave. I think this is probably locals who just come out to dump and think it's a nice, quiet deserted area. I have a hard time believing it would be RV people!

　

 

There is beautiful scenery and numerous types of trees, even ones that still stand stately although they are no longer alive.

 

There is an endless supply of firewood with no signs saying we can't use it. A chainsaw would be helpful.

 

 

And lots of petrified cow patties - some with mushrooms growing in them!

 

There is new growth here, this pine tree was full of it.

 

 

It was very relaxing wandering through the forest, there was an old water tank with a pipeline that ran to a watering trough.   I don't know what the answer is to the littering, I wish there was some way to combat it.