alia176
SILVER Star
It's time to head up to Ouray again folks. Like previous years, the plan is to base camp out of 4J+j+1 CG based on the dates shown in the title. This is a family/dog friendly (dogs on leash inside the CG) event and everyone is welcome. You MUST have a 4x4 with low range capability. Even though most of the trails are Subaru friendly, the steepness require the use of a low range gearbox. For the first timers, please read this long post and let us know if you have any questions! If you have a dog that barks incessantly, please consider leaving him/her at home!
We'll be airing down at the trailhead and possibly airing back up at the exit of the trail if we have to drive on the hwy back to Ouray. If we exit the trails near Ouray, then we simply roll into the campground w/o airing back up. Regardless, an compressor or a CO2 bottle will come in handy for airing up duties. A recovery gear bag is also a nice thing to have (straps, gloves, etc).
The temps should be decent in the daytime and colder at night time. If we're on a trail and the clouds move in, we'll probably turn around and head back out. I don't want to be on the trails at high elevations while visibility slowly diminishes. Lots of accidents happened this way in the past.
As usual, our trail comms will be HAM 2M radios.
I usually reserve site #8 hill side. All hillside tent spots from # 1 - #7 have Elec + Water. Their phone # (970) 325-4418, our contact there has been Jill the owner. This CG can easily handle a giant class A, C and fifth wheel campers. It is a full service camp ground with pull-throughs. The Hillside spots can handle popup up trailers and small hard sided campers, like Scamp/Casita/etc. These spots are large and can easily handle three or four tents so couple of guys can share a site if needed.
If you're looking for a super quiet, serene campground then this isn't it! We use this CG for convenience and centralized location not really for the ambiance. There is a forest service campground not too far away and lots of free primitive camp grounds off of the many trails in the area. The trail to Yankee Boy basin has several free primitive campsites.
See the attached map of the campground, please disregard the names on the camp sites, this is from last year.
We'll be camping out of the popup and wheeling the stock 4Runner on this trip as in last year. Running Imogene with the stocker 4Runner was challenging in places but it made it through. Well, I did get high centered going downhill on the Yankee Boy Basin trail and had to pull the strap :-( Since there aren't any pics, it really didn't happen!
Campground owner's name is Jill and she's very nice on the phone. They don't have a website so you'll need to call and reserve sites. We'll be paying $24/night with no hookups or water. Pets are allowed at this CG so we'll be bringing Riley the Border Collie with us. This CG is walking distance from downtown Ouray and has the usual amenities. The Ouray swimming pool that's fed by the hot springs is also nearby. In the past, we'd let the kids swim after returning from a trail run.
We'll be making day runs on various trails and returning to base camp. Chances are that it may rain up there so bring appropriate camping and clothing gear. You can opt to skip out on trail runs and just hang out in town, go to the hot swimming pool or meander around the town of Ouray.
In the past, we usually ate lunch on the trail and made it back to the camp site for dinner before the kids head to the hot swimming pool next door. The location of this CG makes it easier to eat out or cook in.
There are lots of Hotels, Motels and B&Bs in Ouray. There is also a FS campground less than five miles away, it's called the Amphitheater Campground. Make reservation through www.recreation.gov website.
Post up if you're interested in joining us. The wheeling up there is not severe so a stocker will do just fine. Really, all you need is a low range for some of the super steep hills.
Post #32 has potential trail rides
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Pics from 2013 thread:
Ouray camping/wheeling trip July 24 - 28th, pics start at post #51
Pics from 2014 thread:
Ouray trip Aug 6th - Aug 10th, pics start at post #37
Pics from 2015 thread:
Annual Ouray Trip Aug 5-9 2015, pics start at post #92
We'll be airing down at the trailhead and possibly airing back up at the exit of the trail if we have to drive on the hwy back to Ouray. If we exit the trails near Ouray, then we simply roll into the campground w/o airing back up. Regardless, an compressor or a CO2 bottle will come in handy for airing up duties. A recovery gear bag is also a nice thing to have (straps, gloves, etc).
The temps should be decent in the daytime and colder at night time. If we're on a trail and the clouds move in, we'll probably turn around and head back out. I don't want to be on the trails at high elevations while visibility slowly diminishes. Lots of accidents happened this way in the past.
As usual, our trail comms will be HAM 2M radios.
I usually reserve site #8 hill side. All hillside tent spots from # 1 - #7 have Elec + Water. Their phone # (970) 325-4418, our contact there has been Jill the owner. This CG can easily handle a giant class A, C and fifth wheel campers. It is a full service camp ground with pull-throughs. The Hillside spots can handle popup up trailers and small hard sided campers, like Scamp/Casita/etc. These spots are large and can easily handle three or four tents so couple of guys can share a site if needed.
If you're looking for a super quiet, serene campground then this isn't it! We use this CG for convenience and centralized location not really for the ambiance. There is a forest service campground not too far away and lots of free primitive camp grounds off of the many trails in the area. The trail to Yankee Boy basin has several free primitive campsites.
See the attached map of the campground, please disregard the names on the camp sites, this is from last year.
We'll be camping out of the popup and wheeling the stock 4Runner on this trip as in last year. Running Imogene with the stocker 4Runner was challenging in places but it made it through. Well, I did get high centered going downhill on the Yankee Boy Basin trail and had to pull the strap :-( Since there aren't any pics, it really didn't happen!
Campground owner's name is Jill and she's very nice on the phone. They don't have a website so you'll need to call and reserve sites. We'll be paying $24/night with no hookups or water. Pets are allowed at this CG so we'll be bringing Riley the Border Collie with us. This CG is walking distance from downtown Ouray and has the usual amenities. The Ouray swimming pool that's fed by the hot springs is also nearby. In the past, we'd let the kids swim after returning from a trail run.
We'll be making day runs on various trails and returning to base camp. Chances are that it may rain up there so bring appropriate camping and clothing gear. You can opt to skip out on trail runs and just hang out in town, go to the hot swimming pool or meander around the town of Ouray.
In the past, we usually ate lunch on the trail and made it back to the camp site for dinner before the kids head to the hot swimming pool next door. The location of this CG makes it easier to eat out or cook in.
There are lots of Hotels, Motels and B&Bs in Ouray. There is also a FS campground less than five miles away, it's called the Amphitheater Campground. Make reservation through www.recreation.gov website.
Post up if you're interested in joining us. The wheeling up there is not severe so a stocker will do just fine. Really, all you need is a low range for some of the super steep hills.
Post #32 has potential trail rides
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pics from 2013 thread:
Ouray camping/wheeling trip July 24 - 28th, pics start at post #51
Pics from 2014 thread:
Ouray trip Aug 6th - Aug 10th, pics start at post #37
Pics from 2015 thread:
Annual Ouray Trip Aug 5-9 2015, pics start at post #92
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