Trip To Creede - (Pagosa Springs, CO)

We had an appointment in Creede, CO this morning to meet with Helen at the Mountain Views RV Park regarding holding our 2009 Rally there.

Unfortunately, it was a rainy day.  The road from the Ranch to Pagosa was once again horrible.

Once we reached U.S. 160, we made a quick stop at the Pagosa Baking Company to get some scones and a muffin for the drive.

We made it through the low clouds as we went over Wolf Creek Pass into South Fork on U.S. 160.  In South Fork, we took a left on The Silver Thread Scenic By-Way (Colorado 149) which connects South Fork, Creede, and Lake City beyond.

The Silver Thread follows the Rio Grande River 20 miles up to Creede which is located at about 8,800 feet elevation in the Rio Grande National Forest.  Even on a rainy day, it was a beautiful drive.

The road is in great shape and is nice and wide.  It wouldn't be any problem for big rigs.  It gets a little tricky as you have to make a couple turns through town to get to the RV park, but nothing that should cause any concern.

Heck, Escapees had an Outdoor Adventure Rally at Mountain Views a month ago.  They had 45 rigs, so getting there shouldn't be a problem.  :)

Jack & Danielle attended the Outdoor Adventure and have some photos of the RV Park and their Jeep trips posted on a Picasa Web Album - Creede.

Our photos won't be quite so good for this overcast, gray day.  :)

This RV Park is a summer destination park and stays full July & August.  The RV Park is connected to their "Resort" where they sell long-term leases on lots that can be customized.

With the 8,800 foot elevation, we looked at the last weekend of June for possible dates.  No worries about summer heat and humidity at this place.  :)

They have two lodges that serve as gathering places.  Here is a distant view of both with the grass croquet court and the horseshoe pits in the foreground.

Walkway to the lodges.

Here is a fire pit beside the pond in front of the small lodge for a gathering spot.

One lodge will hold about 50 - 75 and the other will hold about 75 - 120.  Depending on the rally size, one lodge is dedicated to the rally for the entire duration of the event, and the other remains available to the other guests.

We met in the large lodge, which by the way has restrooms inside - unlike the meeting room at Branson.  :)

We didn't get off to a great start with Helen, who happens to be an owner.  She seemed to think we were just there to take a look and nowhere near thinking about making a decision.  We certainly weren't on the same wave length.  :)

Other than the lack of chemistry between us & Helen, there were many great reasons to hold a rally at Mountain Views.

The facilities are very nice and very clean.  They have free Wi-Fi.  They have a laundry room with eight washers and dryers.  The bathrooms and showers are nice.

They do have seven cabins with different amenities and reasonable prices.  The one and two bedroom cabins with bathrooms, linens, towels, etc. look like this one.

The "sleeping" cabins, like the one below, have nothing other than beds, heat, and lights.  But they are close to the bathhouse and cheap.  :)

The park is big rig friendly.  The facility pricing and simple contract were attractive.

The RV sites themselves don't have the "it" factor, but they are large and do have full hook-ups with 50 amps.  The surroundings and views of the mountains are certainly nice.

These last two shots are over the resort sites.

They have a stocked pay-per-fish fishing pond and the park is on the Rio Grande River.  There is access to the river which is supposed to have good fishing, but of course the river sites are all taken by the leased lot resort area.  There is both a fishing concierge and a golf concierge on-site (though the golf is quite a drive from the park).

The town of Creede is a quaint little town that sits right in front of a huge crevice in the mountains.  There are art galleries, a highly rated theater (discounted tickets to rally attendees), outdoor activities, and dining at any level you choose.  Scenic drives abound.

So, we will ponder this location for our 2009 Rally.  We have to check out the suggested caterers for meals and do a little more research.  We aren't close to being able to come up with a price yet, but I'll put a little poll question on the Forum about the location and dates so we can get your feedback.

After, leaving the RV park, we drove into the little one-street downtown.  They were having their Salsa Fiesta this weekend and we thought we would check it out.

Of course, the rain started up as soon as we got out of the Jeep, so it wasn't much fun walking around and it was too wet to take pictures.  We tried a couple of the restaurants for lunch, but they were all packed on this holiday weekend.  Plus everyone was inside staying out of the rain.  :)

We decided to just go ahead and start back home.  We stopped at Blue Creek Lodge in Wagon Wheel Gap for a late lunch/early dinner.  It was okay, but I wouldn't go out of my way to go there again.  :)

It just kept raining.  The road to the Ranch just kept getting worse.

We finally made it home and it was a good afternoon just to take a nap and watch the Louisville vs. Kentucky football game I taped.  Sheesh.  What two horrible teams.  Niether one of them may be worth watching this year.  :)

The clouds were thick and the rain just kept coming.  We didn't have internet service all night.

Back on the job tomorrow.  Hopefully, the rain will quit and our guests will dry out.  :) 

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Comments

[MARILYN AND ED]

Marilyn & I have been looking at that very RV park, thinking about next summer. It is a beautiful place and the timing of the last week in June is ok. We have a family reunion on the July 4th weekend, in Missouri, so we would have to work something out.
Hugs to both of you,
Ed & Marilyn

[Linda Goudelock]

we're staying at Mountain View and wished we'd known you were coming! we dodged the raindrops and attended the Salsa Fiesta. it was tasty!

Linda

[Joe Pitman]

I will be ready as soon as you call. Need a ticket sales team?? If you need help doing anything keep Sherri and I in mind...we are hard workers.

Joe and Sherri