Camping @ Cheyenne Mountain SP

We’re off camping in our own backyard again ... so to speak. Though with the smoke from wildfires in southwestern Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexico, our outing is not off to an auspicious start. Fingers crossed that will change.

Cheyenne Mountain State Park is one of the newest in the Colorado parks system. It is only 25 miles from where we live ... an easy drive from home. Though we were an hour ahead of the official check-in time, the ranger promptly completed the paperwork and sold us the two vehicle passes we need in order to access Colorado state parks.

Since Mui turned 64 earlier this year, we were able to get the Aspen Leaf annual pass for the camper and a discounted pass for the CR-V. This pass also gives us $3/night off camping fees on Sunday through Thursday stays, so we’ll recoup the cost of the two passes quickly enough.

By 1:00p, we were settled into site 10 (FHU-20/30/50A ... as all the sites are at this SP). We’re in the Raptor Glen Campground, which is the highest loop here @ an elevation of 6,450 feet. That’s actually some 500 feet lower than where we live. And, of course, we’re nowhere near as high as were when we were at Farish last week.

This loop backs up to the foothills of Cheyenne Mountain on one side and has expansive views of Colorado Springs and the urban sprawl on the other side. Though site 10 is incredibly spacious, there’s not much in the way of vegetation to afford us privacy. Nor any trees for shade. Certainly nothing like our Farish camping experience last week. Nonetheless, we like the site and look forward to enjoying it.

With temps topping off at 93F today, we didn’t go hiking this afternoon as we had originally planned. The air quality was so bad that doing anything even slightly strenuous was out of the question anyway. So we relaxed in the Cruiser, waiting for the sun to drop behind Cheyenne Mountain before venturing out for a stroll around the other campgrounds. Map in hand, we made note of a few sites that would afford us more privacy for future stays.

By the time we got back to the Cruiser, the temp was down to 81F. But it felt a lot cooler now that the mountain was providing shade cover. The wind helped, too. Any other time, we might wish for calmer conditions, but we’re hoping the wind will continue to blow the smoke from the fires out of the area, so we’re not complaining.

We sat out on the patio for a while, enjoying the cool evening. As night fell, we watched the lights of the urban sprawl twinkling in the distance. Even as I sit at the dinette now, writing today’s footprint, I am watching those lights through the windshield. Despite being so close to the city, it’s peaceful and quiet in the campground. The haunting sound of Taps is wafting on the air at the moment. We’re close to Fort Carson, which is just aways down the road. We’ll probably wake to reveille being sounded in the morning.

The weather forecast promises much cooler temps for the next couple of days due to a cold front moving in from the north overnight. There’s even talk of a drop of 20 degrees or more. We’ll take it. In fact, we’re looking forward to it so that we can hike at least some of the 23-miles of trails here at Cheyenne Mountain State Park.Read more