Tarryall Reservoir Camping Trip

We met some friends by Tarryall Reservoir, which is by Jefferson, Colorado (approximately 1.5 hours from Denver). There were some camping spots at Tarryall, as well as some day-use only spots. We headed back behind the Reservoir about a mile to the National Forest Land, which had plenty of open spaces to dry camp. Fires were banned, as Colorado has been having some horrible forest fires lately. There were some campers back in the forest area, but there was enough room to spread out and not feel too close to each other. Camping was super peaceful and quiet, with some gorgeous views of the mountains. Cell service is very spotty since we were in the middle of nowhere.

Ouray Camping Trip

Over the Fourth of July weekend, we went down to Ouray, Colorado to enjoy the scenery and festivities. The drive was approximately six hours (with stops) from Denver. We decided on dry camping for this trip in Ironton Park, with the tips from Russ on the Road on where to go. It was pretty easy to find the camping spot just past Ouray. The San Juan Skyway (highway) is a very interesting road – it is a little on the curvy side and one side is a straight drop down to the valley below with the safety of any guardrails. The speed limit is only 15 mph, so you can go slow enough to enjoy the beautiful views from the road. Ouray has a lot of gorgeous waterfalls to look at as well.