Canon City, CO

Thu 9-5-13: Got into Canon City, CO this afternoon and we are camped at the Royal View Campground www.royalviewcampground.com,  Site #5 next to our friends, Larry and Patty Hellrung from Alton, IL and Crystal Lake, Naples, FL.  It is a beautiful well kept gravel campground back off Hwy 50.  The fire they had here came to the ridge across from the campground and damaged the Royal Gorge Bridge.  So it is closed until next Spring.  We all drove down to Pueblo this evening and took a boat ride on the Arkansas River.  They are creating a River Walk like they have in San Antonio TX.  We ate dinner at the Shamrock Micro Brewery http://www.shamrockbrewing.com/.  It was wonderful!  Patty and I had Boxeys – potato pancakes stuffed with roast beef- and their microbrew beer.  So good!  Now we’re thinking we need to go to Ireland!


Fri 9-6-13:  This am was wash time for us while the Hellrungs took the Royal Gorge Train https://www.royalgorgeroute.com/ .  This afternoon we drove up to Cripple Creek on one of the trails ok for regular vehicles (Phantom Canyon Road). This was Larry's first experience on trails here in CO and they really enjoyed it.  We drove thru the town of Victor where there is a very active strip mining operation going on where they are finding gold.  Then we drove on to Cripple Creek where there are burros roaming the town.

 

Note where the burros hang out in Cripple Creek!

 

DonnaT and PattyH with a Cripple Creek Burro

 

LarryH with the Cripple Creek Burros

We had dinner at McGills Pint & Platter there in Cripple Creek http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g33379-d2451871-Reviews-McGills_Pint_Platter-Cripple_Creek_Colorado.html.  The special was prime rib and it was delicious! Lots of Casinos here in Cripple Creek but we didn't leave any money there! (Sorry KathyR)

It is VERY HOT here during the middle of the day – upper 90’s-but VERY DRY!  Cools off nicely in the evening though.