2nd Assignment - Dig out Redman Campground (Utah)

Happily buried under drifts of snow, Redman Campground was supposed to open for Memorial Day. The problem wasn't just record snow, but record downed trees. They seemed to have fallen in great numbers across every picnic table and fire ring in the park. But we weren't at all sure where the picnic tables even were... so we started digging for them--Eileen with a squared-end shovel and Bob with the front-loader.
Eileen was on the road to Solitude looking for the bridge that led into the lower end of the campground. We soon discovered it had been washed out by runoff. We couldn't imagine how the park would ever open. We were new at this, so we were totally in the "can-do" mode. We kicked our bodies into a mega-work mode.... and we were surprised at how good it felt to work that hard.

The last picture is of the "trail" behind bathroom #3 (of 7) that was supposed to go to our neighbor down-canyon, Solitude Ski Resort. Several trees (one HUGE) had fallen across the trail, so our trail was out of commission.

Boondocking - FREE Camping, or close to it...

We HAD to check out boondocking... as even in our day of ever tighter rules and restrictions, RVers were saying it's out there and it's good. A favorite seems to be dispersed camping on BLM land. It worked at Quartsite...and everyone we've met who has ventured onto BLM lands has said they've had no problems...as long as you stick by the few rules. (Stay close to some kind of road and obey any posted signs.) We went online and bought an ebook that got us started at: http://www.rv-links.com/boondocking.htm I'd say it's a special kind of adventure...as you don't worry about the cost. The first picture was taken May 28, 2011, at Settlement Reservoir, in a canyon above Tooele, Utah. Bob caught the only fish in the lack (no one else got one) and I climbed the ridge of the hill in the foreground and "ran like a wild horse". Our camping spot was a few miles up the canyon right on a perfect mountain stream, down away from the road in a shady grove of elms. We stayed two nights before it SNOWED. The branches were resting so heavily on our new RV that when we pulled out it twisted up our TV antenna like it was thin wire. (Yes, Bob forgot to retract it.) We parked across the street until snow removal equipment dug and plowed us out.

Next we tried the free camping at Grantsville Reservoir, down in the nearby (warmer) valley. We were surprised that there were nice tables, grills and a restroom. The roads were dirt, but the scenery (with the new snow) was excellent. In the middle of the night a drunken "cowboy" started sliding his pickup around our RV at high speeds. He had been sliding in the mud earlier with his ATV, along with his son. But a big truck sliding our way was enough to make us get up and move out of the campground. We parked down by the water. The fish were cold and went deep, so we went home to warm our toes.