September 29

September 29, 2021 – Colby, KS To Comanche National Grassland, CO

Now we’re starting to get into the good part of the trip. It’s starting to become less about putting in miles and more about enjoying the places I’m traveling through.

My original goal was to stop at a free camping area next to Lake Merideth.

Upon arrival, everything seemed ok at first. It looked like a decent enough place to park overnight.

but then I started having second thoughts about staying at this place.

For starters, it was super muddy, and more rain was expected to hit overnight.

On top of that, the biting flies were absolutely horrid!

So, I spent some time there letting Cooper run around but at the same time decided to search for alternate locations.

There was one spot I found that looked very interesting. It was a spot in the Comanche National Grasslands about an hour away.

The catch? I would have to take about 25 miles of dirt and gravel roads to get there.

Was I up for it?

Yeah, I was. Once again my instincts and my inner voice told me to go there, so I listened, and away we went.

Man am I glad I listened! The drive getting there was an adventure all by itself. The scenery was cool, it was super remote, and I had to had the road with dozens of free-range cows, some of which didn’t seem too happy having to get out of the way for me.

I also noticed a rather uncomfortable number of tarantulas crossing the road. Yeah, tarantulas! Fortunately I didn’t see any up at the campsite!

Upon arrival, I was greeted with several camping sites to use, all of which overlooked the valleys surrounding the camping area. Here are some pictures of where I stayed.

The camping spot overlooking a valley.

Looking both ways down the road into the camping area.

Small high plains cactus.

“Camping Permitted.” Love seeing those signs! Plus, this was a free camping area. Even better!

Picture from the following morning. The temperature went from 84 degrees when I arrived and was only 54 degrees when I left.

It rained most of the night, which was making me nervous about the road conditions when I left the next day, but the sound of rain made for a great night’s sleep. I’d worry about the roads the next day.

Here are some highlights of the drive. This is the last I’ll be seeing an expressway for a while. No complaints here.

A full time-lapse video of the drive.

Some random stuff that happened during my journey.

The route we took.