Friday, September 23, 2011

Tales Told – Lessons Learned?

Dateline: Craig, CO
The Colorado Tour

We setup our camp at Yampa River State Park in the northwestern reaches of the state this week. This section of the Yampa River is an area of riparian meadows and forest bordered by sagebrush uplands, and is understandably rich in wildlife. To our pleasant surprise, we were awakened in the pre-dawn of each morning by the chortling noises made by migratory flocks Sandhill cranes. As a river corridor in an otherwise sparse, arid landscape, the park is very popular with fisherman, boaters, and birders.


During our stay we visited classes at both East Elementary and Sunset Elementary in the Moffat County School District, where we helped an active gaggle of 5th graders plan ahead and prepare for an upcoming outdoor adventure. The group was gearing up for their own campout a few weeks hence at Yampa River State Park. We asked them to recall family outing experiences that were made particularly memorable by some oversight in trip planning, packing, unexpected change in the weather, wildlife encounter, or similar unanticipated challenges. Just like the rest of us, the kids had many stories to tell about such experiences, some of them pretty funny, but all of them good lessons to be remembered. We left them with good wishes for a successfully planned and pleasantly memorable adventure along the beautiful Yampa.


… along the Colorado Trail,
Peggy and Barrett

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