Campgrounds, Colorado

I Could Live Here!

by Ingrid

At the end of September we spent our last week in Colorado. You’d think after spending four months in the Denver area that I’d be ready to get our wheels rolling again.  Although I was ready for a change of scenery from our extended stay at the Westminster Elks Lodge, I wasn’t ready to leave Colorado or say goodbye to our daughter.  After all, the Aspens were just starting to peak in the high country.

Colorado State Parks
This was the view out of my RV door. I could get used to this!

Colorado State ParksThe Chatfield State Park turned out to be the absolute perfect change I was craving. I can honestly say one week here was definitely not enough.  I could’ve easily stayed a month – regardless of their 2 week rule 😉

The Chatfield State Park is located near Colorado’s lower foothills at the southwestern edge of the Denver metro area.  The gently rolling prairie sits at an elevation of 5,450 feet and offers a little something for everyone.

There’s over 26 miles of an extensive trail network for hikers, bikers, and equestrians to enjoy and can be shared with your favorite pooch.Colorado trailsIf boating is your thing, there’s several boat ramps and a full service marina.  I will note; Chatfield Reservoir is very popular with locals especially on weekends.  To say it ‘gets crowded’ is an understatement.  So you’ve been warned 😆Colorado State parksbirding in ColoradoWith over 200 species of birds in the area, birding is a popular activity with regular ranger lead treks.

The Chatfield State Park also offers a model airplane field, on site equestrian stable, swim beach, and numerous picnic areas.

But for us, the main attraction was the camping facility.Chatfield State ParkAll campsites are within walking distance to the lake and are surrounded by native vegetation.  Very few sites have natural shade though.

Chatfield State ParkThere are 197 campsites all offering electric hook-ups.  Sewer and water hook-ups are also available at select sites.  There are 4 Loops and Loop D appears to be the most popular and has a new camper services building.

Loops A and D offer full hook-ups.  Loop B is split between full hook-ups and electric only. Loop C is only electric as is the Group camping area.  A sanitary dump station is conveniently located nearby.

We stayed in Loop B and absolutely loved our views and the spacing between sites.

Colorado State Parks

The majority of the sites appear to be mostly level with minimal leveling required and most seem to be able to accommodate any size RV.  Weekends do book up quickly.  Thus, reservations are a must especially during the summer.mule deerAfter our week-long stay, we begrudgingly pulled up stakes.  I could easily live here ….. well, maybe not in the winter, but definitely the rest of the year.  However, I’m sure the park service might have issue with me planting myself here longer than that 2 week max stay.

Alas, when one lives in a home on wheels, those wheels are meant to turn.Colorado State ParksWith daughter moved and settled into her new place and with impending cold temps approaching, it was time for us to head to the desert southwest. We bid farewell to our daughter in Colorado and look forward to saying hello to our son in Arizona, but first we needed to make a quick detour to Lake Mead …..Colorado State Parks

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Panasonic Lumix ZS20 14.1 MP High Sensitivity MOS Digital Camera with 20x Optical Zoom (Black)

66 thoughts on “I Could Live Here!”

    1. Yes it is beautiful and I feel fortunate that we had the opportunity to live in southern Colorado for 18 years. This was the first time we were able to spend so much time exploring northern Colorado 🙂

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  2. I’ve never seen and heard anything bad about places you visit. And any places on you pictures and posts are beautiful and friendly. That last one looks gorgeous! It seems to me to find the difference in all of them you have to visit them. Thank you for sharing your great experience.

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  3. what a beautiful view to wake up to – I agree, I could live there as well. But then…….. i should be satisfied with what I have which is more than many people…. stay safe and warm.. winter is coming and it has no conscience!

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    1. Yes, cold weather was starting to nip at our heels. Thus it was time to get those wheels on the RV rolling. Time to find another beautiful spot to call home 🙂

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  5. With a rainbow over your rig! You rock girl. I hope you’re submitting some of these to Escapees magazine for the front cover – check their web for specifics. They pay good money if you’re chosen.

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  6. Beautiful Country – love the rainbow and the wildlife – Great Captures! I love when a place becomes a part of your heart 🙂 I heart Northern California, especially Mendocino (going there soon for a weekend visit) and I heart Portland, Oregon. My hubbie and I are thinking of heading to Denver next year to check it out and attend the Great American Beer Festival. Happy Weekend – Enjoy 🙂

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    1. Thanks Renee. Exploring northern CA and parts of OR are high on my list of places to visit. We always seem to get side tracked. I loved our summer spent in the Denver area. There’s so much to see and do – you’ll have a great time especially considering beer is involved 🙂

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  7. Seems almost every shot had a rainbow in it. . Whether it’s a balloon, flowers or an actual rainbow! Very pretty!

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    1. Totally agree – pretty indeed. Normally I’m very excited on moving day to explore our next destination but that day I truly was not ready to leave. I guess I’ll just need to return!

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    1. Thank you and yes, some places just seem to hit the spot just right and Chatfield did that for me. But we’ll keep those wheels rolling and see what other discoveries are around the corner.

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  9. That view and all those deer would be very difficult to leave!
    Chatfield State Park looks like a park Paul and I would definitely stay at.
    Boy you have the hard life…a daughter in CO and a son in AZ. What two better states to have kids in!

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    1. Yes Marsha, I’m not complaining about where the kids have chosen to live. Not the worst thing traveling between Colorado and Arizona. Enjoy your time with your daughter in Houston and maybe we’ll see you there 🙂

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  10. OK… another one to add to my “check out” list. I actually had a push pin in my Streets & Trips map already and you filled in a bunch of the info for us….. have a safe pull to Nevada. Hugs

    Maynard and Barb

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    1. Even after four months in Colorado, we weren’t ready to leave especially with that last campsite. But alas those wheels are meant to turn. Where will you guys be this winter?

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  11. Isn’t it funny how sometimes you find a spot you could just stay at forever??? I actually feel similar about Goose Island area…especially love Rockport / Fulton..A house on that bay would suit me just fine…me and the Whoopers…(actually I think I could qualify as a “whooper” if you asked Dennis)..

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    1. I felt the same way about Rockport/Fulton so it’ll be interesting if I like it as much a second time around. I know those whoopers are waiting for me and I’m hoping the weather is a bit better this winter. Safe travels from one whooper to another 🙂

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    1. Talk about beautiful mornings…. the sun rising, deer in my yard, a mountain back drop dotted with hot air balloons – yep, I could get very used to that 🙂

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  15. Wish I was where you were. This looks beautiful. I can’t wait for next year when we will be full-timers and can visit all the places we are reading about. Your pics are always great! Thanks for posting.

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    1. You welcome and if you ever have any questions, concerns, or recommendations about full-timing feel free to email me. My email address is in the sidebar. I found the whole process of selling and storing stuff an emotional roller coaster. Best of luck 🙂

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  17. Lovely images Ingrid. This park is definitely on our list for our next visit to Colorado. Hope you enjoy your time at Lake Mead and your visit with your son.

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    1. I highly recommend staying at Chatfield SP. Out of all the places in the Denver area we either stayed at or drove through, this was our favorite. I know we’ll return.
      You wouldn’t believe how green and lush the desert in Phx is. All that unusual rain has made the plants very happy. Last year around this time, it was pretty crisp and brown.

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    1. Yes Sylvia, I am pretty lucky to have the children located in such nice places and only 900 miles apart – allowing us to meander with the RV from one kid to the other 🙂

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  19. “Alas, when one lives in a home on wheels, those wheels are meant to turn.” Yes, it’s true … but the good news is that the next place will be full of its own beauty. Thanks for the pics and story!!

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  20. What a beautiful park–love the photo of the trail leading into the clouds, and your site with the rainbow. It’s wonderful to have our homes with wheels, but there have been several special places for us, too, that were difficult to pull away from.

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    1. We’ve also discovered we really enjoy returning to places. It’s fun exploring the unknown but comforting returning to the known. More rainbows ahead 🙂

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  22. So…I guess visiting this lovely park would be best done when the water is colder so the swimmers and skiers are home:) This looks like a perfect time to visit. I like the view you had. We tend to like the open with our satellite dish. We’ll have t check this during our CO visit. Thanks for all the information and photos:)

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    1. This was our favorite place in all of the Denver metro area to stay and I would highly recommend it to you guys. I know you would love it…. oops, might only have 30 amp – it’s worth roughing it LOL.

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  23. Glad you had a similar experience at Chatfield to ours and I also hated to leave. We were in the D-loop and we loved the room we had and spacing between sites.

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    1. The more time we spent there, the more we realized – don’t think there is a ‘bad’ site. This turned out to be our favorite place of the summer…. well our site at Rocky Mtn NP was pretty spectacular as well.

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  24. I’m definitely adding this park to our list of possibilities in the area and appreciate your wonderful tour of it for us. That is such a wonderful area, for sure. Hope your travels are safe ones! Know it was hard to say goodbye, too. We will get to spend our Christmas with our daughter and son-in-law this year…. camping! Can’t wait! It will be a first for us. Need suggestions from full-timers like you who have spend Christmas in the RV maybe? 😉

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    1. We loved this place and it is one of my favorites. It is meadow camping though so no trees and can get crazy busy during peak summer time. That aside, we would definitely stay here again and look forward to it. Do you have a RV location picked out yet for Christmas?

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      1. We have a few places in mind and will be headed south for hopefully warmer weather but not too far south, probably somewhere in a day’s drive for us at most. Curious about options for decorations, food, etc. We will have five people for meals, three for sleeping inside the RV and two at a hotel nearby. Have been giving it some thought for awhile now. Hoping to make it a fun time for all. 😉

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  29. This just makes me so envious and keen to begin our camping life… which is now only months away… we are to travel, camp and introduce our business all over South Africa… and of course the photo ops are enormous…

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    1. ooh…. how exciting. I can’t wait to see all the photos from your travels around South Africa. Are you getting an RV after all, but still keeping the house?

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      1. Going my favourite first and that is camp while the house is on the market again… hoping we get our price this time and the rv wiĺl follow

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  31. I like the shot of the rainbow over your RV. What a nice article about the park. Will check it out! No wonder you liked it. It looked peaceful despite the people. Thanks for sharing, and welcome back to AZ!

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    1. I can’t believe how green the desert is around Phx at this time of year. All that unusual rain has made the plants very happy. Feels good to be back in AZ…. my second home 🙂

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