Day 8 - Fort Collins, CO to White River National Forest, CO - Family together again, and the trip goes sideways on us

For those of you keeping score at home, you'll notice that the day didn't end in Medicine Bow as planned.  More on that, but let's just say there was a reason......

The day started out wonderfully, it was a clear, crisp morning and Jackie and I sat on their balcony to visit and stare at the mountains.  I am disappointed in myself for not having made time to visit with Jackie before, but it was amazing to find out all the things she is doing and what a successful academic she has become.  I really enjoyed the visit with her and am grateful for having had the opportunity to get to know her better.  After our visit, we took Pancake for a walk and then it was time to head to Denver to pick up my family.  

I had checked in with Amy before they left Raleigh - apparently Terminal 2 at RDU was quite a hit.  They got lunch there which they ordered and then was delivered to a special locker where they could pick it up - fun!  

Meanwhile back in Denver, it was my job to pick up food so I stopped at the Walmart nearest the airport (knowing they would be ok with the camper sitting in the parking lot) and got groceries.  Unfortunately, I hit a lot of traffic on my way there so I was running late.  However, my family seemed to understand and I got some terrific hugs at the airport when I picked them up.  It was so great to be together again and really embarking on our adventure together!  

While driving back toward Walmart, I heard about how amazing the flight was.  It left early, arrived early, and had TV for the trip.  Quite a trip.  Before getting back to the camper, we stopped to get some gas.  After filling up  there was the question "Do you smell that?"  As much as some of us wanted to, we did indeed smell that.  It was the smell of oil burning.  We stopped at Walmart, popped open the hood and smoke was coming out.  Not a good sign when you're about to head into the Rockies pulling a trailer that is right on the edge of what the vehicle you're towing with is rated
for.

Now for those of you that don't know, the Honda Odyssey (the Whale!) of that era is known to have issues with a leaking valve gasket.  So much so that there was a recall on it to replace the original.  We had made it a good time since that recall so 1) the warranty on the recall had passed and 2) we thought we were lucky enough to be done with this issue.  Alas, our luck had run out.

Fortunately, we were only a mile from both a Jiffy Lube and Firestone - in fact they were neighbors.  After some pleading, the Jiffy Lube staff agreed to do the repairs that afternoon for us (this is not a small job).  We explored a bit of Denver on foot as we waited for the car repairs to be completed.  The boys even got their first Sonic experience! 

After what felt like a LONG wait, the repair was complete.  We hooked up the trailer and headed west into the mountains.

This was the first time the boys had seen the Rocky Mountains and they were not disappointing.  They had their rocky peaks and were still snow covered on the top.  As we headed up, the size of the mountains the boys had seen from Denver really took effect.  

We had planned on staying in Medicine Bow that evening, but as the sun was setting, the Eastern time zone was really catching up on Amy and the boys.  So, we called an audible and pulled into a National Forect campground off the side of the road - White River.  

We found an unoccupied spot, set up camp, and were VERY ready to call it a night. At least it was a beautiful night for camping.

Total miles traveled - 2,172

# States (Provinces) - 9