Parks and Recreation Nation: Lake Pueblo State Park

Girlfriend's brother came to visit and we all went CAMPING!!! in Lake Pueblo State Park. This is actually the first time I've been camping since my Freshman Trip with Dartmouth (in 2005), so I was pretty excited. Lake Pueblo did not disappoint.

Yay, I remembered how to put up a tent! And then take it down again, because it started to rain. And then put it back up again. Yay camping!

The "lake" is actually a reservoir, which I'm beginning to think is the deep dark secret of all of Colorado's lakes, but it doesn't make a difference: it's still really beautiful and there are plenty of fun aquatic things to do. The lake is surrounded by rocky desert landscape, which makes for a really dramatic contrast and some great hiking/exploring/clambering up and down rocks:

If you fall, no biggie: there's just a "ker-sploosh" and you're swimming a bit earlier than planned.

Further in the distance, you can see the Rocky Mountains:

See how good I am at compromise? Girlfriend wanted mountains, I wanted water, and this state park.....sort of has both?

The main part of the lake has some fabulous spots to sit and put your feet in:

It's like the edge of a pool! Except with a much more awesome view. And no chlorine smell.

This is where we discovered that all the gray rocks that look like slate, and are really good for skipping across the water, can actually be broken into pieces by hand. If you crush it between your fingers and add some water, you get clay!

I started making a tiny snowman out of little balls of clay, but got a little distracted by the approaching apocalypse....

On our walk back from dipping our feet in, we started noticing storm clouds on the horizon, and by the time we reached the campsite it was getting pretty biblical:

And God did open up the heavens, and He didst smite the wicked Coloradans for daring to legalize the Devil's Weed.

We watched the storm from a little hilltop until it became apparent that it was coming our way, at which point we scrambled to take down our tent and pile everything back into the car. The storm didn't last too long, and by the time we were back from a trip to Walmart to get some supplies we'd forgotten (Girlfriend's brother is vegetarian now, so we needed non-hot-dog dinner options), the ground was dry enough to put the tent back up. Thankfully, our firewood was still in the car, so it stayed dry, otherwise we'd probably still be at Lake Pueblo, trying to light a campfire. The sky cleared up completely, and that combined with the new moon to make for an unbelievable stargazing night. After a dinner cooked over an open flame and the requisite roasted marshmallows, we lay on our backs on the picnic blanket, picking out constellations and contemplating our insignificance in the vastness of the universe. You know, the usual.

In the morning we ate possibly one of the best breakfasts of my life: if you haven't tried cooking with a cast-iron pan over a campfire, definitely give it a go. Then it was time to pack up and head back to civilization. Unfortunately the way back to civilization was I-25, where grown-ass men and women forget how to drive for some reason and get into traffic-choking fender-benders every 10 miles or so...but spending the night at Lake Pueblo was definitely worth it.

Yeah, I'd tolerate I-25 to go here again.

Distance from Denver: about 2 hours (mostly on the interstate)
Know before you go: this is more of a general tip for state parks in general, at least Colorado State Parks in the summer, but make sure you reserve a campsite in advance, especially if you're picky and care about amenities like fire pits, restrooms, and drinking water.
Things to do: hiking, boating, fishing, swimming* (no swimming allowed in the reservoir, just in the swimming spot below the dam, but you are allowed to wade, which is defined as "your feet are touching the bottom the whole time." Not sure the legality of sitting on the shore and putting your feet in, but I didn't see any rangers patrolling for swimming scofflaws...)
Creature feature: rabbits!

Pictured: Little Bunny Foo Foo, frozen in terror because I am approaching with a cell phone.

Next time on Parks and Recreation Nation: State Forest State Park! Yes, that's actually what it's called. Really, Colorado? But I promise: it's way more awesome than it sounds. Wait 'til you hear what animals we encountered...