These are two places Dorian stayed while Ramona flew back to Virginia to take care of some business. The first is Columbine Campground, which is at 9,200 feet. The other is St. Vrain State Park, which is around 4,800 feet--practically sea level by comparison.
There are no "Would we live here" or "Would we come back here" sections given that these were just transitional camp sites. Having said that, some of those Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forest sites are great places to camp off the grid. In the case of Columbine, I eventually discovered a spot about half a mile from my site that I could walk to and get enough cell service to send and receive texts.
The road to Columbine Campground
Pippi waited patiently for mom to come home. She had about a week more of waiting ahead of her, at this point.
Morning at St. Vrain State Park. Idyllic, apart from the crushing noise from the nearby interstate
These guys were out there every day spreading their wings and posing. They rarely moved--they didn't want to ruin the moment, apparently.
This trail was not that technical but it started at 9,200 feet and went up from there. At times I was gasping so hard for air that the effort of breathing caused me to breathe even harder--a hard cycle to break. There was also a creek that I wasn't supposed to cross or else, I was warned, some cranky lady would shoot me. I accidentally crossed the creek because the creek bed was dry and grass-covered, but figured out my mistake before any shots rang out.
Evening at St. Vrain State Park, plus traffic noise