About this event
BMW CCA Rocky Mountain Chapter
Annual Fall Drive 2010
Waunita Springs Redux! - Back By Popular Demand
Since our last year's "overnight" event received so much positive feedback (for both the course and the venues), we've decided to go back! Many members who really wanted to participate last year weren't able to do so because of schedule conflicts, and many of those who did join us said they'd love to do it again... So, we hope our repeat visit this year will allow more of our RMC members to enjoy the roads and venues we visited last year.
Our two-day 2010 Fall Drive includes an overnight at Waunita Hot Springs Dude Ranch near Gunnison. We'll be taking over the entire place! Registration and fees of $80 per person (taken care of right here) will cover lodging as well as dinner Saturday evening and a hot breakfast Sunday morning - September 11th and 12th. Simple, eh? Cancellations made by Thursday September 9th will be charged $10 per person. There is no refund or credit for cancellation after that date.
The folks at Waunita Hot Springs Ranch are excited about having us back again, and looking forward to serving us as their guests in September. They are great to work with, we’re receiving an attractive group rate, and the venue is one that should be enjoyable for everyone. I'm still working on various options for our drive routes. Stay tuned, as the final route information won’t be disclosed until right before the drive event, to ensure all participants register, pay, and sign the required liability waiver. That said, I’m eager to share as much as I can in advance to whet everyone’s appetite. Bottom line, we’ll be taking a route very similar to the one we drove last year -- some very cool roads! :)
Here's the Current Plan
-- Start point in Denver metro area would be from Morrison (Red Rocks Park). We may also set up an alternate start point further south (e.g. Colorado Springs, etc). I am looking for a member or two who might be willing to take charge of coordinating things in Colorado Springs. If the required volunteer steps forward, we’ll arrange a separate start in the Springs, and meet us in Florissant if they desire.
The basic route that’s currently being considered is as follows:
-- From Morrison, head W on 285 to Pine Junction, then S. to Deckers
-- Deckers S. to Woodland Park
-- West on 24 to Florissant
-- South on Gold-Belt-Tour Scenic Byway to 50 at a point just west of Cañon City
-- Then W on 50 to Salida and continuing on westward until we get to the turn-off to Waunita Springs. Unfortunately the last few miles into their place is a gravel road, but we’ll take that segment slow to protect our exteriors. Last year it wasn’t bad at all.
This route is about 6.5 hours in total at normal (posted) speed limits, so if we depart at ~8am and take a bio break in Deckers and stop in the same park where we had lunch last year for lunch in Florissant, we can still be in Waunita Springs by around 4pm. They have a nice pool that’s “geo-thermally” heated by the hot springs, so that’s just one way people can spend their time on Saturday afternoon before we gather for dinner.
There are other things to do as well. Saturday night we’ll be having a special activity, so stay tuned for the details. We may arrange a hay ride, live music by the fire, or possibly have a square-dance caller come in and do music and a square dance that evening… Please let me know what sounds most interesting. Input is very welcome!
Saturday dinner and Sunday breakfast are included in our Waunita Springs’ Fall Drive package, which is a very good thing since there’s not much else around there…we’d be a captive audience, so to speak. Our members can take hikes in the area, etc., in the afternoon following our arrival, and there’s also a great-room in the lodge, where freshly-brewed coffee (etc) is always available. Please note: We won’t be able to ride horses while there, as there won’t be time for their staff to run us through the requisite orientation, given that we’ll be there less than 24 hours.
On Sunday, following breakfast at the ranch, here’s the tentative plan:
-- Hwy 50 W to Hwy 43/44 S, to 114 S, into Saguache (BTW, I’m told 114 is a very cool drive!),
-- then 285 S to 112,
-- then E on 112 to Hooper,
-- then 17 S to County Lane 6, and drive E into the Sand Dunes National Park for lunch and a ranger-led tour.
After we enjoy a tour and lunch at the Dunes Park, we will turn everyone loose to head home in groups (via different routes based on home destinations), either using 285 N back to Denver. For those from Colorado Springs they could return home another way. This "flexible 2nd half" on Sunday also gives our members the freedom to explore the Sand Dunes Park as long as they may desire, departing for home on their own schedules.
This schedule and itinerary will once again allow our members to drive with us on Saturday only, Sunday only, or all weekend with the overnight stay. Folks can drive with us to Waunita on Saturday and then head straight back home if required.
Or, members can make their way down to join us on Sunday for lunch in the Sand Dunes Park and drive with us on the way home (various options would be issued for return routes, including 285 N/E the back route).
Just as some previous Fall Drives have appealed to many members who live “up north”, the plan for our 2010 Fall Drive will certainly be of particular interest to those who live in Littleton, Lakewood, Morrison, Englewood, Highlands Ranch, Parker, Castle Rock, Monument, Colorado Springs, and further south.
Are there members who are interested in being co-conspirators (co-coordinators, and helpers) with me on this event? :) Here are my specific needs:
a) Someone to help coordinate the starting points in Morrison and Colorado Springs – this involves helping get all arrivals to sign the waiver forms and issuing wrist bands.
b) Someone willing to purchase and deliver doughnuts and coffee (at each start point) the morning of the event. This is an annual incentive “bonus” for those who arrive on time for registration!
c) Several people willing to serve as run-group leaders and “cabooses”. We will probably need 6 people in total, 2 for each of three run groups.
I’m very much looking forward to this year’s Fall Drive repeat at Waunita Hot Springs Ranch! Should be another great opportunity to get to know other club members, and enjoy driving our high-performance BMWs on some of the best back-country touring roads in Colorado! For those who’ve never visited the Great Sand Dunes, our visit there on Sunday should be a real treat as well!
We look forward to seeing many of you on this year’s RMC Fall Drive!
Jim Bartlett
Event requirements
Additional Important Information:
A) The policy is no pets in the rooms or in the lodge. Sorry.
B) This is a ranch – not a hotel. Thus, there are bunk rooms, not hotel suites. The rooms are nice and clean, but each couple may not have their own private room with a queen sized bed. They may also have another double bed or a couple of bunks also in their room.
C) So, if we reach capacity on the drive, all beds will be full, and only the early paid registrants will have the few “private” rooms that are available. Others will have shared rooms.
D) The cost is $80/person, which includes lodging, dinner and hot breakfast.
E) We’ve capped the event (for overnight participants) at 50, that’s less than the number of participants we’ve had in the Fall Drive for two of the last three years. However, this cap isn’t arbitrary – it’s based on the limited supply of beds at the ranch.
F) So, those who really want to stay over on Sat night, please register early – we expect a sell-out! Those who really need a queen sized bed need to register extra early (there’s only a few of those). Those who really need a “private” room with no other beds in it (and a queen to share with their spouse) need to register super extra early, there’s only a handful of those!
G) We’re providing a picnic lunch on Saturday... On Sunday if we have enough leftovers from Saturday lunch we’ll do another picnic on Sunday. If not, then Sunday lunch is Dutch treat. Also, the entrance fees into the Dunes Park are the responsibility of each participant, not covered by RMC BMW CCA.
H) Cancellations made by Thursday September 9th will be charged $10 per person. There is no refund for cancellation after that date.
