Pinewood Lake, Colorado - May '07

Pinewood Lake is a reservoir sitting northwest of Berthoud, Colorado nestled in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. We checked out the area a few weeks in advance to make sure we picked the right area for camping and R/C'ing. We chose the Windy Pines campground as it sat high on a hill overlooking the northern end of the lake. There was a nice steep rocky hill leading from the campsite all the way down to the "beach" that was perfect for Ripper and Stitch to stretch their legs on. We had campsite number 19 (important to note) which was situated close enough to the outhouse to allow for quick evacuation of the evil spirits brought on by beer consumption but it was not so close that we could hear other people peeing. It appeared that we had found a good site.

I say "appeared" because it soon became apparent that there was not going to be an ounce of privacy for the entire weekend. Campsite number 20 was directly behind us. The only trail to #20 was right through the middle of our campsite...and of course someone showed up to stay in #20. They were a nice family to have next to us but Saturday morning the kids were up at 5:30AM so that was a little rough.

Regardless of that hardship, we got camp setup and managed to make it as homey as possible The weary looks on our faces is from having to haul all of our crap to the site and setup before we could take the picture (something that will be common to every trip report...I know...sorry). I could go on and on about what it was like to have the person at the campsite next to you snoring incessantly all night, or the people who ran their damn generator between 10PM and 6AM when it was supposedly against park rules to do so, or the group of morons in their early 20's who couldn't shut their friggin' mouths for 5 seconds so normal people could fall asleep at 2AM. But I won't get into that...because they all pale in comparison to the real rub of the weekend...Tino.

Tino was a nice enough 12 (or so) year old kid. He just didn't understand that 35 and 38 year old men don't necessarily want a kid to simply wander into their camp and sit there as if they are part of the crew. He would stay for endless periods of time picking and handling everything we had out on the tables. He took our seats the moment we stood up, would mimic everything we did (such as clamping the tongs together to make a noise) and would ask a seemingly unending string of questions...that were always, "Why?" As I said, he was a nice kid. But somewhere along the lines his parents forgot to tell him that it is rude to invite yourself into someone else's space (over and over and over and over again). We merely ignored him most of the time. Sometimes we would just answer his questions and he'd walk away. Sometimes we just wanted to strangle him (like when he hung around thinking that we would feed him like a lost puppy if he stayed around long enough...no, we didn't feed him...the other family I referenced earlier did). Okay...enough about Tino, and on to the R/C stuff.

The area around our campsite was hard-packed dirt with loose sand and (mostly) smallish rocks and gravel. It sat at the base of a hill that was covered in the same rocks, gravel and lots of small wildflowers and (very little) actual grass. The path down to the lake was narrow and very rocky so it was not really conducive to driving 2WD stadium trucks. Regardless, Dageek got Neo up the hill without too much hassle. Stitch was able to navigate the same hill with a bit more ease due to his size and 4WD...though he somersaulted dangerously close to the lake at one point (that was the driver's fault, not the truck's).

There were quite a few "beaches" in the area but they, like the paths and campsites, are littered with rocks. They stick out high and randomly so you never know when one is going to bite your chassis and break it beyond repair. Because of the sheer unfriendliness of the general area. So whereas there were some highlights to the trip (very few broken parts and several cool places to run), the lack of privacy and temperamental weather caused the rating to drop quite substantially. Long story short...do not go to Pinewood Lake unless you are really into sharing everything with the 20 people right next to you.


Summary
Weather = Mixed sun and clouds with occasional rain
Campsite = Not secluded nor private
Broken parts = One front and one rear Evader suspension arm
Quality of terrain = Excellent but limited due to crowds


Geek Brothers' Rating =

Additional Pictures

Stitch in action
Makeshift ramp
Ninja's broken arm
View from campsite

Another view from campsite
Dageek
Special Ed
Tino
HOMEPAGE TRIP REPORTS