First 2 weeks of Dec. on the Dolores, met an 85-year-old cat who let us pitch our tents on his land 100 feet from the river! We got a late start and the sun was falling fast, after driving every dirt road, side road, nook and cranny we could find not a single boondock camp site, with almost no light left on our way back to the highway we noticed an old man working on a pretty good-sized log after finally getting it onto his chopping block he reaches for this giant double-edged axe and takes a good whack, wiggles it free and does this bent old man side shuffle to the other side and whack again, amazingly the log splits and the axe sticks into the chopping block! With nowhere to camp yet and no light left I go talk to him hoping he might let us pitch our tents on his land, Knowing the campgrounds were closed for the winter and how desperate we where he asked in his soft raspy old voice, how tough are ya? a slight panic came over me as he grins, then he says ya know it's going to be less than 20 deg. tonight! after a good chuckle and a little fish chat he pointed us to a corner where he had a fire pit and said don't freeze. Woke up the next morning, no sign of old Ben so we chopped about 20 logs apiece and went fishing!