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“Our first $50 fill,” Gretchen said looking at the gas pump where we had stopped in Murdo, S.D. on our trip to Colorado.

A woman climbing into the cab of a long motor home on the other side of the pump island threw me an ironic smile over her shoulder. The meaning was clear to me: Her bill was going to be a lot more than that.

Gretchen had been talking with the woman’s husband who was inspecting the tie-downs on a gleaming 1958 Chevrolet station wagon perched on a trailer behind the motor home. He said they were taking it to an auto show at Mount Rushmore, another 100 miles down the road. They were from Tennessee.

He said that they had spent more than $500 so far on gasoline, which was about $4 a gallon at most of the stations along the way. Their bill for the trip would be well over $1,000, he said.

“I’ve told the children to expect a lower inheritance,” he added with a laugh.

Based on what we’ve seen so far on our trip west, not everyone is reacting as boldly to the rising gas prices.

The large RV campground on the north side of Ouray, where our son, daughter-in-law and new granddaughter, Ella, live — had lots of empty sites. I asked one of the local business owners if my impression was correct that there were an unusual number of vacancies in the campground.

His response was one word: Ominous.

We visited the National Forest Service Amphitheater campground nestled in the slopes wooded with mixed conifers and gambel oaks above Ouray and found that only a handful of the 35 campsites were occupied.

Tourism is key to the well-being of this mountain town, where Jeep and ATV riding in the high country are a popular summer activity.

Most of the visitors are drawn to the “Jeeping” and the wildflowers in the alpine meadows during the summer. There’s ice climbing and back-country skiing and snowmobiling in the winter. And Gretchen met with an economic development committee in Ouray to urge them to consider promoting the area as a bird watching destination. We’ve enjoyed birding while hiking the trails and particularly enjoy seeing the western tanager, a stunning bird with yellow body, reddish orange head and black wings, that is common in the mountains above the town. There are some 53 miles of trails accessible from the heart of town.

And the rock climbing is a new and exciting possibility as our other granddaughter, Allison, who is 4, found out during our family get together here. Uncle Jeff had her in harness and top-roped on one of the rock routes close to downtown.

So there’s no shortage of things to do without burning gasoline once you get here.

But it takes gas to get here — many miles from the major population centers. And 1,350 miles from Onalaska. And add another 200 to that for Allison and her family, who live in Shawano. We all were concerned about gas prices, but we knew how important it was to have us all together in Ouray. So, like the couple with the Chevy, we made the trip anyway.

What lies ahead for Ouray and any other tourism-oriented community such as our own area is anybody’s guess. For us, we’ll find a way — by train, bus, bicycle or hot air balloon if necessary — to see little Ella and her family.

In the short term, we’re headed home amid predictions for gas prices reaching $5. My response is one word: ominous.