Colorado 2013: Day 7

June 8, 2013:   Today we are traveling again, north from Durango to the Black Canyon of the Gunnison.  We plan to drive the beautiful mountain passes to Silverton, where we will have breakfast,  then on to Ouray and a stop at a hot springs pool,  through a loop to Telluride, and eventually to Montrose, where we will sleep tonight. The drive along the San Juan Skyway should be breathtaking!

Our first pullover was outside Durango where we saw some motorcyclists taking in the morning view, and then we pulled over again, a  little bit up the road at Andrews Lake, where we saw a Spruce Grouse, and hiked to a lovely tranquil mountain lake.

Early Morning View

Spruce Grouse

Hiking to Andrews Lake

Early Morning Fishing

Leaving Andrews Lake, we soon came upon another overlook, where we saw this cute little guy - a golden-mantled ground squirrel.  We've seen these guys before (on the road to Boulder) where they would eat out of your hand.  This guy was not quite that tame, but of course we didn't have any food on us.  He did pose for us long enough to get some good shots. 

 Oh, and the view was lovely as well!

Our route will take us over Molas Pass and the Red Mountain Pass on the Million Dollar Highway, which is the 25-mile stretch of U.S. Route 550 that runs from Silverton to Ouray. This stretch of highway runs through gorges which are challenging and potentially dangerous to drive, characterized by steep cliffs, narrow lanes, and a lack of guard rails (explained by our bus driver the previous day as a way to more easily clear roads of avalanches in winter).

 Road to Silverton, over Molas Pass (elevation 10,899 ft)

 Approaching Silverton

 Silverton Street

 Buffet Breakfast in Silverton

After breakfast and some shopping, we continued our journey north, climbing upward on the San Juan Skyway, through the Red Mountain Pass.   The ascent of Red Mountain Pass is marked with a number of hairpin curves and narrow lanes for traffic—many cut directly into the sides of mountains. During this ascent, the remains of the Idarado Mine are visible. Travel north from Silverton to Ouray allows drivers to hug the inside of curves; travel south from Ouray to Silverton perches drivers on the vertiginous outside edge of the highway. 

The views were truly breathtaking! We have seen some beautiful views on our travels, but these were perhaps the most  amazing we've ever seen anywhere - and different around every bend in the road!

Red Mountain

 

Above the tree line

Avalanche Chute

Red Mountain Pass Scenic Overlook

The aspen, in their early spring green cloaks,  

had just leafed out at this elevation

Ouray

We arrived in Ouray around noon.  This small intimate community, which calls itself the Switzerland is nestled in some of the most rugged and towering peaks of the Rockies. Set at the narrow head of a valley at 7,792 feet and surrounded on three sides with 13,000 foot snowcapped peaks.  We went immediately to the hot springs pool, where we spent a very relaxing 2 hours before continuing on our journey!   The water in the pool was sectioned off into 3 separate areas, with water ranging from warm, very warm and hot!

Next, we went a bit out of our way to Telluride, as we'd never been there and heard it was beautiful. The drive there - part of the San Juan Skyway - certainly was!  

We shared the road with hoards of bikers and other cars carrying bikes.  Once we got to Telluride, we discovered why - Ride the Rockies!  - that, and a Wild West Fest were going on in town.   We walked around a bit, and had some dinner there, at an outdoor cafe.  The surrounding mountains and landscape are awesome, and I'm glad we visited, but I honestly wasn't all the impressed with the town itself. 

Sign outside a cafe

So...after a Spanish-themed dinner, we left Telluride and drove on to our final destination in Montrose, where we will spend the night.

End of a busy and wonderful Day 7!

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