Sunday, January 24, 2016

Historic Telluride Colorado




In my prior post, I showed you the wonderful house we rented during the Thanksgiving week, in the Log Hill Village area of Ridgway, in SW Colorado, that had a panoramic view of the San Juan Mountain Ranges. Another good aspect of that house's location was that it was almost midway between the towns of Ouray and Telluride--two places we heard much about and wanted to visit.  




The drive to Telluride from Ridgway was about 45 minutes long...



... scenically winding around hills and mountains.

We took this drive at the end of November--in winter the views would be much more snow-filled!


We entered the charming Historic District of Telluride.  Established in 1878, Telluride began as a remote mining town,  At an elevation of 8,745 feet, it is located in a majestic box canyon surrounded by 13,000 and 14,000-foot mountains. The area's mines provided silver, zinc, lead, copper, and gold ores for some years, When silver prices crashed in 1893, followed by World War 1, the mining industry slowed down and Telluride's population dwindled from thousands to hundreds. Fortunately, in the 1970s Telluride reinvented itself as a ski town. Soon, cultural events, festivals, music, and performing arts made the town a popular year-round destination.  Its world-class skiing and the beautiful ambiance made it popular with the wealthy.  The median price for a house in Telluride is now 3.8 million dollars!  Tom Cruise, Jerry Seinfeld, Oprah Winfrey, and Laura Linney are among the entertainers who have owned houses in the area.



This iconic view looking down Main Street in Telluride took my breath away!



I enjoyed walking around the town and seeing some of its landmark buildings such as the San Miguel County Courthouse, the First National Bank building, and the New Sheridan Hotel.



 Click on the photo above to enlarge it, to see some historical markers located on Main Street. 

Some interesting facts from Telluride's history:

Outlaw Butch Cassidy and his Wild Bunch began their brazen careers in robbing banks at the San Miguel National Bank in downtown Telluride in 1889. They stole $24,000 in mining payroll from the bank.

In 1891, entrepreneurs LL Nunn and; George Westinghouse worked together using Nikola Tesla's discovery of alternating current to run almost 2.5 miles of power line from a hydroelectric plant in Ames to the Gold King Mine. Eventually, those lines would be brought into the town and Telluride would become the first town in the country to be powered with alternating current electric power!
Due to its significant role in the history of the American West, Telluride was designated as a National Historic Landmark District in 1964.


The historic downtown of Telluride is full of places to eat and shop and magnificent scenery, but most of the ski resorts, luxury hotels and restaurants, modern sprawling condominium complexes, and million-dollar homes are in the adjacent Mountain Village, which rises above Telluride to the southwest at an elevation of almost 10,000 feet.



There is a 13-minute long gondola ride that takes visitors up to Mountain Village. It gave us glorious views of the downtown and 365-degree views of the San Juan Mountains.  It is often referred to by locals as "the best commute in the country!" Come back to see my next blog post where I will take you along for the ride!



Beautiful Telluride!  

I was excited to visit this historic and scenic town and I hope to return again many times in the future.  Come back soon to take the gondola ride up the mountains to the ski resorts in my next post!


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60 comments:

Pondside said...

What a beautiful place! I have always wondered how the name is pronounced.

Pat @ Mille Fiori Favoriti said...

Hi Honora

Telluride is pronounced just as it is spelled--Tell--U--Ride. The name comes from a property or form of gold. This site has a recording of how it is pronounced: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/telluride

Mersad said...

These winter landscapes have me dreaming of traveling. I love small mountain towns like Telluride. I recently had the chance to visit Mammoth Lakes in the Siera Nevada Mountain Range, and it was similarly charming. This one is just so picturesque. Thanks for sharing with "Through My Lens"

eileeninmd said...

Hello Pat, Telluride is a gorgeous place. Have you heard the Tim McGraw song called Telluride, it is good. What a beautiful town, the views are just gorgeous. Wonderful collection of photos, thanks for sharing your visit. Happy Monday, enjoy your new week!

SmilingSally said...

Hi Pat,

Your adventurous spirit gives me a great view/education of CO. Thanks for playing today.

Glad your Broncos won!

Have a Beautiful Blue Monday!

LV said...

Been there but wish I could go more often. Must be close to heaven on earth.

Sheila said...

Your road trips are always eye opening for me. Just seeing the picture of main street is enough to make me want to visit more small towns like this. Road trips are the best!

Pamela Gordon said...

What a beautiful town and to see those mountains rising up all around it is magnificent. I can see why it's so popular to visit. Thanks for sharing your visit with us. I'm sure the next post with the views from the gondola ride will be amazing. Have a good week Pat.

Tanya Breese said...

i love places like that...i enjoyed this post!

Linda Kay said...

Pat, you have really captured several memes today in your post. The mountains are so breathtaking. We are considering a trip out West this summer, so will get my mountain fix. We have high hills around us here, but not quite mountains.

GranthamLynn said...

Gorgeous shots. I love Colorado. We lived in Boulder for a short time. I enjoyed it. But I'm a Texas girl at heart. No snow!
I'd love to invite you to join me for a series in March. America The Beautiful Home Tour. You can link any of your great posts! I'll be posting details soon.
Happy Blue Monday

Anonymous said...

This is the kind of town I love to explore. Wonderful photos Pat! Congrats on the Denver Broncos win!

Yvette said...

My kind of town, Pat. :) Love your photos. As always.

Lotie Bollag Mosher Kloppenburg Romney said...

wonderful.

Vee said...

What an amazing place! I have questions about Main Street. Is that a combination of two photos? I love a free ride so I will certainly be back.

Sallie (FullTime-Life) said...

It really is an amazing place; that photo looking down the street at the mountain is wonderful -- true Colorado!

Barb said...

I love the scenic drive on the way into Telluride. I think wildflowers are spectacular there in summer.

Rue said...

Thank you for taking us with you to Telluride, Pat. I've been to Beaver Creek and Vail, but never there. It's beautiful :)

I hope your eye is doing well.

xoxo,
rue

Margaret Birding For Pleasure said...

Such a beautiful place and all the photography is marvellous

Kayni said...

It's so beautiful there. I'd love to see this place one day. Thank you for sharing.

carol l mckenna said...

You are having the best time! Great shots of a fascinating city and vista !

Reminds me a bit of Aspen where once went on a ski trip ~ now I like to be cozy and warm when snow is on the ground or it is cold ~ Thanks for sharing your wonderful photography of your excursion ~

Wishing you peace in your week ~ ^_^

Photo Cache said...

So much natural beauty!

Worth a Thousand Words

Fun60 said...

I don't know how you can keep your eyes on the road with such spectacular scenery all around.

Joyful said...

Spectacular scenery!

Cranberry Morning said...

This is just amazing scenery! Our country has such a varied and beautiful landscape. I enjoyed this post!

Cranberry Morning said...

This is just amazing scenery! Our country has such a varied and beautiful landscape. I enjoyed this post!

The Gathering Place said...

What an interesting place. It is sad how expensive land can get in those quainy towns, but still fun to visit.

Ruth said...

What a beautiful town! I will be breathless too. I have a soft spot for mining towns. The price of houses is crazy though.

Al said...

Beautiful photos - I haven't made it to Telluride yet. But I did ski Copper Mountain on Saturday, and put up a post on it this morning.

~Lavender Dreamer~ said...

I've always loved the old timey downtown of this beautiful town! You sure went at a good time to take photos! Hugs!

Rajesh said...

Wonderful shots of historic place. The snow peaks look amazing.

likeschocolate said...

Lovely! Lucky you!
http://travelingbugwiththreeboys-kelleyn.blogspot.com/2016/01/a-joyful-surprise.html

TexWisGirl said...

just magnificent snow-covered mountains!

elizabeth said...

What a gorgeous place! No wonder the rich and famous love it.

Anonymous said...

I could definitely live there - so gorgeous!

Unknown said...

This is a beautiful town and you've taken great photos!

The Joy of Home with Martha Ellen said...

What a beautiful post about Telluride, Pat! I will definitely return for the gondola ride. Your photos are lovely! I must follow your blog...it's so interesting! ♥

Donna said...

Pat, I have always wanted to visit Telluride. I have never even seen many pictures of it so this was a treat! And who knew about all the history....fascinating my friend! Thanks for the tour.

Donna@GardensEyeView
and LivingFromHappiness

A Colorful World said...

Good for them using Tesla's alternating current! I read a bio on him that was just so interesting. He never got enough credit until recently! We went to Ouray on our trip and stayed in a B&B there, which was just delightful. Missed Telluride, I think, and judging from your photos, it would be an awesome visit, especially in winter. That's what drew us back to Ouray. We had driven past it on the mountain passes back when our daughter was a baby, in the winter and I remember looking down upon it nestled in its valley covered in snow, and surrounded by the snowy mountains and feeling like I was in the Swiss Alps! We found out later Ouray is called Little Switzerland. We stayed there in summer, but I will always remember how magical the snowy views were. Loved all your great info on Telluride. Butch Cassidy & Sundance...that was interesting! Great post!

Lisa said...

Those are magnificent views! Love the glimpses of the quaint historic district of the town. #LTTL

Anonymous said...

Telluride is on my CO bucket list. Beautiful photos, it makes me want to get there much sooner than later.

Visting from Through my Lens

Lisa at Life Thru the Lens (link-up at www.lisakernern-slp.com)

Anonymous said...

What a quaint little town, it looks as though it could come straight from the pages of a story book.

Anonymous said...

Absolutelly stunning views!

Claudia said...

I so want to go there. They have a play development program and know colleagues who went and loved it. 1.2 million for the average home! Last time I was in CO, friends told me they wished the Californians would go home - they are driving up the real estate in CO. But can you blame them? It's such a beautiful state!

Pierced Wonderings said...

What a beautiful place! I've spent a lot of time in CO - my best friend lives in Loveland - but we've not made it down to Telluride yet. I need to put it on the list!

I host a Photo Friday link-up each week; id love it if you considered joining us!

Stopping by from Image-in-Ing!

Unknown said...

Hi Pat, so glad to see you still putting out your travels and beautiful photography. I just watched a TV Series, Deadwood, about the founding of South Dakota as a state. Terrible language and violence but I love history and just had to ignore that. These photos remind me of those scenes but much improved in looks. Have never been surrounded by mountains like that.

Light and Voices said...

Boy, I have never seen photos of this place although I have heard the name before. Now, I would like to visit this historical place. Your photographs do the town justice. I can hardly wait to see your photos next week.
JM, Illinois

Daniela said...

My lovely, wherever you go, you show us something which leave me in awe !
Gorgeous, truly gorgeous and surprising the State you live in, I'll never get tired to say and to write it !
Thank you darling for another amazing post,
with gratitude I wish you all the best for the week to come
sending love and hugs
Dany

Andrea said...

The views are really fantastic, and the information given are real interesting too. I think this is the first time i read about it. thanks.

Art and Sand said...

I have been to Denver and we skied in Keystone. But, your post tells me that we need to visit Telluride.

Thanks for Sharing Your Cup!

Molly said...

What an amazingly beautiful place

Mollyxxx

Judy said...

I always learn so much from your posts! How nice to have a resident travel blogger in Colorado! Thanks for taking us along to this lovely and quaint place. I see that I have been pronouncing Telluride wrong in the past. :)

Ciao Chow Linda said...

Pat - I was wondering when you'd get around to visiting Telluride. I knew you would!! I have friends who have a home there and I've visited and skied there with them. It is such a beautiful place. They always volunteer to usher for the film festival in the fall. Some year I'm going to go out there for that.

Gracie said...

Wow....that's a view! It's the kind of scenario my husband would like to explore...on a motorbike of course!

Sally Wessely said...

I love Telluride. I haven't been up there for more years than I'd like to admit. I also am sad when I go there because I remember it before it was "discovered." It was such a cute and quaint town in those days. I wish I had photos of how it was when I was a young girl.

Tamera said...

Wow, beautiful! I have lived in Colorado for over 30 years and have yet to make it to Telluride. It's perennially on my list. One of these days! Your pictures inspire!

Roz | La Bella Vita Cucina said...

What a pretty place that we've only 'driven by' on our way to the Four Corners. A friend of mine in SC had a home and property that bordered Ralph Lauren's property there. Such a beautiful part of our nation that always beckons a return visit. Hopefully someday when I retire! thanks for sharing your wonderful excursions, Pat!

Pietro Brosio said...

What a beautiful town with those mountains all around! Great views indeed!

Forest Dream Weaver said...

Beautiful series of photos.....thank you!

Susan Anderson said...

What a wonderful old town to visit. Love it.

=)