Ridgway, Colorado--Gateway to the San Juan's

 Ridgway, Colorado, is called "The Gateway to the San Juan's, " for a good reason, as this is the view of the mountain range one sees as you drive towards the town. (All photos will enlarge for easier viewing if clicked on)

Steep, forested mountains, mesas, and cliffs surround Ridgway on the south, east, and northeast, and the house we rented in November was located on the top of Log Hill Mesa.

The drive up and down Log Hill Mesa, and the house we rented, gave us spectacular views of the Cimmaron and San Juan Mountains. It was a wonderful base to use to visit the towns of Ouray, which is 10 miles north, and 37 miles east to the ski town of Telluride--about 30 and 40 minutes away in different directions. You can read blog posts I wrote about each town if you click on the highlighted links.

The picturesque rural town of Ridgway, nestled in the Uncompaghre Valley at 6,985 feet, looked as if time had stood still.  It is named for the Denver and Rio Grande railroad superintendent Robert M. Ridgway, who established the town in 1891 to service the silver and gold miners, ranchers, and farmers in the area.  It now has a population of approximately 924 people and concentrates on creativity and culture and a connection to the outdoors.

The railway is gone, but its memories remain at the acclaimed Ridgway Railroad Museum.

The views of the mountain ranges from the town certainly added to its Old West charm.

More than 100 films and documentaries have been filmed in the scenic SW area of Colorado. One of the most famous films in Ridgway is the Academy Award-winning John Wayne 1969 movie classic "True Grit."  The True Grit Cafe in Ridgway has movie memorabilia on its walls. There is even a True Grit Walking Tour conducted through the Ridgway Visitors Center every Friday, May through October.

 

This fun "Then and Now" YouTube video shows scenes from the "True Grit" movie, and what the same scene would look like now.  The quality of the music at the beginning of the video is somewhat fuzzy, so you might want to turn down your speakers.

We were excited to do a drive along a portion of Last Dollar Road.  This bumpy dirt road was once used as a mining supply route in the 1800s leading from Ridgway to Telluride but now is surrounded by large aspen groves and ranches.

The view of the Dallas Divide through the arches of Last Dollar Ranch was certainly scenic!  The designer Ralph Lauren also owns ranch land in this area.  We did not go much further along the road as it was muddy and we knew it would be difficult to travel, so we turned around.  We definitely would like to return to this area one day to see these views again and hopefully be able to do the entire 18-mile drive.

Another interesting fact about Ridgway is that it contains the only traffic light in the entire Ouray County! Here is, at the intersection of highways 550 and 62.

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It is easy to see why the San Juan Mountain area of SW Colorado is called the "Switzerland of America," and why we enjoyed this vacation so much! From Alpenglow to winds blowing the snow on the mountaintops, we saw gorgeous sights from the deck of our rental home.

On the home front, we celebrated a few happy occasions recently!

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The Denver Broncos football team won Superbowl 50! My husband and I went to the celebratory parade for the Broncos in Denver and enjoyed seeing quarterback Peyton Manning and the Vince Lombardi trophy and the rest of the Bronco team and cheerleaders and mascots in the parade!  Over a million people were in attendance--most dressed in the Denver Broncos colors of orange and blue!

The best events, however, were the birthdays of our son and our granddaughter "J" in February.  She is growing up to be the happiest and most imaginative little girl.  She really lights up our lives!  

 I hope you all had a very Happy Valentine's Day. Only 34 days 'till Spring!

 

Ouray Colorado and the Million Dollar Highway

Beautiful Ouray, Colorado (pronounced U-ray) is also known as the "Switzerland of America," as the mountains and canyons surrounding Ouray are filled with some of the West's most unforgettable scenery.  (All photos and photo collages in this post will enlarge for easier viewing if clicked on)

The town is set at the narrow head of a valley, enclosed on three and a half sides by steep mountains.

The town of Ouray was originally established by miners looking for silver and gold in the surrounding mountains. At its height, there were over 30 established mines. The town was incorporated in 1876, and named after Chief Ouray of the Utes Native American tribe. Located at the narrow head of a valley, Ouray is surrounded on three sides by towering peaks, some 13,000 feet high.

The entirety of Main Street is registered as a National Historic District, with most of the buildings dating back to the late nineteenth century. Click to enlarge to read this placard that shows the buildings of Ouray's early times.

The Beaumont Hotel, the Ouray County Courthouse, the Wright Opera House and many other ornate buildings and houses bring charm and history to the town. There is also  Ouray Hot Springs pool open year-round in town--a million-gallon pool of sulfur-free mineral water.  We were tempted to visit the hot springs pool, as we did in Steamboat, but decided to take a scenic drive along the Million Dollar Highway instead

No one is sure how the Million Dollar Highway got its name. It is about a 25-mile portion of US 550 between Ouray and Silverton., and part of the San Juan Scenic Skyway. Some guess it took a million dollars to build, or that the road fill dirt contains about a million dollars of gold ore, and some say it would take a million dollars to make them ride over this narrow two-lane highway.

Originally built in 1883 by Otto Mears as a tollway from Ouray to the now-abandoned town of Ironton. The road was extended to connect Silverton and Ironton over Red Mountain Pass,

The highway offers spectacular views of the San Juan Mountain Range and the Uncompahgre Gorge.  The photo above shows a look back on the road we just traveled., on the right, which shows how the road hugs the mountain peak.

In fact, the road cuts through the mountain at points and through tunnels built at points where there are frequent avalanches.  Even though we took this ride in late November, there was already significant snow and ice in the mountains and along the highway

The views were gorgeous!

High mountain peaks on the right and left--it was easy to see why this area is called the Switzerland of America!

Some of the areas we passed through had large aspen groves, which must be so colorful in early autumn.

Magnificent vistas...

...of high peaks...

...and forests.

Loved this view of Mt. Sneffels, 14154 feet high!

We thought we'd drive on the Million Dollar Highway all the way through to Silverton, but the weather ahead began to look threatening when we were just a few miles away.  Since more snow was predicted that day, we used a turn out to turn around and go back to Ouray. 

There was a lot of ice and icicles hanging off Red Mountain.  It is easy to see why Ouray is the ice climbing capital of the US. The world's first ice climbing park consists of dozens of frozen waterfalls from 80 to 200 feet high, along a mile of the Uncompahgre Gorge. The Ouray Ice Park is free, and attracts climbers from around the world!

 Red Mountain gets its name from the red iron ore in it. 

Back towards the very narrow and curving Red Mountain Pass. The Million Dollar Highway is considered by many to be one of the most dangerous roads to drive,...

...but it handles an average daily traffic count of 2200 cars a day and is a vital roadway for the area. The log hauler truck, seen in the photo above was just a short distance in front of us on our way back.

Before entering Ouray we stopped at a pull out to take photos by the historical markers at the end of the Million Dollar Highway.  As you can see the wind was blowing and the storm was approaching. We looked forward to going back to the house we rented in Ridgway and sit by the fireplace and heat up some warm food. We loved our visit to Ouray and hope to come back someday to visit it in other seasons.  

The next blog post I'll show some sights from Ridgway, Colorado--the town often used for early Western movie backdrops and where John Wayne starred in  the movie"True Grit." Come back soon!

Scenic Drive to SW Colorado

Every time my husband and I drive to a new area in Colorado we are amazed by the scenery and topography of our state.  Our trip to a house we rented, along with our daughter and her family, in South West Colorado was no exception!  We drove west, from our town of Littleton, on Colorado 470, to US 285. I've blogged often about traveling on US 285 over Kenosha Pass to South Park, as this is one of the prettiest places in Colorado. (All photos and collages in this post will enlarge for easier viewing if clicked on.)

South Park is a large grassland basin, at 10,000-foot elevation, rimmed by the Rocky Mountain Mosquito and Park Mountain Ranges.  It is populated by many scenic ranches and the town of Fairplay.  Although we were taking this trip during Thanksgiving week in November, you can see there was already significant snow on the high, surrounding peaks.

We continued on US 285 towards the Sawatch Mountain Range near Buena Vista, Colorado.  

When we entered the Buena Vista area, we had a view of Mt. Princeton.  Mt. Princeton is 14,204 feet high mountain and is part of the Collegiate Peaks of the Sawatch Range of the Rocky Mountains. The Sawatch Mountain Range contains eight of the twenty highest peaks in the Rocky Mountains, including Mt. Elbert, which is the highest mountain of the Rocky Mountain Range in North America, at an elevation of 14,440 feet. 

We soon traveled west onto US 50 and traveled over the Continental Divide over Monarch Pass. This pass is considered one of the most scenic in Colorado, with beautiful views of the Sawatch Range.  It also contains the Monarch Ski Area.

We were now in Gunnison County, Colorado, where we had a view of the West Elk Mountain Range.

The topography here became "otherworldly."

The erosion of millennium on these ancient hills, buttes, mesas, and mountains reveled their "bones." 

All I could think of, as we drove past views like this, was this area is a geologist's dream...

...as well as a photographer's.

We passed the craggy, tall Dillon Pinnacles of the Curecanti National Recreation Area.....

 ...and the Blue Mesa Reservoir, which is the largest body of water entirely in Colorado. 

At 7,519 feet, it is 20 miles long and has 96 miles of shoreline. The Blue Mesa Reservoir is the largest lake trout and Kokanee salmon fishery in Colorado. 

We also passed the north rim of the amazing Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, which I will blog about on a future post.

As we drove towards the city of Montrose, I continued to see the most beautiful and unusual scenery.  I felt like all the castles in Europe could not compare to these natural "castles" made by time.

The hills were dark examples of volcanic remains of Precambrian era gneiss and schist.

We soon turned onto US 550 in Ouray County, towards the magnificent San Juan Mountain Range--the largest mountain range in Colorado by area.  We were approaching our final destination in Log Hill Village near Ridgway, Colorado. 

The house we rented for the week here had a beautiful large deck that offered us a panoramic view of the San Juan Mountains. It was the also the vantage point from where we took day trips to the towns of Ouray and Telluride, and a drive along the Million Dollar Highway--all of which I will blog about in future posts.  

I hope you enjoyed coming along on our drive to SW Colorado and enjoyed the wondrous and incredible scenery we passed along the way.  Return soon to see more of our visit this fabulous part of Colorado!