We have been through Colorado many times but we are usually going through the business end of the state along the I25 corridor. This time we have our sights set on southwestern CO.
We left Tuesday following Lorna’s golf game and headed for Carol Craig's place in Calgary for an over night.
On Wednesday we did the #2/I15 super-slab from Calgary to Helena the state capitol. If you have never stopped in you are missing an interesting small city perched on the side of a hill. There is some interesting architecture further off the interstate and the old town area has several buildings that date back to the 1880s. From here we headed for Bozeman for a motel for the night.
The next morning was cool but sunny and we hit our first twisties on the way to West Yellowstone. From here we took Idaho #20 and #32 towards the Teton Mountains. Lots of curves here and zero traffic. Then we headed to Jackson, WY for a photo-op at ‘Elk Antler Square’ and a nice lunch in the sunshine. We had skied here before but it is quite a different look in the summer with lots of people and traffic. Heading south on hiway 191 we passed by miles and miles of very short sagebrush and discovered why. Temperatures soared into the mid nineties and the cross wind was in the 40 to 50mph range. It tried everything to rip Lorna’s helmet from her head and the intercom had to be turned completely off. When we got to Rock Springs we jogged a few miles west to on I80 to Green River and then along the west side of the Flaming Gorge Reservoir to Manila, UT. You can only catch a couple of glimpses of the lake so it was quite disappointing and still windy. By 6pm the wind was starting to subside. Going east now on UT44 we hit a terrific highway. Curves and switchbacks and great views of the lake. And the reason it is called Flaming Gorge now became evident. The hills and mountains were a yellow to bright orange. Beautiful! Then we came to the intersection to the dam site where Ernie Hutton had met his DEER friend back in June. It was getting late but we decided we should drive the 6 miles down to the dam. And it was well worth the drive down. The dam is 455 feet high and only 1,180 feet across. The Green River doesn’t have a huge volume and so the power plant is relatively small. You ride across the dam to get the best view. From the dam we headed for Vernal UT. As you approach the city you drop down 4,200 feet and there are 10 switchbacks. Incredible ride. Vernal is in the middle of an oil boom and so the cheapest room we could find was 124 bucks. After that grueling wind and heat we would have paid more. Lorna would have taken a plane home the next day but fortunately there are no scheduled airlines in Vernal.
One observation we made as a result of our hot windy drive was this. If the US spent just 10% of what they spend finding and getting oil out of the ground, on wind and solar technologies in Wyoming they probably wouldn’t need to drill more wells.
Day four starts out heading southeast to Rangley CO, and then south to Grand Junction and then we turn onto hiway 141 at Whitewater. For the next 100 miles we are riding in a red canyon along the Delores River. A treat for the eyes to be sure. The temperature is into the 90s again with not a cloud in the sky and NO WIND! At Naturita we take 145 to Placerville and then 62 over the Dallas Divide (8,970 ft) to Ridgeway. We turn south on 500 and are immediately treated to a fabulous ride. From Ouray to Silverton we traverse the Red Mountain Pass at 11,008 feet. What a road! Wow! This area is known as the Million Dollar Highway. The mountains are littered with old mine shafts, tipples and slag heaps. Silver was the quest although they also found lead, gold and other metals here. The silver was so pure in some of the veins here that it was sent directly out without the need for smelting. In today’s dollars and values the take would exceed a quarter of a billion dollars. Oh and did I mention the road. Bear Tooth Pass is nothing compared to this. Silverton is now one of the major ski attractions in Colorado. Continuing south out of Silverton we climb again and do the Molas Divide at 10,010 feet and pass by Purgatory Ski area on our way to Durango. One of the major tourist attractions in this area is the Durango to Silverton narrow gauge railway where they still use vintage steam locomotives and rolling stock to take one back in time. We take 160 east about 50 miles to the Windham Pagosa Springs timeshare where we will spend the next week. This is a huge complex with hundreds of gorgeous condos.
We will send pictures when we get organized. Heading for Lake City this morning.
Lorna and Wally Bentt
We look forward to future visits from them.
