Oct 10, 2012 - Gunnison to Montrose & Black Canyon of the Gunnison

Wow! Another day of fantastic scenery! We left Gunnison this morning & went 65 miles down the road to Montrose, CO. After setting up our home & having a quick lunch, we headed out to the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. We saw the Black Canyon 40 years ago - it wasn't a national park then. In fact, it just became a national park in 1999. The National Park Service has done a wonderful job with this park. The overlooks & view points are great & the visitors center is very nice. We watched the short movie about the history of the...

Sep 27, 2012 - Ouray & Silverton

What a trip this turned out to be! The three days of rain have left the Red Mountains very vibrant and the dusting of snow made them spectacular. Fall colors just pop against all that gorgeous back drop. We passed thru Ouray, opting to stop on our return. The clouds were gathering and we decided to have lunch in Silverton at the Handlebars Saloon. Highly recommend the Ruben Sandwich. After lunch we stopped by our favorite local boon docking campground to check things out. It's right on a river with great views in every direction. Best of...

Sep 27, 2012 - Dennis Weaver Memorial

We have left the Gunnison area and moved on to Centennial RV Park in Montrose. After three days of rain we were off to Ouray & Silverton before we move on to Moab, UT. As we started out for Ouray, we made a pit stop at the Dennis Weaver Memorial in Ridgway. Dennis Weaver was an athlete, Naval pilot, actor, humanitarian and passionate environmentalist He left behind a rare and long legacy of helping people and helping the planet. Never part of the wild Hollywood crowd, he devoted his life to helping others and making this a better world to...

Sep 6, 2012 - Montrose, CO

/// Cedar Creek RV Park Montrose, CO Thursday – September 6, 2012 A Travel Day: We took our time preparing to depart this morning. We only have approximately 150 miles to travel today so I made good use of the time to do an extra good job of cleaning sewer hoses, etc. Finally at 10:30 AM we pulled out of the Glenwood Canyon Resort and proceeded west on I-70. The first leg of today's trip was about 80 miles on I-70, mostly traveling following along the Colorado River. We exited near Grand Jct and headed south/east on US 50. This second leg...

Jul 24, 2012 - Day 10; South to Colorado

Day 10: They Ran Us Out of the Desert As expected we awoke covered in a fairly hefty layer of fine sand. It was the consistency of powdered sugar and was in everything. It's a good thing it was very dry out here or it would be sticking. For the next hour we went about the business of shaking everything out and blowing the sand out of electronics. I had stuffed my iPad and camera down into my sleeping bag so they were relatively unfazed. But I have the feeling we'll be carrying a little bit of the Big Empty around for the rest of the trip....

Jun 29, 2012 - Black Canyon of the Gunnison

We spent the day in Black Canyon of Gunnison, an astonishing act of nature. The scenery was great, the canyon beyond imagination of beauty. Left for Quray and had the treat of a beautiful drive to the high mountains with the temps from 92 in Montrose to 75 in Quray. Our hotel was at the end of town with its own hot spring tubs that we quickly took advantage of. We went to a community concert in the park with live entertainment and great food, beverages and people watching. The shops and restaurants are fun to explore and experience. This...

Jun 28, 2012 - Beautiful Trip to Quray

Leaving our "home on wheels" in South Fork, we took off for Quray, Colorado, the most beautiful town in Colorado !!! Magificant views, travel on the way. We traveled along Blue Mesa Lake, a really large lake just over the pass on the way to Grand Junction. Lake San Cristol, a beautiful site and rain to add to the visions. We stayed in Montrose and had a beautiful dinner and relaxing time before journeying on to Quray. Quray is such a wonder, the beginning of the Million Dollar Highway traveling on to Silverton and eventually Durango.

Jun 20, 2012 - Beautiful Colorado

It's been close to 4 years since we had been in the western half of Colorado. We avoid it at all costs in the winter months. We decided to go across US Hwy 50; a beautifully, scenic route which partly follows the Arkansas River and goes by the Blue Mesa Reservoir, which is the largest body of water within the state. We had been this route one other time, but forgot how absolutely beautiful it was. United State Senator Michael Bennett describes Highway 50 this way. "Winding through a stunning mosaic of canyons, peaks and sprawling forests,...

Jun 16, 2012 - Telluride, Colorado....

Today we drove the 65 miles from home to Telluride. It was a pretty drive with a gentle ascent until we finally reached the town, located at an elevation of 8,750 feet. After picking up a copy of the Visitor's Guide, we learned that the town was named after valuable ore compounds of the chemical element tellurium, a metalloid element which forms natural tellurides, the most notable of which are telluride ores of gold and silver. Although gold telluride minerals were never actually found in the mountains near Telluride, the area's mines were...

Jun 15, 2012 - Silverton, Colorado...

Secluded at 9,318 feet, our visit to Silverton is one we won't soon forget! It is a perfect combination of supreme natural beauty and magnificent Victorian charm. Gold was discovered here in 1860, and after negotiations with the Ute Indians, the area was opened for settlement. The Town of Silverton was platted in 1874, and by 1875 the population had doubled. The Stony Pass wagon road became a toll road in 1879, and supplies came in over the Continental Divide from Del Norte. The greatest boom to the area was the construction of the Denver...

Jun 15, 2012 - Cortez to Montrose

Note: June 26th. This entry was delayed because my computer went bonkers and it’s taken over a week to locate and correct all the problems so that I can use it reliably. Meantime we moved to Lake City where the internet access is via satellite with restrictions on uploading the pictures. Brian We departed Cortez on Tuesday, June 12th about 11 am heading for Montrose on SR 145 over Lizard Head Pass with an intermediate 3 night stop at Matterhorn National Forest Service Campground near Trout Lake, 64 miles; and 72 miles from Matterhorn to...

Jun 14, 2012 - 'Million Dollar Highway'...

After our stop in Ouray this morning we continued on US Highway 550 between Ouray and Silverton on the “Million Dollar Highway”, perhaps one of the most breathtaking journeys you can travel by car! Originally built in 1883 by Otto Mears as a toll way from Ouray to the now abandoned town of Ironton, this two lane highway offers spectacular views of the San Juan Mountain Range, and Uncompaghre Gorge. The road was extended to connect Silverton and Ironton over Red Mountain pass and operated as a toll road until the early 1920’s when it was...