SEA STAR TRAVEL LOG: ROCKY MOUNTAIN RIDING ROUTE July 25-28, 2011

Leaving the Tetons and Gros Ventre, in Wyoming we had another long ride, with some desired stops, on our way to Mesa Verde National Park in southwestern Colorado. The route we took retraced our steps to 287E through Arapaho Indian controlled area along the Wind River, and toward Lander, stayed overnight at the Maverick Motel, drove over the historic Overland Stage Route of the Oregon Trail and the town of Rawlins. Along the highway were beautiful painted cliffs similar to the dessert. We stayed in Lincoln campground in Medicine Bow at the end of a long day.

The next leg of 130 mountain miles, brought us to route 130 and over the Snowy Range Pass at 10,847 feet and Medicine Bow Mt., even taller, until we crossed the border into Colorado at Tie Siding.

Poudre Canyon and Poudre River, where we took a campsite at Kelly, were along the next section on route 14 then west to the Arapaho Wildlife Preserve. The Preserve route, 125 then 40, 70 and 91. Route 91 runs close to the scenic road, 24, described below. I could see the 14,000s as we continued on the highway that ran over and through heights of 6000' to 8000'. I love my Subaru, but it struggled even with the trailer empty! Dan, of course, had a much easier time driving the mountains. He was cold, but the bike was the way to go- only he had to slow considerably to allow me to keep up as we hadn't discussed the route. Leadville was the place we found a hotel and planned the rest of the trip.

Information on the 14,000s Scenic route 24 is from internet research. We rode rt. 91 but it was from north to south. The description below is from south to north. There is no doubt the mountains are amazing. It's fun to see their Collegiate names now. At the time we rode through they were just "the Rockies".

"One of the scenic drives in the Rockies is a section of US 24 called the Highway of the Fourteeners, because it passes a total of ten 14,000 foot peaks on either side of Buena Vista. There is no other stretch of highway in the U.S. where you will see this many of the highest peaks together nor be able to view them so closely. The pointed summit of Mt. Princeton first appears, later you have the first full view of Mt. Princeton, a massive mountain with great shoulder peaks on each side of the summit. Following Princeton in succession to the right are Mts. Yale and Columbia. You then sight the sharp peak of Mt. Harvard (3rd highest peak in the Rockies), and to its right Mts. Missouri, Belford, and Oxford, all higher than 14,000 feet. US 24 goes through the town of Buena Vista and for another 3 miles north of town, the road passes 3 or 4 miles from the Fourteeners and you have a close up view. After Mt. Yale look for the beautiful view up North Cottonwood Basin to the Continental Divide, with the pointed Birthday Peak at the far end, standing on the Divide about 10 miles away."

As Dan and I emerged from the mountain and our view of Mt. Princeton, we turned west and were on a much less traveled road on our way to "The Million Dollar Highway", another famous biking highway and on our way past Durango, CO toward Mesa Verde.

Quotes mostly from Wikipedia

"The original portion of the Million Dollar Highway was a toll road built by Otto Mears in 1883 to connect Ouray and Ironton. Another toll road was built over Red Mountain Pass from Ironton to Silverton. In the late 1880's Otto Mears turned to building railroads and built the Silverton Railroad north from Silverton over Red Mountain Pass to reach the lucrative mining districts around Red Mountain, terminating at Albany just eight miles south of Ouray. The remaining eight miles were considered too difficult and steep for a railroad. At one point a cog railroad was proposed, but it never made it beyond the planning stage.

In the early 1920's, the original toll road was rebuilt at considerable cost and became the present day US 550. The Million Dollar Highway was completed in 1924. Today the entire route is part of the San Juan Skyway Scenic Byway. "

"The Million Dollar Highway stretches for about 25 miles in western Colorado and follows the route of U.S. 550 between Silverton and Ouray, Colorado. It is part of the San Juan Skyway Scenic Byway. Between Durango and Silverton the Skyway loosely parallels the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad."

Looking south toward Red Mountain Pass.

This section of the route passes over three mountain passes:

Coal Bank Pass, elevation 10,640 ft

Molas Pass, elevation 10,970 ft

Red Mountain Pass, elevation 11,018 ft

The origin of the name Million Dollar Highway is disputed. There are several legends, though, including that it cost a million dollars a mile to build in the 1920s, and that its fill dirt contains a million dollars in gold ore.

and from Wikipedia a really good description:

"U.S. Route 550 though the entire stretch has been called the Million Dollar Highway, but it is really the twelve miles south of Ouray through the Uncompahgre Gorge to the summit of Red Mountain Pass which gains the highway its name. This stretch through the gorge is challenging and potentially hazardous to drive; it is characterized by steep cliffs, narrow lanes, and a lack of guardrails; the ascent of Red Mountain Pass is marked with a number of hairpin "S" curves used to gain elevation, and again, narrow lanes for traffic—many cut directly into the sides of mountains. During this ascent, the remains of the Idarado Mine are visible. Travel south from Ouray to Silverton perches drivers on the vertiginous outside edge of the highway. Large RVs travel in both directions, which adds a degree of excitement (or danger) to people in cars. The road is kept open year-round. Summer temperatures can range from 70-90 degree highs at the ends of the highway to 50-70 degrees in the mountain passes. The snow season starts in October, and snow will often close the road in winter."

Enjoy the slideshow of as many pictures as we have of this terrific riding area; great scenery and lots of thrills. Nice country.