Silverton & Molas Pass (9/25/2016)

It was such a beautiful day and the colors were peaking, so I kept driving south on the Million Dollar Highway.  Going down Red Mountain Pass toward Silverton, the scenery never let up.

Just before reaching Silverton, I turned off on South Mineral Creek Road.  This eight mile road is always scenic and it wouldn't take long to check it out.

As I returned from South Mineral Creek, the mountains around Silverton immediately came into view.

In the town itself, I took photos of the Catholic church and the San Juan County Courthouse with mountains behind them.

After a nice lunch at Thee Pit Barbecue, I headed south again toward Molas Pass.  Just outside of Silverton is a nice overlook that shows how the town is nestled into the valley with mountains all around.

While not a major ski resort, Silverton does have ski slopes on the face of Mount Kendall.

At Molas Pass, several lakes are maintained by the Forest Service for fishing and camping.  Although I am not a fisherman, I really appreciate those who do fish.  The Forest Service provides access to some beautiful spots only because of the great number of fishermen, and we photographers get to share in it.

Molas Pass is just under 11,000 feet in elevation and provides good views of the nearby mountains.

I knew there would be great scenery if I continued driving south, but I wanted to go back and drive over Ophir Pass, which I was sure would be an interesting experience.  That will be the subject of the next travelogue.