Back in Montrose, the motor home has been unpacked, cleaned and put into storage, while the mud and dust have been scrubbed from the LRJ. Things got back to normal just in time for a long-awaited visit from my closest cousins. These four siblings, who live in FL, GA, MS and MA, get together every year for a family vacation. It was my great pleasure to host this year's rendezvous in Montrose.
On our first day, we took the scenic route through the adobe hills to Black Canyon of the Gunnison. I've been so many times, and posted lots of photos from there, I didn't even bring a camera this time. After lunch, we headed toward Colorado National Monument, another place I visit often. However, due to road construction at the entrance to the park, we took a detour through adjacent public lands, some of which I had never seen. The canyons there were much like the monument, deep and colorful with interesting formations.
On day two, we drove toward Telluride, again taking the scenic route, driving last Dollar Road until reaching the point where the road is still closed due to snow, then dropping down onto the highway in the Village of Sawpit. Along the way, a cow elk crossed in front of us, then stood at a safe distance and watched us carefully before trotting over the ridge. (Later that day, we spotted four bull elk across the canyon from us, too far for a photo.)
Another scenic route through the Ilium Valley took us by America's first Alternating Current generating station, still providing power to folks in that valley after 125 years. Unfortunately, the waterfalls I wanted to show off were inaccessible due to snow on the road. However, we kept trying and found our way to Trout Lake, still mostly frozen and snow-covered. The old railroad trestle was a challenge to reach, but we persisted and managed to get there without getting stuck in the snow.
Next we took a ride through Mountain Village, admiring the beautiful homes, hotels and other buildings. By now it was snowing lightly, so we drove into Telluride and a glimpse of the famous powerhouse on the cliff and the frozen Bridal Veil Falls, 365 feet tall. Also, Ingram Falls is nothing but ice streaming down the mountain.
The third day was the first sunny day of the week, truly a beautiful day for driving the "Million Dollar Highway". We passed through Ouray very early in the day, noticing that many shops had not opened for the season. I think my guests enjoyed the scenery along the road and the stops we made for closer views of Bear Creek Falls, Red Mountain Creek, the Idarado and Yankee Girl mines and Crystal Lake. You'd never guess these were the three famous Red Mountains, since all the red rock was hidden by snow.
The South Mineral Creek Valley looked completely different than normal, with no campers in the several campgrounds and the Clear Lake Road closed by snow. The creek was flowing strongly, however, and the beaver ponds were full.
By-passing Silverton for the moment, we went to Molas Pass and enjoyed the grand scenery there.
Pulling off the highway above Silverton, we had a great view of the town below, sitting in the caldera of a long-extinct volcano. We were there the day before the Durango-Silverton train started operating for the season, which meant that quite a few shops were also not open for the season. We also found the road to Velocity Basin was impassable, so we had lunch and walked around town before driving to Animas Forks, the best ghost town in the area.
While the road to Animas Forks was technically open, there was enough snow on it to make it interesting. Most of the waterfalls in the Animas River were flowing well, but a few had serious icicles.
All in all, despite snow and closed roads, I think my cousins had a great experience seeing this part of the country. I've suggested the next visit should be in the fall so they can enjoy the golden aspen trees.
