I fell in love with Colorado when Sam and I went last August for our Anniversary, so I decided to drive the San Juan Skyway this time around and see where it took me. I didn't really have a plan of what I wanted to do or where I wanted to go...I just wanted to drive and play it by ear and take it all in.
Soundtrack:
I left early in the morning, equipped with enough bug spray for an army (I didn't have to learn that lesson twice) and an actual paper map just in case my GPS failed me...which it usually does and did. Within a few hours, I was officially in Colorado and the barren, brown rock turned into green fluffy foliage. I passed half a dozen tiny mining towns abuzz with activity. Every so often, I'd find a trail head too enticing to pass up, and would wander in to see what I could find. (Bear with me...I still haven't replaced my digital camera, so all of these pics were taken with my phone and therefore not the best. Also, there are 5 million pictures in this post...precisely why I started a blog in the first place :) )
As I hiked along, I could hear the thunder closing in around me and the sky grew darker. Within seconds, it began pouring rain and I withdrew to the car to explore dirt roads and get in a little 4x4 action.
Before I knew it, I was winding up the pass towards Telluride...a big item to see on my checklist. The farther along I went, the more beautiful it became.
And finally, Mountain Village :)
 |
| I always have to check out the local Fire Station :) |
Then, once the sun poked back out, it was back to hiking for me :)
That evening, I drove to Ouray to grab a bite to eat and find a spot to crash for the night. The drive was spectacular.
I found a road just past town that went to the Box Canyon Waterfall (the first spot I've found where I got a little bit of vertigo while looking down), followed it in a few miles until I found a little nook just perfect for parking in, and set up my little fort in the back of my car. On the way, I passed this little guy:
Knowing that his mom wasn't far away was a tad unnerving, but I was thankful that I was safe and cozy in my car. It rained all night and into the morning, so after one of the best nights of sleep I've ever had, I snuggled up in my covers and took in the surroundings while waiting for it to warm up a couple of degrees.
I drove into Telluride for coffee but town was crazy for the 4th of July festivities, so once the clouds cleared up a little, I made my way towards Bridal Veil Falls. I'd read that you could drive all the way up if you had a high-clearance vehicle and 4-wheel drive, so I started up the mountain until I reached a spot where a huge waterfall crossed the road and I had to drive through it. I started across slowly and felt myself sinking into the loose gravel, so decided it was best to just park there and make the rest of the journey on foot. I'm glad I did because the views were awesome and I may have missed some of it if I was distracted trying to drive on the narrow road.
On my way back down, I noticed an old abandoned mine and had to check it out. But first, I had to cross this sketchy looking bridge (btw, second case of vertigo in 24 hrs)...
I couldn't resist peeking through the metal gate when I heard water and felt the ice cold breeze coming out of the mine. I have to admit, I was kind of creeped out. Very cool though :)
After my little excursion, I drove back into town for a late lunch/early dinner and made it out just in time for more torrential downpour. I made my way down another dirt road to nowhere and got a solid 10 hours of sleep that night.
The next day, I had planned on renting a mountain bike and taking to the trails on Telluride Mountain, but once again was met with rain. I pictured myself stuck up to my waist in mud, being struck by lightening, lost on the back side of a mountain and eaten by a bear before freezing to death, and opted to just grab breakfast, sip hot cocoa, explore town, and ride the gondola (which on the 4th had a line 3 blocks long but on the 5th was totally empty) up to Mountain Village for another look around. I think I made the right choice :)
That afternoon, I decided to hit the road once again and explore Ouray a little bit more. I even did a silver mine tour which was really fun...I turn into a 7-year old with stuff like that :)
Then, I continued driving along my route headed towards Silverton and saw some pretty cool stuff along the way.
Pretty much anytime I saw a dirt road take off to the right, I took it just to see where it'd go. One of the roads was super narrow and was eroding by the second thanks to another raging waterfall crossing it's path. There was no way I could turn around or back out, so I just hugged the mountain side as tightly as I could and floored it to get across (and made it, thank goodness). I kept picturing swift-water rescues and how embarrassing it would be if I even lived to tell about it, because the water would just "swift" me right off of the cliff to certain death. Anyway, I'm probably exaggerating, but it was scary, ok? ;)
I even saw a couple of moose!
Once I got to Silverton, I followed all of the Jeeps to some awesome off-roading spots just past town.
It didn't take me long at all to stake my claim to the perfect little campsite right next to the creek
 |
| I had to check this place out in honor of Sam :) |
Later, I headed back into town, wandered through the shops and bought the fellas a couple of souvenirs, grabbed some enchiladas, and fell asleep looking at the clearest sky with the most stars I think I've ever seen in my life.
The last day of my trip was pretty much just driving home...through Durango, into New Mexico, back into Arizona where I felt like Mad Max on Fury Road...nothing but rock and dust for as far as the eye could see and rolling through crazy storms that you could see from miles away.
I made it in record time, stopped for take-out on my way home, took a long hot shower, cozied up and watched a Western with Sam...it doesn't get much better than that ;)