Ouray, CO - Day 2

Saturday, September 18

Yesterday we rented a 4x4 Jeep Rubicon from Switzerland of America in Ouray and had the whole day today to ride the trails, explore old mining towns in the area and experience the beauty and the thrill of the “Million Dollar Highway.” The rental company warned us that the trails would be busy this weekend, so Andi and I decided to get a jump on riding early this morning to hopefully get ahead of the traffic.

Getting the kids out the door by 7:30am wasn’t easy. Tory was literally in tears as we left the RV this morning because she was so tired. (By the way, we were in bed by 9:00pm last night.) On top of the crying, I accidentally smashed my full water bottle between car door and the frame causing it to crack and spill water everywhere. Once we got on the road though, everyone’s spirits lifted.

Andi and I were bummed to hear that the stretch of highway connecting the towns of Ouray and Silverton — nicknamed the Million Dollar Highway — was closed for maintenance this month. There are certain windows of time throughout the day when the highway opens to let traffic through, but we didn’t feel like messing around with all that logistics. Because of this, Andi and I decided to change our travel plans and skip visiting the town of Silverton altogether. We were kinda bummed!

But, then we learned the Million Dollar Highway opens up on the weekends and driving a Jeep (vs. a 24-ft RV) would be the perfect way to experience it. From our campground in Ouray, we drove south on Highway 550 admiring the breathtaking views and solitude of the drive. There were only a handful of cars on the road with us early in the morning.

About eight miles south of Ouray, Andi turned off the Million Dollar Highway and onto Corkscrew Road to follow a 4x4 off-road trail called the Alpine Loop. Right away, the canyon-clinging roadway climbed higher up the mountain following switchback after switchback. Vegetation quickly changed from aspen and pine trees to sub-alpine forest. The air temperature dropped, too! It was 34 degrees at the top when we stopped to admire the view.

Andi did a great job navigating the rocky, bumpy trail as we continued to ascent to Hurricane Pass at 12,700 ft. elevation. We enjoyed seeing all the abandoned mining structures along the trail — evidence of a different time for these mountains which were once home to prospectors.

We continued to follow the Alpine Loop trail to the now-ghost town of Animas Forks. In 1876, Animas Forks was a bustling mining community with over 30 cabins, a saloon, a post office and a general store. By 1910, most of the mining had stopped in the area, causing its residents to leave the town behind. Today, all that remains are a few run-down buildings including the jail.

Next, we continued on about 12 miles to the town of Silverton, CO. I was really glad we were able to visit this town after all. Silverton is a old mining town that “made it,” rich with history. There are dozens of historic buildings, as well as modern-day shops and restaurants.

We decided to check out the impressively large Silverton Museum to learn more about the area’s history. The first part of our tour led us through the old county jail which was state-of-the-art back in its day. Tory and Aden had fun pretending they were locked up in the cells.

Next, we wandered through a large gemstone collection in the basement level which was a highlight for our rock-loving daughter. Then, we walked through the museum’s huge collection of mining memorabilia. It would easily have taken the entire day to view the impressive collection of history on display in that museum.

Of course, we were getting hungry for lunch by now so we walked along Silverton’s Main Street until we decided on a restaurant called Handlebars. The decor was a little kitschy for our tastes, but the online reviews about their food were good. For lunch, Andi and I agreed to split a burger and the chicken pot pie meals, Tory also ordered a burger and Aden had chicken nuggets. Our service was great at Handlebars and all the decorations on the wall gave us something to talk about.

From Silverton, we followed another off-road trail called Yankee Boy Basin and eventually made our way back to Ouray.

Since we had a car until 5:00pm, Andi decided to take us to the Box Canyon Falls park to see the 85-ft waterfall there. Once we paid the admission fee, there was an easy walk along a gravel trail to the canyon. It felt kind of lack-luster, but was neat to see. I bet the water is ripping in the spring time.

We considered going for another hike, but I think we were all done after a day of adventuring. From Boy Canyon, Andi drove us to the Amphitheater Campground to pick up the RV and drive it into the town of Ouray. From there, he and Aden went to return the Jeep, stopping by the car wash and gas station first, while Tory and I waited in the RV. Then, when the boys retuned, we all drove back to the campground in the RV for the night. We grilled burgers (again) and hung out there for the rest of the evening.

Tomorrow, we’re heading to the nearby town of Ridgway.