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2016 (Our Momma Remembrance) Colorado Trip: Day Four

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Day 4: Friday, October 7, 2016

Friday morning, October 7, saw us packing up, at about 8:30 AM, and leaving our temporary home away from home, the Carbondale/Crystal River KOA Holiday. Shortly thereafter, Doug spotted six to eight wild turkeys along the side of the road. The cottonwoods and aspens in sheltered areas of the Crystal River gorge were still carrying much of their foliage and looked quite pretty. Aspen groves located higher on the mountain slopes of the Elk, of which the Maroon Bells are part of, and West Elk mountain ranges resembled electric gold dandelions, i.e., stripped of their leaves except for their uppermost branches.

We drove south by southwest on Colorado State Route 133, traveling through the Redstone Historic District, for about half an hour. Along the way, this highway, which makes a u-shaped turn near Bogan Flats Campground thus heading northwest for around two miles, climbs rather steeply before reaching McClure Pass where the road turns west by southwest before ending at Colorado Highway 92 in the town of Hotchkiss, a distance of a little over sixty miles. The aspen near the pass still carried an impressive amount of foliage, most of which was at peak color. McClure Pass is a gap on the western side of the Elk Mountains, that separates the headwaters of the Crystal River, to the east, with the headwaters of the North Fork Gunnison River to the west. It was named for Thomas McClure who ran a stage stop in the later part of the 19th Century. Although the pass is not too high, at an elevation of 8,793 feet, it does have an 8% grade on the approaches from both sides. Therefore, although open year round, the notch in the mountains will be closed during periods of heavy snowfall.

On the road again. From Carbondale, we headed south by southwest, along Colorado Highway 133. Destination, the San Juan Mountains.

As soon as we left the narrows of the Crystal River Valley, great views of Mt. Sopris came into sight. Sopris is a twin-summit volcano that never was. This beautiful hunk of rock, which as you can see, carried a significant amount of snow, fell just shy of 13,000 feet (12,965) but was still impressive. It is in the northwestern segment of the Elk Mountains, and though many have considered Sopris to be a volcano, the magma never erupted, rather crystallizing 10,000 feet beneath the surface. Magma from deep within the earth’s crust was injected into the sedimentary layers. The result was a giant igneous dome covered by 10,000 feet of sedimentary rock. Erosion over 34 million years created this beautiful panoramic picture for us in what is known as the Roaring Fork Valley.

That’s a nice shot from CO-133. With Mt. Sopris in the background, and Colorado fall-foliage, though some of the trees had not reached that perfect autumn color, lining the road, this made for a nice photo.

Mt. Sopris, same place, different angle.

A little bird sanctuary on the right side of CO-133. We didn’t have time to stop. Maybe some other time.

Following CO-92 twenty miles west, found us in the city of Delta, a Home Rule Municipality that is, also, the county seat of Delta County. At the turn of the century, or in this case, the millennium, this small waypoint had a population of 6,400. The census of 2010 shows the population had increased to 8,915. Following a population explosion of 88% in the last year, however, the count of citizens in Delta in 2021 is now 31,718. I know a lot of people have been leaving the west coast states of California, Oregon, and Washington for Montana, but I guess a lot of them have moved to Colorado, too.

I’m not sure whether these are part of the Elk or West Elk mountains, but that was a very nice scene, though many of the aspens had already lost their leaves. This picture and the next photos were views to the left, or east side of US-133 as we drove south toward the San Juan’s.
There is some nice fall color, though it could have been better. Unless you live close by, and can literally take a day off and drive to these great fall-foliage destinations in the Rocky Mountains, it is always a matter of hit or miss as to whether you catch them in that just-right moment when the leaves are at their peak color and yet, have not fallen off the trees. And aspen are very fragile, hence the term “quaking aspen,” so it doesn’t take a real heavy wind to defoliate the trees. As we were to find out, a little later in our drive, strong winds had hit the region earlier.
It was a park ranger at the Ridgway State Park, 120 miles southwest of Carbondale, that told us about “gale-force” winds that had swept through the area a couple weeks earlier.

I’m not sure, but that might be Ragged Peak of the Elk Mountains..

I believe that is Chair Mountain, part of the West Elk Range, to the left, while that may be Ragged Peak to the right. They are in the Elk Mountain range to the west of Aspen, Colorado. While the three to four inches of snow that fell the day before melted in the valleys, you can see the mountains retained their fair share of the white stuff.

The Crystal River to the right of the highway. As we drove south on CO-133, you could see the Elk or West Elk Mountains to the left, or east, of the turnpike, while the Crystal ran its northwesterly path to Carbondale along the right side. For the first ten miles or so, the Crystal River ran parallel to US-133 on the left side of the road, at this point, however, we could see the white water of the stream off to our right, and it was just after passing those two snow-covered mountains that I think were Chair and Ragged Peak. We had probably traveled about eleven or twelve miles.
The Crystal River came out of the Elk Mountains southeast of Aspen and flowed northwest till it met up with the Roaring Fork River just below Carbondale.
Same viewpoint of the Elk Mountains, zoomed in.

That’s a nice shot on a beautiful sunny day. With the Chrystal River in the foreground, I believe that is Mt. Sopris, but from a different angle. If I remember correctly, we saw a lot of that iconic peak in the Elk Mountains.
Coming into the town of Delta, a nice little waypoint on our journey south.

We reached the town of Delta, after a drive of about eighty-one miles. From here, we could actually view the towering San Juan Mountains, though they were still some fifty miles away. With the exception of a brief view of these towering peaks, from southern Durango, during a 1995 trip to and back from Grand Canyon National Park, this was my first gaze upon these magnificent pinnacles.

From Delta, we turned onto US-50 E and headed south by southeast toward the distant San Juan Mountains, the second stanza of our 2016 Momma Remembrance Tour. As we traveled south, we could see the majestic, snow-capped San Juan Mountains already looming prominently straight ahead. Cottonwoods in this area were still in the process of transformation but already displayed brilliant shades of yellow and orange. Particularly at lower elevations and in riverine areas, cottonwoods contribute significantly to the great crescendo of fall color in southwestern Colorado. The skies were brilliant blue and utterly cloudless.

First view of the San Juans. Just south of Delta, after turning onto US Highway 50.
That’s a nice cottonwood in the foreground. Some of the trees have changed colors, but as you can see, there are still many that have retained their summer look. Although aspen and cottonwoods can have that same brilliant yellow/golden hue, during the fall, you can tell the difference by their trunks. The aspen have a mottled black and white trunk that is distinctive once you have learned what to look for. Looking to the left, or east, as you traverse US-50, those are the Cimarron Mountains.
The traffic started to pick up as we approached Montrose. Looking south, the San Juan’s loom majestically across the skyline.

It took a little less than half an hour to travel the twenty-two miles from Delta to the county seat of Montrose County. With a population of over 20,000 hearty citizens, this home rule municipality would make a very good base of operations for visiting the northern San Juan Mountains. Montrose even has its own airport, the Montrose Regional Airport, which first opened in the 1940s but was later enhanced and expanded in 1988. Famed aviator and test pilot, Brigadier General Chuck Yeager, who is credited with being the first man to break the sound barrier in level flight, cut the ribbon during the dedication on June 25, 1988. This airport can handle just about any airplane including the 747, under the right conditions, and has connections from coast to coast, including Los Angeles and San Francisco in California along with Charlotte, North Carolina, Newark, New Jersey, Boston, Massachusetts and  New York’s JFK and LaGuardia airports on the eastern side of the United States.

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Approaching Ridgway. Those are the mighty Sneffels, one of many subranges in the San Juan’s, rising in the distance.

Aware that this would be a long day on the road and knowing we would be spending more time on the eastward side of the San Juan Skyway All-American Byway, Doug and I transitioned from US-50, by way of N Townsend Avenue as we passed through Montrose, to US-550, the eastern segment of the San Juan Skyway All-American Scenic Byway. Half an hour later brought us to Ridgway, the upper northeastern point on the famous San Juan Skyway. In Stewart M. Green’s Scenic Driving COLORADO, this is Scenic Drive #23 San Juan Skyway All-American Byway: Durango to Dolores.

Prior to arriving at Ridgway, we made a stop at the Ridgway State Park, just seventeen and a half miles south of Montrose and less than six miles from Ridgway. Although I took many photographs from this nice park just north of the San Juan Mountains, it was the information that we gleamed from the park ranger at the visitor center that was most enlightening.

The Cimarron Mountains. Whereas the Sneffel range lies due south, this range of mountains was east of US Highway 550. The Cimarron Ridge is a high ridge of mountains that runs north to south on the east side of US-550.They are part of the San Juan chain of mountains in the southwestern corner of Colorado. Parts of the ridge can be seen from points along the highway. These photos that I shot were from the Ridgway State Park, which is about six miles north of the town of Ridgway. Courthouse Mountain, which stands at 12,172 feet above sea level is the tallest peak while Chimney Rock (10,958 feet) is famous for its backdrop in the 1969 John Wayne film True Grit. Chimney Rock is considered one of the toughest peaks to climb in Colorado.
The Cimarron Mountains is where Owl Creek Pass, featured in the John Wayne film True Grit, is located. You can see the mountains as you drive down US-50 from Delta.
The Cimarron’s, zoomed in.
I wish we could have gotten closer to the Cimarron Mountains, as you can see there are a lot of aspens in the foreground of this photo taken from the Ridgway State Park, but mother nature had other plans. Oh well, there will be other times.
Another picture of the Cimarron Mountains

These are aspens, at the Ridgway State Park. Note the white with black mottled trunks. Once you know what to look for, it is easy to distinguish these deciduous trees.
From the Ridgway State Park, if you look to the left, or east, of US 550, those mountains are the Cimarron’s. Looking south, however, as this photo depicts, are the Sneffels Range of the San Juan’s. That peak to the immediate left of the tepee lodgepoles is Mt. Sneffels, itself.
That’s Mt. Sneffles to the immediate left of the tepee lodgepoles.
The Sneffels Range is a young, thus rugged range of mountains that form the southern border of Ouray County. Mount Sneffels, at 14,158 feet, is the queen of these towering pinnacles that make up one of the subranges in the San Juan Mountains. 
Part of the Sneffels Range
Another shot of the Sneffels Mountains from Ridgway State Park.
A last shot of the Sneffels from Ridgway State Park. We’ll be seeing them, more up-close and personal at the Dallas Divide.

The town of Ridgway, with a population of a little over 1,100 hearty citizens is a Home Rule Municipality in Ouray County, and is best known as a setting for the 1969 John Wayne movie, True Grit, filmed nearby. The iconic scene where Wayne’s Rooster Cogburn character faced the outlaws, under Robert Duvall’s leadership, was at nearby Owl Creek Pass. I had wanted to visit that place, but inclement weather derailed those plans. Oh well, there will be another time. Until then, if you have not seen the flick, that won the Duke his only Academy Award, I highly recommend catching the film next time it’s on television. It is hard to believe that with all the great movies, Wayne made, and with all of the Oscars that have been awarded, lately, for pure junk, 1970 was the only time that John Wayne received an Academy Award for Best Actor.

From Ridgway, we traveled west by southwest, some twenty-three and a half miles, on Colorado State Highway 62 to the town of Placerville, an unincorporated CDP, or census designated place, which is the northwestern terminus of the famous scenic highway. Along the way we saw some truly spectacular terrain including the jaw-dropping place known as Dallas Divide. I took a few snapshots of this great location, but we had a long trip ahead of us, and I knew we would be back in a couple of days.

Our first view of the Dallas Divide. I took a few snapshots of this great location.
The Sneffels Range at Dallas Divide. I could spend all day there.
A different view from the Dallas Divide.
Although it was a bit late for the best fall-foliage viewing, there was still a lot of nice color as this photo clearly shows.
With plenty of aspen and evergreens to offset the rust-colored, or reddish-brown tint of the scrub oak, this beautiful meadow, with the Sneffels Mountain range serving as a backdrop, makes the perfect painter’s dream.
Another shot from the Dallas Divide.
From Dallas Divide, the Sneffels Range.
The Dallas Divide. I bet that would have been a really good picture at peak fall-color.
Magnificent shot of the Sneffels Range from the Dallas Divide, though a little past its peak.

From Placerville, we headed south on Colorado Highway 145 to the town of Delores, passing Wilson Peak (14,023 feet) and Mt. Wilson, which at 14,252 feet is the second tallest of all the San Juan Mountains. Further south was El Diente Peak, the third tallest pinnacle, at 14,159 feet, in the San Juans. CO-145 initially heads southeastward towards the old mining town of Telluride before turning south and then bending back to the southwest before ending at Delores.

As Doug recorded, “Cottonwoods along the San Miguel River between Placerville and Telluride put on an extra-ordinary display.” As a general rule, when you see a lot of bright yellow trees along a river, it will probably be cottonwoods, as they need a lot of water. Of course, the best way to tell the difference between these two deciduous trees is the bark. The cottonwood has a rough, dark skin, while the aspen’s trunk is mostly smooth and is white with black splotches. Once you’ve seen an aspen up close, you will always know the difference.

The San Miguel River.
There was a lot of nice color along the San Miguel River.
The San Miquel River, a tributary of the Dolores River, is approximately eighty-one miles long and flows northwest, from its source in the San Juan Mountains southeast of Telluride along the southern slope of the Uncompahgre Plateau. It joins the Delores River near the border with Utah.
That’s a beautiful picture. Those trees of color are most likely cottonwoods as they need lots of water and can be found near sources of liquid.

Along the way, we passed Telluride and Rico. as Colorado State Highway 145 goes through the San Miguel Canyon. I’ll let Doug explain it. “The drive from Placerville to the Mountain Village/Telluride junction, via Colorado Hwy. 145, goes through the San Miguel Canyon and is quite picturesque, juxtaposing red rock canyons against a beautiful mountain stream, with a backdrop of aspens, scrub oaks and conifers. Heading south from the Mountain Village/Telluride junction toward the Ophir Loop, Route 145 is even more spectacular. The Ophir Loop Interpretive Site offers a magnificent view into the Lizard Head Wilderness Area, which features three fourteeners: Wilson Peak (14,017 feet), Mount Wilson (14,246 feet) and El Diente (14,159 feet). These peaks are further accentuated by massive, sprawling groves of aspen.“

The mountain slopes surrounding Rico, CO (8,827 feet), a forty-five minute drive from Placerville, that is, if you don’t take the detour into Telluride, had plenty of aspen, but as previously noted, high winds had taken their toll. Doug, who had visited this area in 2007, said the fall color in the area of Colorado-145 between mile markers 34 and 48 as one heads south from Rico toward Dolores was especially nice on that trip. And even further south, between mile markers 26 and 33, aspens still continued to dominate the landscape. As you can see from my photos along the river, I got a few really nice shots, but overall, this stretch did not stick out as being really impressive.

After traversing a little over seventy-three miles from Placerville, we turned east at Delores, a statutory town of a little less than 1,000 people in Montezuma County, onto Colorado 184. And after an additional seventeen and a half miles, we turned left onto Colorado State Route 160 at Mancos, another statutory town in the southwestern corner of Colorado. Traveling eastward for the final twenty-seven miles of our long journey brought us to Durango, and the KOA campground, where we would be spending the next two nights resting. While Montrose, at the top of the San Juan Skyway, makes a great northern base of operations for those wanting to visit the San Juan’s, Durango, with a count of over 56,000 citizens makes a wonderful gateway from the south.

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7 Responses

  1. Douglas Schmittou says:
    06/22/2021 at 10:36 pm

    You mentioned the igneous intrusion beneath Mount Sopris. Here is a bit of volcanic trivia that few people are aware of. “The world’s largest [single volcanic eruption, which formed] La Garita Caldera, occurred in Colorado’s San Juan Mountains about 28 million years ago. . . . The depression left behind, called La Garita Caldera, is about 22 miles wide and 62 miles long—large enough to be seen from space and close to the size of Mineral County, where much of it is located” (https://www.5280.com/2018/08/colorado-by-nature-the-worlds-most-epic-volcanic-eruption/).

    • vols4everus says:
      06/22/2021 at 11:13 pm

      So that’s even bigger than Yellowstone?

      • Douglas Schmittou says:
        06/22/2021 at 11:37 pm

        Yes. “About 16.5 million years ago, an intense period of volcanism initiated near the borders of present-day Nevada, Oregon, and Idaho. Subsequent volcanic eruptions can be traced across southern Idaho towards Yellowstone. This 500-mile trail of more than 100 calderas was created as the North American plate moved in a southwestern direction over a shallow body of magma. About 2.1 million years ago, the movement of the North American plate brought the Yellowstone area closer to the shallow magma body.

        This eruption 2.1 million years ago—among the largest volcanic eruptions known to man—coated 5,790 square miles with ash, as far away as Missouri. The total volcanic material ejected is estimated to have been 6,000 times the volume of material ejected during the 1980 eruption of Mt. St. Helens, in Washington.

        A second significant, though smaller, volcanic eruption occurred within the western edge of the first caldera approximately 1.3 million years ago. The third and most recent massive volcanic eruption 640,000 years ago created the present 30- by 45-mile-wide Yellowstone Caldera.” https://www.nps.gov/yell/learn/nature/volcano.htm#:~:text=The%20Yellowstone%20caldera%20was%20created,is%2030%20x%2045%20miles.

    • vols4everus says:
      08/19/2021 at 1:01 pm

      Thanks. We always thought that Yellowstone was the big “king of volcanoes.” Didn’t know about the San Juans.

  2. Douglas Schmittou says:
    06/22/2021 at 11:29 pm

    Continuing from the same source, “La Garita’s eruption was so impressive that it can’t even be ranked on the modern Volcanic Explosivity Index (VEI). This ranking system, created by the U.S. Geological Survey, is largely based on the volume of material ejected, which geologists estimate by mapping the extent of volcanic rock outcrops in the field. To put it in perspective, the infamous 1980 eruption of Washington’s Mount St. Helens, which ejected about 0.25 cubic miles of material, barely rated a five on the VEI. The eruption that caused La Garita to form discharged more than 1,200 cubic miles of material—so much that volcanologists have suggested that the explosivity index, which increases by a factor of 10 with each whole-number step, needs to be expanded to accommodate its estimated 9.2 ranking.”

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