June 28, 2010
Darn, it’s Monday and time to go back to work. NOT! But we did have to work a little to break camp and head north. Our ultimate destination is Gunnison, CO today, with stops in Silverton and Ouray.
The highway from Durango to Ouray is called the Million Dollar Highway. Not much money in today’s terms, but when it was built in the early 1950’s, it was a huge sum. There’s something about driving a winding, narrow, two-lane road with very few guard rails up and down mountains in the 10-11,000 ft. elevation that makes me a little queasy. I couldn’t take my eyes off the road very often, and I hugged the yellow centerline when I could see no traffic in the other lane. Another day of amazing natural beauty. Another attraction is viewing the remnants of the mining heydays. Mining was/is such a major economic engine in Colorado – but before there was attention paid to the environmental impact of this industry, much damage was done. However, it is encouraging now to see the extent of the reclamation efforts that are underway.
It just so happens that lunch time found us in Ouray, and it just so happens we came across O’Brien’s, another Irish Pub and Restaurant that lured us in with good food and World Cup Soccer on the screens – Brazil pummeled Chile as we enjoyed the fare.
When you consider the back-breaking work that was necessary to build the roads, highways, railways, and mines, and the state of available technology and equipment back in the day, the results are almost unbelievable. Those were some tough hombres that labored to make this all happen – we are truly wimps in comparison.
We had hoped to find some nice campsites in the area of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison, but little did we realize that we would once again be in dessert-like conditions with a scarcity of trees. The day was getting late, so we drove on in to Gunnison and found a neat 50s era motel called the Island Acres Resort – a holdover from the days when Highway 50 was as active as Route 66. Doesn’t have all the amenities but it feels just right – a log cabin type Mom and Pop place with a nice screen porch on front. And made even more hospitable by Tyler, the man-in-charge. Tyler is a transplant from New Hampshire and a recent graduate (Business and Accounting) of Western State College here in Gunnison. Like many other new graduates in today’s economy, he is job searching, but in the meantime is staying in the area and running the motel (and is doing a fine job).
June 28, 2010
Darn, it’s Monday and time to go back to work. NOT! But we did have to work a little to break camp and head north. Our ultimate destination is Gunnison, CO today, with stops in Silverton and Ouray.
The highway from Durango to Ouray is called the Million Dollar Highway. Not much money in today’s terms, but when it was built in the early 1950’s, it was a huge sum. There’s something about driving a winding, narrow, two-lane road with very few guard rails up and down mountains in the 10-11,000 ft. elevation that makes me a little queasy. I couldn’t take my eyes off the road very often, and I hugged the yellow centerline when I could see no traffic in the other lane. Another day of amazing natural beauty. Another attraction is viewing the remnants of the mining heydays. Mining was/is such a major economic engine in Colorado – but before there was attention paid to the environmental impact of this industry, much damage was done. However, it is encouraging now to see the extent of the reclamation efforts that are underway.
It just so happens that lunch time found us in Ouray, and it just so happens we came across O’Brien’s, another Irish Pub and Restaurant that lured us in with good food and World Cup Soccer on the screens – Brazil pummeled Chile as we enjoyed the fare.
When you consider the back-breaking work that was necessary to build the roads, highways, railways, and mines, and the state of available technology and equipment back in the day, the results are almost unbelievable. Those were some tough hombres that labored to make this all happen – we are truly wimps in comparison.
We had hoped to find some nice campsites in the area of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison, but little did we realize that we would once again be in dessert-like conditions with a scarcity of trees. The day was getting late, so we drove on in to Gunnison and found a neat 50s era motel called the Island Acres Resort – a holdover from the days when Highway 50 was as active as Route 66. Doesn’t have all the amenities but it feels just right – a log cabin type Mom and Pop place with a nice screen porch on front. And made even more hospitable by Tyler, the man-in-charge. Tyler is a transplant from New Hampshire and a recent graduate (Business and Accounting) of Western State College here in Gunnison. Like many other new graduates in today’s economy, he is job searching, but in the meantime is staying in the area and running the motel (and is doing a fine job).
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