We woke up today in Ouray, CO to a little bit of a surprise – it was snowing! A far cry from the 80+ we had yesterday. We sort of knew going in that we were going to have one dreary day, but the big fear was going below freezing, in which case the RV pipes could burst. I think we lucked out, barely, with temperatures hovering around 31 over night.
We got out of the campsite at the crack of 9:30 and headed toward Red Mountain Pass. Now a bit of history on Red Mountain Pass… it runs between Ouray and Silverton and is one of the most scenic twisty turny stretches of highway in all of Colorado – dubbed the Million Dollar Highway, partially because of its spectacular views.
I have been looking forward to this stretch of highway the entire trip because, for those of you who have known me for at least 10 years, when I did my 505 mile bike ride through Colorado, this 10-mile stretch is the only part I sagged – in part because I had altitude sickness and was coughing up fluid, but also because it was pouring rain, cold, and I figured I would die if I went up the pass. I’ve been trying to get back to see that 10 mile stretch for years.
Now back to our vacation. We left Ouray and headed to the Mountain only to be greeted by signs requiring snow tires, chains, etc. This pass is brutal and we were not feeling too comfortable about going over it in a 31’ Rig with regular tires in snow and fog. About a mile or so up, we pulled over, called the Colorado Bureau of Roads, and ultimately decided to turn around and do a 1 hour detour and completely go around the mountains instead of over them. A smart “parental” move, but alas, the million dollar highway has eluded me yet again.
With this big detour eating a chunk of our morning up, we were getting a bit stir crazy on our way to Mesa Verde, but I have to say that once again, the scenery did not disappoint. Rivers winding next to the highway, mountains, buttes – I do love Colorado. Unfortunately, another long car ride meant that the kids retreated to their respective corners and vegged out once again.
We finally made it to Mesa Verde around 2:30pm. If you’ve never heard of Mesa Verde – it is a whole area where archaeologists have found Native American settlements from fifteen hundred to eight hundred years ago – many of them built into the sides of cliffs. Very cool overall – but it was still snowing and a little chilly out so we mostly jumped out of haRVey for pictures and kept moving.
Left Mesa Verde and headed to Four Corners – where CO, UT, NM and AZ all meet. It is literally in the middle of a Native American reservation with NOTHING for miles all around. We pulled up around 6pm and saw that the gates were closed with “sorry we’re closed” signs. No way did we just drive 2 hours out of the way for one stinking picture and the park closed an hour earlier. Yes, this is totally reminiscent of the Griswalds, as is what comes next.
NOTE: Damon edited the original copy of what I wrote here and will not let me provide you the details of what happened next, but suffice to say, the kids and I made it to the four corners monument to take pictures. For details, see pictures. We will neither confirm nor deny where or when the pictures were taken.
Back in the RV, very pleased with ourselves, we began the final leg of the day to Moab. Pulled over in some random parking lot to cook another awesome RV meal. With country music our only option, the girls started square dancing in the "living room" which Lauren dubbed "our white trash party".
Now, I’m sitting in bed at the KOA in Moab while every one else sleeps making sure that I have a posting ready for you in the morning! Everyone is looking forward to Arches National Park tomorrow.
Quote of the Day:
Tyler – So can I take my pants off now? (Upon leaving dinner and being told it was our last stop before camping for the night).
Pictures will be posted within the hour...
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