Pagosa Springs is located in Southern Colorado in the San Juan Mountains at about 7,000 feet elevation. Overall, for Colorado, it has a milder climate because it’s just north of New Mexico, has over 300 days per year of sunshine and is located west of the continental divide.
Ouray was established by gold and silver miners around 1875. Gold and silver was extracted from these rugged and colorful mountains. The mountain sides show remnants of the miners tailings and dilapidated buildings. Now the area is all about tourism. Ice climbing, hiking, mountain biking, and miles of Jeep trails in the San Juan Mountains offer stunning views and remoteness. Ouray is about an hour drive south of Montrose.
Fruita was our first stop after leaving Flaming Gorge, Utah to see the Colorado National Monument. The area is desert on the high Colorado Plateau with steep walled canyons of rock and sandstone surrounded by juniper and pinyon forests.
Flaming Gorge was named by John Wesley Powell during his expedition down the Green River in 1869 because of the spectacular red sandstone cliffs that are adjacent to the river.
Lamar Valley from West Yellowstone is over a 2 hour drive one way. There are plenty of sights along the way, but the trip makes for a long day. In the past we’ve stayed in Gardiner, which is the north entrance and so much closer. The Park Headquarters, provisions, and a restaurant are located in Mammoth. In 1872, Yellowstone became our first National Park. Lamar Valley is where there are huge herds of bison. Sometimes wolves and grizzly can be seen, but to the naked eye, they are usually just specs in the distance.
West Yellowstone in the fall is typically not very crowded and a great time to see fall foliage and Yellowstone’s numerous attractions. The risk is cold weather and snow. Which, we had on this trip. Probably because of COVID, people aren’t traveling much outside of the USA and traveling local instead, so there were more people than usual. Animals are getting ready for winter, putting on their winter weight and coats.
