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In the early hours of June 20th Clyde and I began a cross country drive from Missouri to Southern California and back to attend a surprise birthday party for a favorite Uncle. We both enjoy driving to new places in the United States so it was an easy decision for us. This was going to be a great way to see many of the National Parks in Colorado, Utah, Nevada, Arizona and California.
I had driven to California and back as a kid during our family vacations but don’t remember all the details. Clyde had driven cross country to Las Vegas as a young teenager with his Dad but there were not many chances to stop during that trek. I guess you could say we were both excited to hit the road!
Kansas storms coming
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We set out in the morning for Colorado Springs through Kansas on I-70 as our first stop over.
We viewed miles and miles of cattle and open range going through all of Kansas and the first part of Colorado.
During our trip it seemed the scenery and terrain changed every four hours or so.
Colorado, east of Colorado Springs
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Our plans for the second day in Colorado were to see the Black Canyon of the Gunnison then drive south from Montrose CO and Ouray on the very scenic Million Dollar Highway also known as hwy 550 through Silverton and then spend the night in Durango, Colorado. Leaving out of Colorado Springs tuesday morning we chose the more scenic route to get to the Canyon.
North of Colorado Springs we took hwy 24 w to hwy 285 s down to Salida then catching hwy 50 w to the park entrance. What a beautiful and scenic ride it was!
The Black Canyon was very impressive with its deep black canyon and along with the morning drive, well worth the stop.
Black Canyon of the Gunnison, Colorado
Black Canyon of the Gunnison
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After we left the Canyon we headed south on hwy 550 towards Ouray, Colorado. My Brother had told us hwy 550 from Ouray thru Silverton to Durango was a beautiful ride so we didn’t want to miss it. There is the famous Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad Train which goes North from Durango to Silverton, CO and back each day.
South of Ouray Colorado on hwy 550
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Beautiful is not strong enough a description, it was a spectacular white knuckle ride through those mountains without railings!
What a gorgeous part of Colorado which we will certainly drive through again.
North of Silverton Colorado on hwy 550
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We drove in to Durango about 8pm, grabbed a bite to eat and had a look around the old downtown area.
What a great little town Durango is, we would love to have stayed there a little longer. Next time we will stay in one of the older historic hotels like the Strater or the General Palmer Hotel. But the next morning we were heading to Mesa Verde National Park in southwest Colorado on our way to Monument Valley Utah.
