Scenes Along 4 Wheel Drive Roads in the Ouray, Silverton and Telluride Areas of Colorado, Part 1

In late July, 2018 my oldest son and I traveled a number of four wheel drive roads over high mountain passes in Colorado near the towns of Ouray, Silverton and Telluride.  My son did the driving, I just hung on for dear life.

All of the photos in this post (part 1) were shot with an iPhone with some editing in Lightroom.

My son used a GoPro attached to the driver’s side front fender of his Jeep to capture video along some of the drives.  Edited versions of those videos are posted on U-Tube:

Ophir Pass, Imogene Pass, California Pass/Hurricane Pass/Corkscrew Gulch and Engineer Pass.

The videos may make the rides look fairly smooth and fast.  Trust me the roads could not be traversed very quickly and the ride was very bouncy.

In a previous post I shared photos taken in Yankee Boy Basin.  Continuing up the 4 wheel road past those photo areas, the road leads to a lake and a trail head popular with hardy, mountain hikers.

A small lake at the end of the Yankee Boy Basin 4 wheel drive road near Ouray, Colorado (iPhone photo)
A portion of the lake at the end of the Yankee Boy Basin 4 wheel drive road and a mountain peak in the background. (iPhone photo)

Many, maybe all, of the 4 wheel drive roads over these mountain passes were made by miners, during the exploration phase and production phase of mining operations.  There are remains of many abandoned mines visible from these roadways and there are some active mines, as well.

An abandoned mine along the Yankee Boy Basin 4 wheel drive road (iPhone photo)

One may encounter much wildlife along these roadways and almost anywhere in this area.  We saw numerous deer and many marmots.  Marmots are usually rather shy and run away as anyone approaches them either on foot or in a vehicle.  But one little marmot only gave up its ground hesitantly, moving only a short distance away several times as I intruded into its space, while trying to get a shot of a really long water fall.

A not so shy marmot.  The depth of field in this shot is very shallow.  The rock just above the marmot is actually across a deep ravine, through which a stream flows down the mountainside. (iPhone photo)

The marmot was lounging near a very scenic waterfall and cascade with a great view across a valley and mountain tops.  Maybe that is why it was so reluctant to move away as I approached.

Low water flow in this really long waterfall and cascade along which the marmot was lounging. (iPhone photo)
The marmot’s view into the valley and across the mountain peaks (iPhone photo)

There are many small lakes in the mountains that are popular with fishermen and popular places to camp, although the mosquitoes can be quite a bother.

Clear Lake and Fishermen at the end of Clear Lake 4 wheel drive road near Silverton, Colorado (iPhone photo)

The mountains at these elevations are rugged and continually eroding.

Rugged, eroding mountainside above Clear Lake (iPhone)

Wildflowers were past their peak, but there were still quite a few scattered around.

Wildflowers in the meadow around Clear Lake (iPhone)
Wildflower and a busy bumble bee near Clear Lake (iPhone)
A few of the remaining wild flowers near Clear Lake (iPhone)

(To be continued in Part 2).

 

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