The tonic of the wilderness is waiting for you on one of America’s greatest driving adventures—the San Juan Skyway in Southwest Colorado.

The San Juan Skyway is a 236-mile loop through the most sublime scenery Colorado has to offer. The drive takes you through sage-littered plains up vibrant river valleys to lofty peaks streaked with snow, and tops out at glacier cirques at 11,500 feet. My mission: Hike and horseback ride around this historic byway making stops at Mesa Verde, Telluride, Ouray, and Silverton.

A whistle blast from the Durango-Silverton steam engine sounded and I was off on the first leg of the journey. This train has chugged up the rugged Animas Canyon at twenty miles an hour for the past 130 years. Most passengers will do the 90-mile round trip to Silverton, but I planned to hop off the train with other hikers at Needleton (9,000 ft) to explore the pristine Weminuche Wilderness.

Two hours into the canyon, the train stopped where trails radiate deep into the mountains. Backpackers headed for Chicago Basin on a steady bun-burning climb. I opted for a day hike on the Purgatory trail that sticks close to the Animas River. The train is an effortless way to get into the heart of the roadless wilderness where you can stroll, hike, or just enjoy a picnic. You just have to remember to be back by 4:00 p.m. to catch your train ride back to Durango!

Hollywood discovered Durango in the ’50s. Western heroes like John Wayne and Jimmy Stewart found historic downtown Durango’s Rochester Hotel to be a good place to hang their six-gallon hats while filming. After a country breakfast in the cozy dining room of the Rochester, I was off to Mancos to hook up with Rimrock Outfitters. Owner Lynn Lewis loves nothing more than riding out her back door through high country meadows brightened by swaths of yellow rabbit brush to lodge pole pine forests of the La Plata Mountains overlooking Mesa Verde.

A couple of cowboys looking for stray “doggies” stumbled upon what some consider to be the most significant archeological site in North America in the 1880’s. The entrance to Mesa Verde National Park is six miles up Highway 160 from Mancos, and another snaking fifteen miles to the top of the mesa. Complex dwellings built by indigenous peoples from 900-1250 AD are scattered throughout the canyons of the expansive mesa. Spend a night at the Far View Lodge in the park and have your own cliff dwelling overlooking the vast Colorado Plateau. The Metate Room enjoys this view as well, and boasts fresh local ingredients and Southwest seasonings in gourmet offerings. After taking a tour of the Cliff Palace, check out the Spruce Tree House and the museum, and hike on the Petroglyph Trail for a more personal experience of the canyons held sacred to the amazing people who called them home.

The stretch of the Skyway up the verdant Dolores River corridor was once a route for the Ute Indians to their summer hunting grounds. It ascends to Lizard Head Pass past alluring Trout Lake to overlook three majestic “forteeners” that dominate the scene. You drive under the stern face of Ophir peaks and then begin the glide down to Telluride—famous for its many festivals and black diamond ski runs. The mountains surrounding the town are honeycombed with tunnels built by miners during the gold rush in the late 1800s. A 4x4 trip to the Tomboy Mine perched at the top of the box canyon above gushing Bridal Veil Falls is a popular outing.

Josh, owner of San Juan Adventure School, drove us up a rocky jeep trail overlooking San Miguel Park to meet our trailhead. The
undulating path meandered through groves of aspen just beginning to turn gold. Josh picked a few wild raspberries for me to try. He pointed to mighty Mt. Wilson (14,000 ft) in the distance where he guides advanced climbers to the top. The trail deposited us near my lodging at the Aspen Tree Inn located a block away from the gondola station. Guests can enjoy a free lift to the Mountain Village and the trailhead to the River Walk, a delightful three-mile, easy amble into the mountain park.

The head-spinning stretch of the Skyway between Telluride and Ouray traces an energetic river lined with willows. I pulled over at the Dallas Divide unable to pass by the breathtaking sweep of rust-colored grasses at the base of pine-clad peaks, and breathed deeply of a scene out of our vanishing American Heritage before heading on to the healing waters at Orvis Hot Springs.

With a sigh I settled into the steaming waters at Orvis Hot Springs, six miles outside of Ouray. An elaborate garden of eight mineral pools with temps ranging from 99-106 await the weary traveler. My next restorative measure was to stop at Ouray Massage Therapy where owner, BJ, gave me a masterful “Mountain High “ massage. Later that night at the Secret Gardens B & B, I drifted asleep to the soothing sound of the Uncompahgre River that flows nearby.

The picturesque hamlet of Ouray, framed in an amphitheater of rock, invites the traveler to stay awhile. A favorite pastime is “benching it” on Main Street and enjoying an ice cream while watching visitors stroll by. The four-mile Perimeter Trail wraps the town and affords fantastic views of surrounding peaks, as well as Cascade and Box Canyon Falls.

The best way to explore this soul-stirring scenery is on the back of a good horse. Fencepost, an old-time cowhand, had Bluebell tacked and ready to ride when I arrived at Bach’lers Stables. He led the way on his steady mule as we clambered higher and higher up rocky switchbacks. We crested a ridge with a heart-pounding view of the Uncompahgre River Valley—a patchwork of green pastures framed in gallant spires.

The Million Dollar Highway, an engineering marvel blasted out of rock through Red Mountain Pass, takes you to Silverton. A white-knuckler for some, I found it to be a well-maintained byway through alpine splendor. Ironton, a mining ghost town along the way to Silverton is worth a stop with easy trails to explore.

During the gold rush, Silverton, resting in a caldera at 9,600 feet, was the boisterous mining capital of the tumultuous San Juans—famous for its gunfights and brothels. Today, it is a gateway to outdoor adventure. A 4x4 jeep tour with San Juan Outback up precipitous mining roads is a great way to go. We bounced up a rutted, rock-strewn road past sparkling cascades to views of mountains spreading to eternity. When we arrived at our destination, Clear Lake, a transparent body of water at 11,500 feet mirroring red barren slopes, it was summer—in September! A profusion of flowers and shrubs, including a rare burgundy paintbrush, lined the shore. Our explorations ended when clouds swarmed in and rain began to fall. Soon, the shops in Silverton would be shuttered and closed for a long winter’s nap. After a quick stop at the Pitt for a belly full of the best ribs on the western slope, I high-tailed it back to Durango, just an hour south, where the sun was shining in bluebird skies. 

Linda Ballou is an avid adventurer who published her first travel article more than 10 years ago. She’s also penned two books: Wai-nani, High Chiefess of Hawai’i: Her Epic Journey and the award-winning Lost Angel Walkabout: One Traveler’s Tales. You can read more about her at www.lindaballouauthor.com

Note: Altitude is an issue for most visitors to this lofty realm. Drink lots of water and take it easy on your first couple of days. According to some studies Ginkgo Biloba is an effective deterrent of altitude or mountain sickness. However, I found the prescription drug Diamox is the most effective. For more information go to www.altitudemedicine.org