This ride is an excerpt from my motorcycle travel book “25 Greatest Motorcycle Rides” which can be found online at www.southwestmotorcyclerides.com .  Enjoy the links and the information.

It is the time of the year to head up to the 4 Corners Rally.  With all that has been going on, I don’t even know if that is the proper name or not, but I think most readers will know what I am talking about.  This area of the country rightly stands as one of the premier motorcycle destinations in the country.  Fabulous mountains and good roads make for awesome motorcycle riding.  Plus there is the neat town of Durango, Colorado, which has always been a favorite of mine, since my early skiing days. See http://www.durango.org/ and http://www.godurango.com/   to get you started if you have never visited here.  Suffice it to say, Durango is a fun town with lots to see and do.

Once you tear yourself away from all the charms of Durango, it is time to roll the power on and see some of the Million Dollar Highway, and the San Juan mountains.  Sites to visit:  http://www.members.aol.com/cmorhiker2/backpack/MillionHwy.html and http://www.sangres.com/mountains/sanjuans.htm   Rumble north out of Durango on US 550.  At first you will travel up the Animas River valley, but soon you are going up.  On your left out about 20 miles is what used to be Purgatory Ski Resort.  Now it is called Durango Mountain Resort. http://www.durangomountainresort.com/     I have been skiing Purgatory for 30 years.  To me, it will always be Purgatory! 

            You will travel approximately 75 miles total on this road.  And what a 75 miles it is!  This is probably one of my all time favorite stretches of country ANYWHERE!  You roll over Coal Bank Hill Pass and then Molas Divide, both almost 11,000 feet high, dropping down then into Silverton.  Tourist trap yes, fun yes, historic yes.  See http://www.silverton.org   Founded from the mining booms of the late 1800’s, perched at over 9300 feet, this entire town is a National Historic Landmark! 

            For eating I recommend Handlebars Food & Saloon. http://www.handlebarsco.com/restaurant1.htm   Excellent steaks and buffalo burgers in a great atmosphere.  I have never stayed in Silverton, but there look to be several good B&Bs in town.  Check out the web site for more info http://www.silverton.org/eatstay.html#lodging.   If you are going to camp there are several RV type places, but remember if you are tenting, it gets cold up here at night even in the summer.  I would suggest a rustic cabin as a better choice.

            On to Ouray!  23 miles takes us to scenic Ouray.  In my opinion the most “Alp-like” of any of the towns.  The mountains literally surround you on all sides.  Locals joke that it takes an hour longer for the sun to hit the town than it does to hit the surrounding peaks.  Ouray again was a mining town that turned to tourism after the boom went bust.  Known as the “Jeep Capitol of the World” for the many Jeep tours and Jeeps that can be rented here.  Only the adventurous need apply.  Ouray also has a great hot springs named what else, Ouray Hot Springs Pool!  A website about Ouray is: http://www.ouraycolorado.com/ For a listing of a half dozen first-rate B&B’s see http://www.colorado-bnb.com/ouray   I have eaten at Cecilia’s on main street which features good home-style cooking.  The Outlaw Restaurant & Mountain Cookout has as its claim to fame John Wayne’s hat!  They do have some fine steaks also.

            Leaving Ouray we say goodbye to the majestic peaks and start down the canyon to Ridgeway.  Here you can continue to head north further into Colorado or turn left on State 62 for 23 miles to Placerville.  From here it is about 90 miles back to Cortez on State 145 south.  Along the way you will pass by the turnoff going to Telluride another of my ski favorites.  See http://www.telluride.org  and http://www.telluride.com/index.cfm for more knowledge of the area.

            This ride ends back at Cortez, but not before it has completely taken your breath away with fabulous views and pristine alpine country traveling.

            A nice side trip if you have the time is down to see the “other” railroad named the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad.  Their web site can be found at, http://www.cumbrestoltec.com.  and their toll free number is, 1-888-286-2737.  The railroad goes over 10,015 foot Cumbres Pass, and therefore is only open from May 26^th to October 21^st.   This is the fourth railroad in the southwest area of the United States that is both very scenic and historic.  The other three have already been mentioned in Tours 24—the Durango to Silverton train, Tour 17—the Grand Canyon railroad, and Tour 8—the Verde Canyon railroad.  Even if you are not a train buff, these all give you some great exposure to some breathtaking country not available by other methods including your motorcycle.

            To get to Chama, NM., which is where the train starts, you head out of Durango 62 picturesque miles east on U.S. Highway 160 to Pagosa Springs.  Pagosa Springs is a fun place too.  Known from long ago by the Indians to be a place of healing hot springs, you can enjoy them today—for a small price of course.  I have and they are great and highly recommended after a hard day of riding.  If you are really adventurous, you can go down the hill to progressively hotter and hotter pools until at last you jump into the very cold San Juan River.  Not for the faint of heart literally!  http://www.pagosaspringsresort.com/   Also, http://www.pagosa.com/history/history.html and http://www.pagosaspringschamber.com/ will give a little background on this interesting and often overlooked area.  Skiing, in the winter up at Wolf Creek Pass, can be an adventure by itself—they get over 400 inches of snow on average here each winter!!  http://www.onthesnow.com/profiles/CO/511.shtml tells you more about the ski area.   I have stayed at the Fairfield Pagosa and the Pagosa Lodge, both of which are upscale and a little spendy, but there are lots of places to stay in the area.   Eating places I can recommend are the Hog’s Breath Saloon for hickory cooked steaks and homemade pies, and JJ’s Upstream Restaurant for dining right on the banks of the San Juan River.

            To continue on to the train, thunder out of Pagosa south on U.S. Hwy 84 roughly 43 miles to Hwy 17, then take 17 on into Chama, NM.

With your browser connected to the Internet, the MapQuest guide can be found online at:

Note:  You will always want to click on “Big Map” which is on the upper right hand corner of the initial map to get your proper starting map!  

http://www.mapquest.com/maps/map.adp?zoom=4&city=Silverton&state=CO