MINI TOUR:

Gold in the hills
Grand Junction to Telluride

By Shelly Steig

> Ageless art
> The heart of the world
> Along the byways
> Colorful Telluride
> The Mother Nature lode
> If you go / route map

The sun brightens Colorado’s famously endless blue skies and deepens the shadows created by a trio of buttes out the right car window. On the left the faces of hills are freckled with shrubs and pines, while a river gurgles past a yellowing strand of cottonwoods. It’s early October and we can see the promise of amber aspens on the mountains that loom in the distance. The summer crowds have dissipated, leaving an empty stretch of Colorado State Highway 141—part of the 158-mile "back way" between Grand Junction and Telluride. As my husband drives, I tune the iPod to Van Morrison’s "Golden Autumn Day."

It's a fitting serenade to a richly colored state.

Ageless art

© Jeff Steig.

We began our journey in Grand Junction, the largest regional hub between Denver and Salt Lake City. Located at the confluence of what was once called the Grand River (now the Colorado) and the Gunnison, this vibrant town is following the lead of its ancient ancestors. A civilization called the Fremont populated the region for more than one thousand years, starting in 200 AD, and left behind mysterious rock art and carvings. Ute tribes followed a century later and added to the ancient artwork.

Today, art in Grand Junction is still compelling, thanks to an outdoor gallery display called Art on the Corner that is scattered along Main Street. The program features more than 100 sculptures, most of which are permanent. Some are loaned by artists for one year. The sculptures range from vibrant to somber, funny to poignant, and lend an air of distinction to Grand Junction’s pleasant downtown.

At the Museum of the West, we discovered more about the region’s fascinating history. It was once part of Mexico and was explored by Kit Carson, John Charles Fremont and Captain John Gunnison. The town grew quickly with the railroad’s arrival and the development of the mining and fruit industries.

The region is temperate and fertile, sheltered on three sides by the Little Book Cliffs, Grand Mesa and Colorado National Monument. Year-round, visitors can enjoy the fruits of the vine at more than 17 wineries. In early fall, roadside stands and the weekly Grand Junction farmer’s market overflow with peaches, plums, pears, grapes and apples.

Autumn festivals like the Colorado Mountain Winefest and the Apple Jubilee Festival at Cross Orchards Historic Farm celebrate the bounty. Other fall events include Oktoberfest, and the Pork and Hops BBQ Cook-off.

The heart of the world

Back in 1907, John Otto lived alone in the wilds southwest of Grand Junction. Considered eccentric by many, Otto lobbied for the region to be preserved as a national park. "I came here last year and found these canyons, and they felt like the heart of the world to me," he wrote.

Fortunately Grand Junction’s residents agreed. While they tirelessly petitioned politicians, Otto hewed miles of trails through the proposed park area. Finally, in 1911, Congress established Colorado National Monument. Otto was awarded the position of caretaker, a duty which he happily performed for 16 years for a whopping $1 per month.

The 23,000-acre park’s semi-desert topography features rock spires, domes, balanced rocks, arches and canyons. Piñon pine, mountain mahogany and Utah juniper dot the landscape where desert bighorn, collared lizards and mountain lions roam. While driving the 23-mile paved Rim Rock Drive, we climbed 2,000 feet and were rewarded with sweeping views of the Grand Valley and Colorado River.

Along the byways

Gateway Auto Museum. © Jeff Steig.

We stopped to stretch our legs on the easy Window Rock Trail—one of 14 the park offers—before heading toward Gateway. At the turnoff in Whitewater, Highway 141 becomes the Unaweep/Tabeguache Scenic and Historic Byway, which passes through Unaweep Canyon. The canyon has two creeks, one flowing east and the other west because of a geologically unusual divide.

The Uncompahgre Plateau, Piñon Mesa and the La Sal Mountains surround Gateway, which is dominated by a massive sandstone formation that looks like a fortress on a hill. It is also home to Gateway Canyons Resort, a 500-acre playground for the adventuresome. Built by the creator of the Discovery Channel, the adobe-style luxury resort encourages guests to discover the Western Slope. On-site outfitters offer horseback riding, mountain and rock climbing, kayaking or rafting the Dolores River, mountain biking, off-road tours and fly fishing.

The resort also features the Gateway Colorado Auto Museum with 45 vintage and one-of-a-kind cars on display. Exhibits include a 1954 Oldsmobile F-88 concept car worth more than $3 million. A new program, Western Road Adventures, allows auto lovers to get behind the wheels of rare vehicles such as Aston and Ferrari Spider convertibles on three- or five-day guided itineraries. Those who enjoy a slower pace can book massages or body wraps at the Spa at Gateway Canyons.

In the morning, we dined on crisped-to-perfection Belgian waffles drenched in warm syrup at the Paradox Grill, Gateway Resort’s gourmet restaurant. The sun was already high in the sky when we pulled onto the Tabeguache section of 141.

This stretch of highway follows the Dolores River, climbs to the top of Wright’s Mesa, then drops back down to the San Miguel River. The byway splits and follows Colorado State Highway 145 to Placerville where it becomes another famous byway—the San Juan Skyway. The distance into Telluride was short but breathtaking, as we came upon mountains covered with the promised amber-hued aspens.

Colorful Telluride

Telluride has reinvented itself as a premier ski resort, sanctuary for the wealthy and festival capital, but it suffered an initial identity crisis. After prospector John Fallon made his claim at the Sheridan Mine in 1875, treasure seekers flocked to the mineral-rich area and christened it Columbia. However, the U.S. Postal Service refused to recognize the name since another city with the same moniker already existed.

Undaunted, residents renamed the town Telluride, a name which has sparked debate over its meaning. One camp argues it comes from tellurium—a chemical element sometimes associated with gold. Others claim it’s a conglomeration of the send-off to fortune seekers: "To hell you ride."

Whatever the meaning, the town’s reputation for riches spread—at one point it boasted more millionaires per capita than New York City—luring Butch Cassidy to Telluride for his first major bank heist. On June 24, 1889, his gang tied getaway horses around town, then rode away with $24,580 from the now-defunct San Miguel Valley Bank.

And Telluride was the City of Lights before Paris held that title: George Westinghouse, Nikola Tesla and L.L. Nunn built the world’s first alternating-current power plant at nearby Ophir in 1891. The second, the Generator House atop Bridal Veil Falls, is an iconic Telluride landmark.

Despite these promising beginnings, Telluride almost became a ghost town when silver prices plummeted and miners left to seek their riches elsewhere. Visitors can learn more about the city’s colorful past at the Telluride Historical Museum.

The Mother Nature lode

Since 1964, Telluride has been a National Historic Landmark District. It’s also one of Colorado’s most beautiful hamlets. Resting within the largest concentration of 14,000-foot peaks in North America, the town is a jumping-off point for outdoor activities such as hiking, biking, kayaking, fly fishing and horseback riding through the San Juan Mountains.

Victorian homes line the eight-by-12-block historic district, which features quirky shops, top-notch restaurants and a hippie-funk vibe. Most of the big money has moved up the hill to Mountain Village, home of some envy-inspiring mansions. A free gondola shuttles visitors back and forth from Mountain Village.

We were carting our canine, so stayed at the pet-friendly Mountain Lodge Telluride. Each day we hiked a different trail through the forests, then hopped on a gondola to head down the hill. These aren’t just a source of transportation. The views during the ride both up and down are stunning, especially during autumn when the aspens are cloaked in glory-gold.

Maybe the camp leaning toward Telluride’s name being associated with gold don’t have it wrong after all.

Shelly Steig is a freelance writer based in Parker.

If you go

Grand Junction: 800-962-2547, www.visitgrandjunction.com

Colorado National Monument: 970-858-3617, www.nps.gov/colm

Gateway Canyon Resort: 866-671-4733, www.gatewaycanyons.com

Telluride: 888-355-8743, www.visittelluride.com

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