We knew there was a pretty good chance of rain when we left the hotel in Pagosa Springs at 8 am, heading out for a ride on the famous Million Dollar Highway. We stopped for gas in Pagosa Springs before heading west and saw several other motorcyclists wearing rainsuits. We decided to “suit up” and ride on.
After a quick stop in Durango for some gift shopping, the sun came out and it was a beautiful 66 degrees. Off came the rainsuits and we began the ride. The Million Dollar Highway is US 550 between Durango and Ouray, Colorado. It stretches 71 miles and includes 165 turns, most of which are extremely low speed and steep grade. It also includes the treacherous Red Mountain Pass with an elevation of 11,018 feet. The gorgeous weather provided an exhilarating (if not down-right nerve-wracking) ride into Silverton, where we took a break for a nice lunch at Grumpy’s. Silverton is a fun place that feels like an Old West movie set, complete with gun fights scheduled daily, weather permitting.
After lunch, we continued north on The Million Dollar Highway to the Red Mountain Pass for another photo op stop and then on to Ouray, the northern end of The Million Dollar Highway.
A rare group photo at Red Mountain pass:
Me and my dad:
Ouray is a cool town with an Old West feel and lots of neat shops. We enjoyed some ice cream from Mouse’s and saddled up for the ride north to Ridgway. It took us approximately five hours to ride The Million Dollar Highway, including photo stops, lunch in Silverton and a couple of mandatory stops for road construction. It was a blast!
A typical sign along US 550, the Million Dollar Highway:
As we left Ouray, our plan was to take US 550 north to Ridgway, then take CO-62 west to CO-145 south to Dolores. We would then take CO-184 east to US 160 east, which takes us though Durango on the way back to the hotel in Pagosa Springs.
Unfortunately, the blue skies we had enjoyed all day vanished as we rolled into Ridgway, giving way to dark, scary clouds and rain. We hid out at a gas station, chatting with locals who told us “you’re never going to make it to Pagosa Springs before dark.” Oh good. We shared the gas station canopy with a nice couple from Minnesota and their Harley Heritage Softail. They were not equipped for the weather, and the man bought the lady a rainsuit at the gas station. He remarked that it would be the best $20 he ever spent. We finally decided that it was as good as it was going to get and settled for light rain. With rainsuits on again, we wished our new friends from Minnesota a safe trip and ventured hotel-ward at approximately 5 pm.
The storm blowing into Ridgway. Notice the flags!
It was slow and painful as we rode though the driving rain, with the dark clouds combining with the surrounding mountains to create night-like conditions by 6 pm. We eventually made it to a gas station in Telluride and took shelter under the canopy and enjoyed some snacks while we waited for the storm to break. As we waited, our Minnesota friends arrived to share the canopy. She was much happier than when we saw her in Ridgway, no doubt because of the rainsuit. And I’m sure the fact that they were only 15 minutes from their hotel room and hot tub helped. (It was 55 degrees, plus the cold rain and wind that made flags stand out straight!) We, on the hand, had several more hours of riding left to go.
We again decided it was as good as it would get and headed out. We rolled into Dolores at about 8:30 pm cold and soaked. The weather map showed a break in the storm was coming in about an hour, so we decided to take refuge at the Ponderosa Restaurant in Dolores. The Ponderosa is not part of the national chain, which was good. This place welcomed us and took good care of us.
After our meal, we got back on the bikes and rode storm-free all the way back to Pagosa Springs. We rolled in the hotel parking lot at Midnight.
We logged 350 miles and 16 hours on the bikes. It was a long, hard day but it was one for the history books. We experienced the extremes of riding motorcycles in the mountains: the joy of tight, twisting roads bordered with yellow road signs that read “Caution – Elk” and lots of squiggly arrows. However, those same signs take on a much scarier tone at night in the rain. Personally, this was the longest and most challenging ride I’ve ever had on a motorcycle, with poor visibility and weather conditions like I’ve never experienced.
But we stuck together and lived to tell the tale. We watched out for each other. We pointed out potential hazards to one another. And when needed, some would slow or stop to wait for others to catch up when careless car drivers split us apart. To me, this day – the entire experience of this day – is what riding with friends is all about.
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