We spent our 37th birthday this year adventuring around the Telluride area in Colorado with stops at Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park and Ouray. It was a week filled with nature and pushing outside of our comfort zones.
Road trip
Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park
Known for its steep cliffs and old rocks, this canyon was made by nature over two million years ago
Telluride
The drive from Ridgway to Telluride was one of the prettiest I’ve seen
The cute (but expensive) town of Telluride. All the boutique shops and restaurants were priced very high-end. I was surprised by how unaffordable it was.
Up the mountain we went – beautiful views of the valley below
We hired a guide and climbed the Tellruide via ferrata. A via ferrata or “iron path” in Italian, is a climbing route with fixed cables, rungs, ladders, and bridges. You are clipped in (most of the time) for safety.
Finally got to put my indoor rock climbing skills to use!
I really can’t believe I did this. Historically, I’ve been afraid of heights, but I’ve overcome this fear in the past two years through indoor climbing. What incredible views with the waterfall in the background!
Can you spot us?
Probably my favorite area in Colorado that I have visited thus far
We took the ski lift to the top of the mountain and then hiked down. There were some great views of the San Juan Mountains in the distance.
View of the town while we were hiking down
Ouray
For this trip we stayed in an Airbnb in a town called Ridgway, which is 45 minutes from Telluride and 15 minutes from Ouray. It was much cheaper to stay outside of Tellruide, and I’m glad we did this. It was also nice to be located in-between the two towns we wanted to explore. Ouray is known as the “Switzerland of America”.
Established in 1876 due to gold being found in the San Juan Mountains. This one-street town has a very wild west vibe.
We hiked the Ouray perimeter trail – 6.5 miles
Some pretty wildflowers in June
We went horseback riding one morning. This is something I’ve wanted to do since I moved to Colorado. The views were great, and our guide was a literal cowboy.
This was definitely outside of Joe’s comfort zone 🙂 but he made it
Glad you are exploring Colorado.