Telluride

So... I admit this is not my favorite town. I've only been here at the height of tourist season, both winter and summer, when the streets are crowded and crazy and noisy. It's just not a fun place to be.

But it's also one of the most picturesque settings for a town I've ever seen, and we took a chance that this would be a good (quiet) time to visit. I've been craving the chance to photograph the aspens turning color, but fall is coming late this year. So I thought going to a higher elevation just might do the trick.

It did.

We walked around town, then rode the gondola to the upper village for a brew and a flatbread pizza.

After our fun on the ski slopes, we decided to see the rest of the box canyon that Telluride sits in. And found a very cool (scary) road that climbs out the end of the canyon, with stupendous views. Not a word I use often, but completely appropriate.

At the top, above a pair of waterfalls and a sheer cliff, is a power plant that once provided power for the big mine at the end of the canyon. It now provides part of the power for Telluride. The road was closed from here to the top of the ridge, so it was the end of the line for us.

We took a different road home, through high parkland with the San Juan mountains in the background. It was absolutely beautiful.