what an amazing adventure!! thanks for sharing!

that took me away from the fact that I am sitting behind a desk with 98 degree temps outside.

i would like to go tornado wheeling sometime!

 

These pix are amazing! As posted above, I am booked at the Hotsprings Inn....and thanks for reminding me to pack my snowboard!!

 

I'm starting to wonder if you ever made it to MOAB??!

 

Lol! I told you you should of come down to Colorado with us. I'm getting to the Moab part. It takes a long time to remember and write all this down. I keep having senior moments and then remembering half way through the post.

Scootrryder?? You're one of those crazies with the snowboard?

 

I'm enjoying the wait, your editorial is keeping me entertained until I see red rock!

 

Great writeup so far, and looks like an amazing time!! Looking forward to seeing more pics!! I am going to have to do this before too long. The only bad thing is I live in the east, it's a helluva long haul out there!!

 

OK. As long as you're enjoying it.

So where was I? Oh yeah, third day in Ouray. Since the wife was feeling a little left out after hearing how much fun we had without her, she decided to join us again. This would be our last day in Ouray before heading to Moab to meet up with KidJeep.
The plan was to do Yankee Boy Basin then go over Ophir Pass to the town of Ophir and then over to Telluride. YB Basin was probably the nicest scenery ride so far. Good weather probably helped a little too. In addition to scaring the ol' lady half to death the cliffside road provides a great point to shoot pics from. Oh, and she really likes waterfalls.















Everyone older than 20 can probably remember this spot from their commercial. Supposedly, this is the place where Coors Brewing shot their commercial for the pure spring water thing.









Finished up Yankee Boy Basin and headed over to Ophir Pass. We passed this nice example of a TLC. I like old iron no matter what the make so I took a pic of it.



Some pics going up and over Ophir Pass.







I was using a normal, non wide angle lens. The valley really was that bowled looking.



Wife likes Aspen trees too.



Natural spring obviously bubbling up plenty of iron ore.



This memorial caused me to pause for a moment and ponder how and why things turn out the way they do. Quite sobering I thought. I don't know if it was state provided, privately made or provided by the town of Ophir.
It says:
In honor of and to the Ute People, whose feet once walked this valley and whose eyes gazed upon it's beauty. May you always remain proud and strong. Forever shall you be welcome here.



The town of Ophir's public works building.



Speaking of the towns around here, this is where they get some of their electrical power. This home/power station in Telluride was jaw dropping. Pictures don't do it justice. It's WAAAAY up there! More info about it here.>http://www.hgtv.com/videos/waterfall...home/9264.html





We thought Telluride was ok but, didn't care for it's foo foo yuppy/trendy aura. So we didn't stay there long. We took the highway back to Ouray to hurry and get loaded up before dark. That night we took the two wise men (as they had become to us) out to dinner at the Outlaw Steak house. A good meal and a few beers were disposed of then we hit the hay for a night's rest. In the morning we all exchanged info and said farewells to our new friends. At this time I'd like to publicly thank Roger and Marvin for a most enjoyable experience in the "Swiss Alps of America" . They were a priceless asset to my family keeping us safe as well as highly entertained with their knowledge and experience of the area. Thanks guys.

Locked and loaded.... Moab bound.

 

I can't wait to get there now!! Your pix are amazing! I will be there July 17th...so this thread is just awesome for my maiden voyage out there! I actually would love to pack the snowboard...but the wife wouldnt be so happy...last time she tried keepin up with me on the extreme stuff she broke three ribs... I better stick with the groomed stuff...

 

You sound like me. Except I always talk my wife into going dirt biking with me. I bought her a little TW200 Yamaha.... the one with the fat tires. She gets on it and thinks she is invincible following me. Then gravity catches up to her. She keeps forgetting I have 30 years of riding experience on her.

 

Heading to Moab, we were quite excited. I've been reading about the place for as long as I have been wheeling. (1991) And now I finally get the chance to go. The trip from Ouray to Moab is fairly un-eventful. The kids took a few pics of the changing scenery from their back seat location.







One thing did happen unexpectedly. As we rounded a sharp uphill turn there is a horse with a rider in the middle of the road! The rider is a teenaged girl waving her hands up in the air in a definate flagging manner. I literally had to stand on the brakes to get stopped before hitting her.
Then I see what she was all excited about. She was part of a full blown cattle drive. There were about 10 people on horses and atvs as well as herding dogs.
Apparently the locals use public lands up in the mountains most of the year to graze their animals on. Then they drive them down to the valleys to fatten up before market.... or so I was told. I got the feeling this was a true cattle drive and not one of those "dude ranch" moch ups since there were even a couple of kids actively herding... and they were YOUNG. Maybe seven years old.















By now the wife is panicking with the thoughts of our truck being destroyed by the mass of animals. But they pass without any harm. I was intrigued by watching the herding dogs do their thing. They truly are some awesome animals to witness working.



Then it's pretty much boring but scenic highway to the CO/Utah border.





The rocks..... they are starting to look a little different.



We pulled over at a rest area because the kiddos were getting unruly....nah, they were down right being bad. So I told them to run some laps around the park. It works for getting rid of all that extra energy.







Load back up... next stop, Moab, Utah.