Molas Lake Colorado

by Janice Pariza

Title

Molas Lake Colorado

Artist

Janice Pariza

Medium

Photograph - Photography

Description

A stunning scene awaits me on the Million Dollar Highway passing over Molas Pass is a grand View of Molas Lake. Highway 550, or The Million dollar Highway, Red Mountain Pass is on Colorado's Western Slope, SW corner of the State.
It is one of the roads on the Trails of the Ancients Byway, one of the designated New Mexico Scenic Byways.
North of Durango, the highway passes by Trimble Springs, hot springs that have been open for visitors since the late 19th century. The highway runs north along the Animas River, under the Hermosa Cliffs. It enters the San Juan National Forest and goes past Haviland Lake and Elektra Lake. Drivers pass by Engineer Mountain and Twilight Peak before crossing Coal Bank Pass. Next is Molas Pass, which offers a panoramic view of Molas Lake, the Animas River Gorge, and Snowdon Peak. Northbound travelers then pass through the town of Silverton, elevation 9,320 feet (2841 m), surrounded by 13,000 foot (4000 m) peaks Sultan Mountain, Kendall Mountain, and Storm Peak.

The highway leaves Silverton and proceeds up Mineral Creek Valley before ascending to Red Mountain Pass. The ruins of the Longfellow Mine are visible along the way. The highway then goes through a series of steep grades and hairpin turns before reaching Lookout Point, which offers a view of the town of Ouray.


Looking south toward Red Mountain Pass.
This section of the route passes over three mountain passes:

Coal Bank Pass, elevation 10,640 ft (3,240 m).
Molas Pass, elevation 10,970 ft (3,340 m).
Red Mountain Pass, elevation 11,018 ft (3,358 m).

An "overpass" for an active avalanche chute on the Million Dollar Highway, south of Ouray.
The origin of the name Million Dollar Highway is disputed. There are several legends, though, including that it cost a million dollars a mile to build in the 1920s, and that its fill dirt contains a million dollars in gold ore.

U.S. 550 ends at the corner of Townsend Avenue and San Juan Avenue in Montrose, Colorado at the junction of its parent route U.S. Highway 50.

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Uploaded

September 19th, 2014

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