Travelogue Durango 2004

This Travelogue Is Incomplete

Last update 10/11/2004

Itinerary:

10/10/04: Drive from Boulder to Telluride, CO

10/11/04: Telluride, CO

10/11/04 – 10/13/04: Durango, CO

10/13/04 : Drive from Durango to Boulder, CO

Sunday October 10, 2004

Drive from Denver to Telluride. I-70 west to US-50 east (actually south) to US-550 south to SR-62 to SR-145.

The drive in on SR62 and SR145 was mind numbingly gorgeous in the evening light. The aspens are still changing colors. With the low sunset light the peaks of the mountains were lit up with streaks of gold from the aspens, dark red of the iron-rich mountain soils, and dark green of the fir trees. I had to stop several times for photographs.

Stay at the lovely San Sophia Inn, 330 West Pacific Ave, 970-728-3001 (or 800-537-4781) “Camp Bird” room. Nice king size room which they gave me for a low walk-in rate ($119).

Dinner at the New Sheridan Chop House at the New Sheridan hotel (231 W. Colorado Ave, 970-728-9100.) Interesting Portobello, eggplant, pepper soup and a 12oz prime rib with braised broccoli. It was all good, but the chef has a heavy hand with the salt. If you’re on a low salt diet, head somewhere else.

Monday October 11, 2004

Got up to a beautiful, crisp fall morning.

Breakfast (included) would have been a joy for a carbo-eating person. For those of us on an Atkins style diet, it wasn’t so appealing.

Checked out, left car in the hotel’s parking lot.

The hotel is just a block from the ski area’s gondola. Nice. Took the gondola up – spectacular views. Had to invent new terms for how mind bogglingly beautiful it was. Finally I came up with “stupid beautiful”; its so beautiful that it makes you stupid just looking at it. Sharply peaked snow capped mountains, hills covered with aspens turning gold and red, deep green fir trees. Sheer magnificence. I thought of the tour guide in Northern Australia who kept on telling us how beautiful what we were looking at was – I’d like to bring him here and show him what beautiful scenery really is!

Virtually nothing up at the ski area village was open. Being past summer season but before ski season, there was a coffee shop, a gallery, and one or two restaurants; the rest was shut up tight.

Back down to down. The gondola ride down was equally enthralling.

Wandered around town, looked in every shop on the main drag. A cute, pleasant mountain/ski area town. I appear to have been just a bit too late for the end of summer sales. Many places I walked into were busily putting up winter inventory, a couple looked like a blizzard had hit with torn down displays and aisles filled with winter gloves, hats and parkas. I suspect that just one or two weeks earlier there would probably have been some amazing bargains on summer sports equipment and apparel.

Lunch at Cuchina de Luz (? W Colorado Blvd.) Outstanding salad wrap. Tricked in by promise of poblano chili relleno.

Just starting to rain as I left town

Drove up to the end of box canyon, continued up jeep road towards falls. Road was in really bad shape, very slow going. Eventually found a place with spectacular views of falls and valley, turned around. Had the weather been better I would have continued, but not worth it.

Drive to Durango. SR145, to SR184. Incredibly beautiful, but mixed weather.

Durango – visitors information center closes at 5pm. Oh well. Called a couple B&B’s, decided to stay at Gables House B&B. Great location, vintage house, good rate, nice room. Super quiet.

Dinner at Cyprus Café (725 E 2^nd Ave., 970-385-6884.) Unbelievably noisy. Attractive room, but so loud I didn’t care. Waitress had the loudest voice in the room. Drove me nuts. Slow service. Menu looked great, but my salmon with goat cheese and olive-caper tapenade cooked in parchment was a huge disappointment. Quite edible, but not very good at all. Chocolate Pot de Crème was OK, not great. It had sat too long and developed a nasty skin on top. Coffee was OK. Service was poor. By the time I was done I had developed a huge headache from the astonishing volume. Of course it took forever to get the bill. I stiffed them by leaving no tip. Rating: avoid. Wild horses couldn’t drag me back.