Telluride, Colorado, Rocky Mountain Vacation

Photos & story  © Denise Morrison

TELLURIDE, COLORADO — After visiting Aspen, our next destination is Telluride, a classic Colorado mountain town listed on the National Historic Registry that pays homage to its pioneer roots.

Exuding Wild West charm (and boasting 300 sunny days a year,) Telluride has transformed itself from a rowdy mining camp to a refined mountain destination. The town's main boulevard of well-maintained Victorians, once home to brothels and saloons, today house lively watering holes with traditional pressed tin ceilings.

It's an artsy-meets-adrenalin mix where bicycle-riding tourists glide by restaurant patrons and window shoppers. Just before entering town, we pass Telluride's visitor information center and  own airport – but be warned – it's a bit like landing on an aircraft carrier they say.

From camping sites to deluxe resort hotels, there's an array of options, though rooms fill up quickly during key events. The town is situated within a box canyon surrounded by the 13,000-ft high San Juan Mountain Range.

We walk past an interesting amalgam of colorful 19th-century Folk Victorian houses lining the streets like ‘painted ladies,' benches, etc., made out of skis, and majestic minimalism designs by architects such as John Pawson.

We opt to stay at the contemporary yet classic Hotel Columbia that sits at the base of the gondola and on the San Miguel River. After a total overhaul in 2008, spacious rooms feature personal hot tubs, crackling fireplaces. The (free) gondola just steps away, carries folks to Mountain Village, a terrific starting point for hiking and mountain biking adventures. It takes about 13 minutes to reach the village (at over 9,500 ft) where additional first-rate hotels, dining (no chain restaurants) and shopping are found flanked by awe-inspiring mountain views.

This European- inspired community with cobblestone plazas melds with the local cowboy cafe society. As the gondola swoops us back into downtown, music from the Blues & Brews Festival fills the air. We take in the party atmosphere & rhythms of the Catfish Kray Blues Band along with headliner Willie Nelson. It's said Telluride has become a festival capital of the Southwest. There are more than 30 year-round events celebrating everything from plein air painting to history to film, and "brews and blues."

The next day we head out to Trout Lake, just 15 minutes from downtown to try something new: stand-up paddle boarding. The sport got its start in Hawaii and has grown exponentially in popularity. It looks easy enough and I figure we're in good hands, as Matt our guide from Telluride Kayak School, was recently named one of Outside Magazines (outsideonline.com) New Kings of Adventure. He tells us that calm, clear waters found in alpine environments such as these are an ideal place to attempt SUP. Imagine trying to walk on water! It's an incredibly memorable experience – while taking in the alpine vistas and the scene below the board.

Once back in town, we view historic landmarks such as the San Miguel County Courthouse, Finn Town and the Butch Cassidy robbery site. I contemplate taking a one-day course at the Ah Haa School for the Arts located in the former Rio Grande Southern Railway Depot building. Their summer workshops cover everything from cooking to screenwriting.

We join microbrew enthusiasts at the popular  Smugglers Brewpub & Grille (smugglersbrew.com), which keeps local beers on tap. Later, we decide to dine at "221 South Oak" where chef Eliza Gavin serves up plates of delicious Rocky Mountain Trout and Elk Sausage. Afterward, we stroll past a number of lively watering holes to the Fly Me to the Moon Saloon that has been a Telluride dancing fixture forever. We join the crowd kicking up their heels and grooving to a live bluegrass band.

The next morning we're up for some hiking. We stop by the store Jagged Edge for gear and snacks. Bridal Veil Falls can be seen from the edge of town and are the tallest free falling falls in Colorado; absolutely stunning, at 365 feet in length. The hike is strenuous and best experienced with water spraying on your face! We take the Bear Creek Trail toward the falls. The trail is a rocky road of approx 1.8 miles and at a 1,200 ft elevation. A number of folks join us on the hike, as do mountain bikers – the region is one of the places mountain bikes got their start supposedly. At the top of Bridal Veil Falls one can take a right and hike to Silver Lake... or hang a left and head to Blue Lake. Silver Lake is a must-do! It's an intermediate/expert (shorter, but steep) hike that leads to a beautiful alpine lake.

On our last day in town, my friend enjoys golfing at  Telluride Golf Club (tellurideskiresort.com). At more than 9,000 feet with stretching fairways winding through the mountains, the course delivers 18 holes and seriously distracting views.

I embark on another adventure admiring the Continental Divide, on a 2-hour trail ride with the local outfit, Ride with Roudy. Possibly Telluride's eminence grise of trail riding, "Roudy" Roudebush leads guests on horses with the slogan "Gentle horses for gentle people, fast horses for fast people, and for people who don't like to ride, horses that don't like to be rode."

Clad in a cowboy hat, bandana, chaps and spurs, he entertains us with sarcasm and quips that would compete with his early hero, Mark Twain.  Though Roudy is known for riding his horse into the Sheridan Bar to enjoy a pre-dinner drink or to catch up on the latest, this trek takes us across sloping terrain that has erupted in a kaleidoscopic array of wildflowers.  Kings crown, columbine and Indian paintbrush bloom along cascading streams while we spy elk, lamas, and sheep grazing nearby. 

The remoteness and Western charm make it easy to see why Roudy, who arrived in the area in the 1970s, decided to put down roots and stay.  Telluride may have gotten its name from a mineral found in the area, but I prefer Roudy's theory that it was taken from a Limerick he found in a turn of the century local newspaper:
There was a cowboy drunk on the barroom floor
Having drunk so much whiskey he could drink no more
He went to sleep with a troubled brain
And dreamed he rode the hell-bound train
The devil himself was the engineer
The boiler was filled with lager beer
He himself was shoveling bones
And all through the train you could hear the groans
Of black men, yellow men, white, all chained together, my god, what a sight!
And all the time the devil walking up and down the aisle screaming
Te-hell-ya Ride!