The Million Dollar Highway

And it was finally time for us to ride one of the most beautiful and dangerous roads in the Americas.

It is only a 25 miles stretch but once you do it you will never forget it.

Though the entire stretch has been called the Million Dollar Highway, it is really the twelve miles (19 km) south of Ouray through the Uncompahgre Gorge to the summit of Red Mountain Pass which gains the highway its name.This stretch through the gorge is challenging and potentially hazardous to drive; it is characterized by steep cliffs, narrow lanes, and a lack of guardrails; the ascent of Red Mountain Pass is marked with a number of hairpin curves used to gain elevation, and again, narrow lanes for traffic—many cut directly into the sides of mountains.

We thoroughly enjoyed the scenery although doing this stretch without a proper working clutch was quite challenging.

We have ridden many roads and although some of the passes in the Alps are tougher because of the multiple switchbacks, this road is majestic and deserves the name Million Dollar Highway.

The other interesting feature we saw on the road was an overpass for active avalanche although I must say I did not see the point of this as if an active avalanche was happening you would probably not want to be anywhere close to the mountain.

Here are some pics of this magnificent road.

 

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