Where can you go any time of the year to enjoy magnificent rugged alpine mountains hugging a small town nestled in a narrow valley at 7000 plus feet above sea level? A historic little town with elegantly preserved buildings that house eclectic shops, restaurants offering everything from fast food to fine dining and accommodations from bare basics to opulent? A sunny town that beckons you for a “get away” vacation or to immerse yourself in a myriad of activities to suit every whim?

Ouray, Colorado, the “gem of the Rockies,” is your answer. Just twenty-four awesome miles across the San Juan Mountains north of Silverton, on the Million Dollar Highway, you will discover this “jewel.” You can stroll about town, take a historic walking tour, swim or soak in the hot springs pool, visit the museum, join friends on a scenic patio for a glass of wine, hike into the hills, visit Cascade and Box Canyon Falls, take in a movie, take out a video or DVD, attend a cultural event, ride horseback, picnic in the parks or jeep in the mountains.

In winter, Ouray offers ice skating, ice climbing and for the children, sledding on Vinegar Hill and skiing at the south town hill with a mini-rope tow.

In 1887, Ouray was a bustling mining town. Millions of dollars of gold and silver ore left the city by rail aboard the Denver and Rio Grande Western. Visit the museum’s railroad exhibit to learn about the days when the narrow gauge trains whistled into town or take a hike or drive on County Road 17, north from Ouray, where the train ran until 1953.

However much you choose to do here, Ouray will call to you to return again and again.

For more on Ouray, visit the Ouray County Magazine at www.ouraymagazine.com
For Ouray County lodging listings, click here.

Photos by Eberhard Hinz & James Burke