A Weekend in Ouray

We discovered Ouray (pronounced Ur-ray for those unfamiliar with western Colorado) many years ago and it has long been a favorite weekend getaway.  An afternoon drive to see the ice climbers turned into a wonderful overnight stay in one of the most beautiful old hotels anywhere.  Ouray in the off season is a quiet journey back to a simpler time. We recommend it to anyone needing time to refresh and renew.  The pictures in this post were taken on a weekend in early March.  The hotel is the wonderful Beaumont Hotel - newly remodeled and full of history and just a hint of mystery.  Known as the Switzerland of the Americas, Ouray is spectacular!

The Beaumont Hotel

Sight Seeing in and around Ouray

 

Ice Climbing - Simply Breathtaking!

Farewell to Winter

Winter brings it own kind of beauty - all white and fresh.  But along with the beauty is the cold and the stark recognition that another year of summer vitality has faded to memory.  It is a time of solitude.  But gradually, almost imperceptibly, it gives way to a new beginning. Dry reminants of summer greenery, given up for dead, spring forth into new life.  It is a wonderful miracle we mark every year.  The pictures below were taken of the beautiful San Juan Mountains in early March.  The mountains remain shrouded in winter, but the valleys are shedding the ice and cold and beginning to show signs of the eagerly awaited spring.

The other side of Arches

The area around Moab is absolutley incredible.  On day two of our little adventure we ventured into areas outside of the national park. From Indian petroglyphs to awe inspiring natural arches, to man made cuts in the rock for train tracks, to skyscraper towers, every turn of the road and every side trail proved to be breath taking.  The pictures below were taken on the road to Potash, and on the road home.  As is often true in the great western mountains, the scale of a particular formation is often difficult to tell in a picture.  The Corona arch shown below is large enough to fly a plane through and the Fisher Towers on the final few shots are more than 1,500 feet of vertical rock formation.  You can't help but think of them as a cathedral or temple -- only larger than the Empire State Building.  Truly on a scale that only God can create.