Driving The Million Dollar Highway in Southwest Colorado

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When planning a trip to Southwest Colorado, you must put driving the Million Dollar Highway in your itinerary. Here’s a couple of reasons: it’s one of the most beautiful scenic drives in America (not just Colorado!) and it connects charming mountain towns in the region. 

As always, beautiful things in life don’t come easy. So does when you are driving the Million Dollar Highway. It has no guardrails and comes with blind corners! You must be brave either as a driver or a passenger when driving on this Colorado scenic byway.

Things you must know before driving the Million Dollar Highway

The Million Dollar Highway is a section of San Juan Skyway Colorado Scenic Byway on US-550 N that connects Silverton to Ouray. It is around 23 miles in length, but it takes about 43 minutes to drive between the two towns.

San Juan Skyway itself is a 233-mile loop scenic byway that meanders through Durango, Silverton, Ouray, Ridgway, Telluride, Rico, Dolores, Cortez, and back to Durango again.

When driving the Million Dollar Highway, you are basically driving along the edge of the cliff. And, there are no barriers on the edge of the shoulders. Some people said it’s not as scary as it sounds, but it is intimidating since the drop is so steep.

Personally, I would say half of the highway on the south of Ouray is the scary part. It’s even scarier when you drive from Ouray to Silverton. You will go up and drive on the cliff sides, and if you are on the passenger seat, hmm.. I don’t know what to say. Someone wrote that Million Dollar Highway is not for the sissies and shouldn’t be attempted by novice drivers. Just think about it. 

We drove from Silverton to Ouray, and I told my husband to close the windows. I felt like the gorge was trying to suck us. Just like when we drove the Shelf Road from Victor to Canon City in South-Central Colorado. But it’s so different from the Silver Thread Scenic Byway we did a few days prior to our driving the Million Dollar Highway. A beautiful road that stretches from South Fork to Blue Mesa Reservoir near Gunnison.

Anyway, take your time and go slow on the Million Dollar Highway. Drive carefully as this mountain road has hairpin curves and dangerous drop offs. You want to enjoy the spectacular views on this road even when your heart is pumping hard and fast.

It’s also advisable to check the weather forecast before you go. Sometimes the road is closed at the last minute due to treacherous weather or rock slides. Most importantly, leave the drive during wintertime to the locals.

Why is it called the Million Dollar Highway?

Even historians aren’t certain how this highway got its name. Some said it cost a million dollar a mile to build the road or the land cost a total of a million. Others think the name has to do with the fact that the builders used gravel from nearby silver and gold mines and that the dirt was so rich in ore, it was worth a million dollar.

Another explanation is that an early traveler was so overcome by vertigo on the steep and winding stretch of road that he insisted he would never travel it again, even if he was paid a million dollars.

Beautiful stops along Million Dollar Highway

SILVERTON

As I mentioned above, we drove from Silverton to Ouray. Silverton is an old small mining town, registered as a National Historic Landmark. It’s home to the Alpine Loop, a.k.a. the backcountry adventures. People like jeeping, ATV and OHV riding, hiking and biking on this part of Silverton.  

Silverton is also the summer destination for the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad train ride where visitors can experience Silverton’s mining history. Other ways to experience the town’s mining history are by taking a tour of the Old Hundred Gold Mine, a visit to nearby ghost town Animas Fork, a self-guided tour of the Mayflower Mill, or a horse-drawn carriage ride through Silverton’s old town square.

In the winter, Silverton turns to a recreational paradise for snowmobiling, skiing, sledding, ice skating, ice climbing, and ice fishing.

Even though we didn’t do any of the activities above – limited time of visit – we had a wonderful time strolling around the old town square. Colorful Victorian buildings on both sides of one street makes this little town look cute. Stores and restaurants occupied these Victorian buildings. A block away, parallel to this street, is an unpaved road. Walking here made me feel like somewhere in the western movie. 

Silverton has plenty of dining options. From pizza to BBQ, hamburgers to tacos, and of course ice cream and fudge. We enjoyed our lunch at High Noon Hamburgers, sitting on the patio where our dog Snoopy emptied a bowl of water provided by the server. 

Wish we could stay longer, but we had to continue our trip to Ouray through the Million Dollar Highway. We will be back though.

RED MOUNTAIN PASS & IDARADO GOLD MINE

As you leave Silverton, you will see the remnants of many mining operations on the hillsides. You will also start seeing the red orangish color on the mountains. Once you get to Red Mountain Pass, you must make a stop and get out of the car. Enjoy the views, take pictures and videos. See the traffic coming up from Ouray direction. That’s where you’re heading!

After the pass, the road begins to gradually decline. Go slow, not just for your safety, but because you don’t want to miss the amazing views ahead. You mostly want to take more pictures, and it means you don’t want to miss places to stop. Once you miss it, it’s hard to make a U-turn. (If you are out-of-state visitors like us, you probably don’t have this kind of views in your home state.)

Not too far from the mountain pass, there’s a Red Mountain/Idarado Gold Mine Lookout on your left, right after the curb. You must stop there. The views are breathtaking! If you drive too fast, you might miss it. We did miss it because the car behind us was fast and didn’t want to wait for us who drove slowly. Fortunately my husband found a place to stop and we turned around after waiting several minutes. 

Not too many people in the parking lot. Just 3 cars with us. I’m not sure whether people missed the turn, didn’t know about it, or the traffic that day was mostly locals.

From here, the road to Ouray is getting scary. The stunning, steep canyon walls of Uncompahgre Gorge are welcoming you. Like I mentioned above, the road has steep grades, hairpin curves, and no guardrails.

BEAR CREEK FALLS

Another must stop along the road is Bear Creek Falls. You will see a small parking right after the bridge on your left.

When we drove the Million Dollar Highway, we didn’t know about this waterfall. From a distance I saw cars parking on the left. In my head, there must be something that made people stop there. 

And we were not disappointed at all. Bear Creek Falls is stunning! The waterfalls blast down from under the bridge into the Bear Creek before joining the Uncompahgre River. There’s a scenic viewpoint that you might think twice to walk on if you are afraid of heights.

OURAY OVERLOOK

Not too far from the waterfall is Ouray Overlook, sometimes called the Switzerland of America Lookout Point. It gives you a beautiful look of the box canyon town of Ouray down in the valley.

OURAY

Here’s your last stop for driving the Million Dollar Highway, a section of San Juan Skyway Scenic Byway. Don’t just drive by, stay for a day before you continue exploring the San Juan Skyway. Or, spend a night or two like us.

Ouray is the Outdoor Recreation Capitol of Colorado. People come here for jeeping and hiking the spectacular old mining roads, rock climbing, via ferrata, and ice climbing in the winter.

If you stop for a break only, take your time by strolling around town. Its Main Street is not that long and there’s no traffic light. Beautiful buildings on both sides of the road occupied by stores and restaurants. Not just burgers, pizza, BBQ, or Cajun’s food, this little town also offers Thai food. You can relax on the rooftop bar, and make sure to grab ice cream, coffee, or something chocolate from Mouse’s Chocolates & Coffee.

If time permits, visit Box Canyon Falls. But, if you are afraid of heights, you can skip it. Also, dogs are not permitted. At first we were disappointed, but after we walked towards the falls, we understood why. You will walk on an iron bridge built along the cliff and take the stairs down to the falls.         

For those of you who plan to spend a night, don’t miss soaking in the hot springs after your exhilarating adventures in and around town. No rotten egg smell here, because of the water’s mineral content and Ouray local geology.

We spent 2 nights in Ouray and we ventured to neighboring town Ridgway and Telluride where our dog Snoopy enjoyed the free gondola ride to Mountain Village with us.

Ouray has a variety of accommodations for visitors. From hotel to Bed & Breakfast, chalet to cabins, and condos to RV/tent campgrounds. We stayed at 4J RV Campgrounds and had a memorable night when a bear came to the neighbor’s campsite.

We would like to visit Ouray again as we didn’t get to explore a lot. Next time we go, we want to bring our bikes and explore town from our bikes. Also, we want to soak in the hot springs as they were closed during our visit (pandemic reason.)

Is Million Dollar Highway worth it?

Of course yes! It’s not only breathtaking, but you will know how brave you actually are. If you think your bravery grade level is 100% or at least 75% and above, you will probably be fine by driving from Ouray to Silverton instead. If it’s below it, you might think about driving in the same direction as us. Especially if you are going to sit on a passenger seat. You’ll find out!        

One more thing. When you decide to go, probably playing the “If I Had A Million Dollars” song by Barenaked Ladies will make driving the Million Dollar Highway less stressful . 😉