Slept in a little as my drive to Ouray was supposed to be about 7 hours. From Sterling to Denver is about a 2 hour, not so exciting drive, but once you leave Denver heading west, you climb up into the Rockies. It’s interstate 70W from Denver to Grand Junction, Colorado. This is a beautiful drive through the mountains, by famous ski areas such as Silverthorne, Copper Mountain, Vail, etc.. Before getting to Grand Junction, the landscape changes quite a bit, from mountains to hilly country. At Grand Junction, I headed south on Hwy 50, passed through Delta, Olathe, and made it to Montrose. From Montrose, it was a short drive to my first National Park of the trip, The Black Canyon of the Gunnison. It’s a spectacular gorge cut by the Gunnison River.

The Black Canyon of the Gunnison

Ouray

At 5:30 am I left my home in Milwaukee and headed west to my first stop, Sterling, Colorado. From 1st through 5th grades, I lived west of Des Moines, Iowa. My route to Sterling took me within 2 miles of my childhood home.  At 9:30 pm, I was in my hotel room near Sterling, Colorado. A long first day.