October 2     152 miles     MONTROSE, Cedar Creek RV Park     ($24.70)

Over Red Mountain Pass on the San Juan Scenic Byway – golden aspen and snowy peaks

Heading east from Mesa Verde on US.160, there was a Pioneer Museum, motel and shop at Mancos, after 8 miles. The road rose and fell, climbing to over 8,000 ft with snow posts standing ready along the edges. The deserts are now behind us, with forests of pines and deciduous trees, contrasting hues of evergreen and gold, and pastureland with cattle and barns. Elk meat is advertised – the hunting season is upon us.

We passed the chairlifts of the Hesperus ski area (at 8,232 ft on the road), then dropped to the busy mountain town of Durango at 6,512 ft, about 30 miles from Mesa Verde. Durango is an 1880's silvermining town, with RV Park, railway station, tree-lined streets, Victorian buildings, a population of 15,000 and so many motels that one had a sign: 'Last motel for 150 ft'! A historic narrow-gauge steam railroad has been operating from Durango to Silverton since 1882 (once to bring gold and silver down from the San Juan Mountains, now to give tourists an adventure). Visit www.durangotrain.com and you can even hear it! It was fine, dry and cooler – 61 degrees at noon.

Turning north on US.550, we followed the Animas River and the narrow-gauge railway, climbing the eastern arm of the San Juan Skyway Scenic Byway (a 232-mile circular drive). After 23 miles, passing a couple of RV Parks and ranches selling things like mountain honey, beef, eggs and home-made cheeses, we entered the San Juan National Forest. We liked the fire-warning: 'A beautiful forest is a matchless sight', though the regular sight of exclusive retirement/golf communities did intrude on the magnificent view. There were also lodges to accommodate those hunting, kayaking or horse-riding and we even saw a few cyclists.

Up at the Needles (8,825 ft), there is fuel, café, Silverpick Lodge and ski-rental. Past mountain resorts (and land open to the development of more): Durango Mountain Resort (17 miles north of Durango), Tacoma Village, The Inn (a more modest motel), all surrounded by stunning golden aspens, quivering in the wind, at the height of their fall colors. Sighting Engineer Mountain (its summit over 12,000 ft) ahead, we had our first glimpse of snowy peaks.

About 40 miles north of Durango, we reached Coalbank Pass Summit at 10,640 ft, then hair-pinned down past Twilight Peak before climbing again, still through the San Juan National Forest, past Andrews Lake to Molas Pass at 10,926 ft. Just before the pass, we were delayed by a traffic accident queue – one of the many motor-bikers riding the Skyway (often without helmets) had come to considerable grief and faced a long ambulance ride back to Durango. Sobered, we joined others for a break at the Molas viewpoint.

The road now dropped to Silverton - the 10 mile stretch of highway since Coalbank Pass claiming to be the most avalanche-prone road in North America, crossed by 100 avalanche paths!

Silverton, in the heart of the San Juan Mountains at 9,318 ft, was another Victorian mining town which has made the transition to tourism and ski-ing. The discovery of gold and silver in these mountains caused the displacement of the Ute Indians and the rapid construction of the railway, followed by the road. Today it has a Visitor Centre, 3 RV Parks, Theatre, Historical Museum and Courthouse, the Old Hundred Gold Mine Tour, plenty of motels and hotels with names like 'the Miner's Tavern'. See www.silvertoncolorado.com. As we arrived, a train steamed into the station, the terminus of the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, in a haze of black smoke.

Next we climbed the highest pass on the San Juan Skyway, Red Mountain Pass at 11,118 ft, the watershed of the Animas and Uncompahgre Rivers. The air was cold and thin, and we thought of the gold-ore waggoners toiling over the rough track here in 1876 (according to the information boards). Descending, we paused at the Red Mountain Mining Overlook at 10,667 ft, with a view of the wooden headframe and relics of the Yankee Girl Silver Mine (busy until the 1950's, closing in the 70's).

Indeed, the 23 miles from Silverton to Ouray is known as the 'Million Dollar Highway', an engineering marvel built in 1884 to link the 2 mining camps. Red Mountain is well-named, a colourful backdrop to the green and gold trees. Descending, the highway clung precariously to the walls of Uncompahgre Gorge and we were on the outside unguarded edge, glad that the weather was dry! 

The city of Ouray at 7,833 ft dates from 1876 and is known as the 'Switzerland of America'. At the tip of a valley, where the mountains close in to form canyons, it has natural hot spings, Victorian buildings and many motels. Though popular with climbers, it didn't exactly remind us of Switzerland!

Continuing, we entered the Uncompahgre National Forest and came to the hamlet of Ridgway, 9 miles north of Ouray, with food, fuel and a railway museum. Then 25 miles or so, across a grassy plain at about 7,000 ft, past the Ridgway State Park and Colona (with a Good Sam RV Park), to the large city of Montrose at 5,900 ft.

Entering on US.550 we passed a Ute Indian Museum and then the shopping zone, starting with a Super Walmart. Turn right (east) in the centre, on US.50, for the motel and campground zone. After about a mile there are 2 Good Sam RV Parks and we chose the second (marginally cheaper and less crowded). WiFi internet was available for a fee, but as 'management' was absent until tomorrow morning we couldn't access it!

For more tourist information, visit www.durango.org, www.ouraycolorado.com and www.visitmontrose.net.

October 3/4     74 miles     GUNNISON, KOA RV Park     ($26.36)

Past Black Canyon and Mesa Blue Lake to Gunnison; a ride to Hartman Rocks and a change in the weather

Before leaving Montrose, we returned to shop at Safeway, making 2 discoveries. First, larger stores with a fuel station offer the cheapest petrol yet (with 3 cents/gallon discount for Safeway Club members, plus another 3 cents off for spending over $50 in the store). Club membership is free and we'd already joined, to get special offers. Secondly, supermarkets in Colorado are not allowed to sell alcohol – we have to go to a 'Liquor Store' for a bottle of wine. (Laws, and purchase taxes, vary from State to State.)

Restocked, we continued east on US.50. After 10 miles we passed a café at the entrance road to Black Canyon, the US's newest National Park, to our north. The boat trip through the canyon on the Gunnison River sounded good but it only ran from 'Memorial Day through Labor Day' (last Monday in May to first Monday in September). See www.nps.gov/blca for more.

Cresting Cerro Summit at almost 8,000 ft, the snow-fencing was already in place and we saw our first skunk (dead on the road). Down to tiny Cimarron (10 miles on, at 6,950 ft), with a store and fuel, after which we passed a couple of RV parks with camping and cabins by a river, among sheep and cattle farms.

The road climbed again for 12 miles, reaching 8,720 ft, with a near view of a flat-top mesa and more distant snowy summits, notices about elk hunting and a sighting of one deer by a stream among the golden trees. It would make a good quiet, but strenuous, long-distance cycle route.

After another 6 miles we had our first view of the huge Blue Mesa Lake (the Gunnison River dammed into Colorado's biggest reservoir and power station), with a motel and camping, where we entered the Curecanti National Recreation Area. See www.nps.gov/cure for details of fishing (40-lb trout?) and boating permits.

At Lake Fork (40 miles from Montrose and 26 before Gunnison) we turned left, past a boat ramp and campground, to the Blue Mesa Dam at 7,557 ft. We had lunch here, below the West Elk Mountains, where minerals, coal and marble were once mined. The thermometer, bought this morning, recorded 82 degrees F inside.

US.50 continued east, crossing the lake and following its waters past several tent-camping sites. At Elk Creek, 13 miles from Lake Fork at 7,651 ft, there is a Visitor Centre and RV Park, then Lakeside Resort and RV Park. The lake gradually narrows to a river, and so to Gunnison, with Mesa RV Park 4 miles before town and the KOA Park 2 miles nearer, just behind the small airport, at 7,700 ft.

The KOA is surrounded with golden trees and green grass – the bare sand and gravel of the deserts are past, and Gunnison claims to be the Wildflower Capital of Colorado. We had a short (8-mile) cycle ride before making dinner, along the Gunnison River bank as far as the path went, then up to the Hartman Rocks Recreation Area entrance, freewheeling back. The temperature at 4 pm was about 75 degrees. Visit www.thrill.to/hartmanrocks.

Next day, the weather turned to strong gusty winds and rain: in a flurry of golden leaves the summer is gone! 'When will it snow?' – 'Any time' answered the KOA staff! Instead of the planned return to ride further among the Hartman Rocks, we worked on the internet with free WiFi in the comfort of our motorhome!

October 5     113 miles     BUENA VISTA, ARROWHEAD POINT CAMPING RESORT     ($22.27 with Good Sam discount)

Over the Continental Divide at Monarch Pass: 11,312 ft

After a cold night (down to 35 degrees F inside and out!), we tried the gas blown-air heating, which soon had the temperature up to 65 degrees after breakfast. As we continued east on US.50 we saw new snow on the mountain tops. The road climbed gently through cattle ranches with log cabins, red Dutch barns and white wooden farmhouses sheltered by golden trees.

33 miles on, after a trading post and RV Park at Tomichi Creek, we began the serious 11-mile ascent through forest to Monarch Pass summit. Snow gathered at the roadside above 10,000 ft, as we climbed past the Monarch Ski Area to reach the pass, at the top of the Continental Divide. This line is the watershed of America, dividing rivers flowing to the Pacific or the Atlantic. The height on the sign is 11,312 ft (our GPS added 16 ft).

We stopped for lunch with a view of fourteeners (14,000 ft plus peaks), though in summer we could have gone higher on the cable car to Monarch Crest (11,342 ft) – site of the world's highest 'Subway' sandwich shop! The gift shop/café at the car park, open all year (since 1954), has informative displays, from the mines of the 1800's to the local wildlife (moose, caribou, American elk, mule deer, fox, white mountain goats, etc – all stuffed for our admiration). We learnt that the area gets 350 inches of snow per year, due to start 'any time now'. Barry bought yet another cap.

A 10-mile descent followed, past another ski and snowboard area with chalets, then an RV Park, old mine workings, Monarch Lodge and café (5 miles down at 9,656 ft). At 9,000 ft, 8 miles below the Great Divide, we entered San Isabel National Forest – no more snow and mixed golden and evergreen trees. There was an RV and Camping Park at Monarch Spur and again at Heart of the Rocks (8,200 ft).

15 miles from the top we reached the 'Crossroads of the Rockies' at Poncha Springs, with motels and fuel at 7,500 ft. We continued 4 miles east to Salida, a city with Super Walmart, motels, hot springs, an RV Park, etc – and a 6,000 lb weight limit on the bridge out, over the Arkansas River. As we are fighting at 10,700 lb, we turned back to Poncha Springs and turned north there, on US.285.

Over the next 24 miles to Buena Vista, we passed Mt Antero, a fourteener rising grey and bare to the west. About 4 miles before Buena Vista, we turned east for a mile, across the Arkansas River (on this side of the Divide, it flows out to the Gulf of Mexico) at Johnson Village (fuel and stores) to a KOA campground but it looked bare and was having problems with its WiFi access. We backtracked and continued through Buena Vista (a well-named town at 8,000 ft, surrounded by mountains in the Arkansas Valley). We passed 2 or 3 Trailer Parks as we continued (largely residential, right by the road), and Mt Yale, another fourteener, reared to the west.

Then, 5 miles north of town, we stopped at an extensive 'Good Sam' park. The new owners, Joe and Kathy, took over the 'Crazy Horse Camping Resort' a year ago, renamed it and are working hard to revive its fortune. There are excellent new facilities and WiFi internet – no problem! At 8,500 ft, set on a hillside, we walked high into their woods as 3 mule deer came down for the night. Joe mentioned black bears, which we hoped not to see! We joined the Good Sam (RV Owner's) Club here - $12 for 12 months – and saved 10%.

We are in Chaffee County, among the Collegiate Peaks and the whitewaters of the Arkansas River. Summer temperatures range from 60-80 degrees falling to 40-50 in the evenings – it's not much cooler now, in the fall. See www.coloradoheadwaters.com.

October 6     139 miles     BUENA VISTA, ARROWHEAD POINT CAMPING RESORT (again)

Round the Top of the Rockies Scenic Byway – crossing the Continental Divide twice!    

Light powder-snow was falling through breakfast but didn't settle and soon the sun shone from a clear blue sky – a perfect day to travel along another of Colorado's scenic byways. See www.coloradobyways.org for details of the San Juan Skyway, the Top of the Rockies, and more. This was our guide and inspiration.

We headed north on US.24 into the San Isabel National Forest. Pines clung to the lower slopes, below bare brown rock, as we followed the railroad up the Arkansas Valley. Fishing, picnic and tent camping sites were signposted. After 9 miles, at Granite, there is a hostel and rafting centre at 8,900 ft, below mountain tops lost in a drift of snow and cloud. 4 miles on, by the junction with US.82 (going west to Aspen) is a motel, near which we saw a large herd of mule deer (with long furry ears).

Leadville (another 15 miles) at 10,152 ft proclaims itself 'The Cloud City: Historic Leadville, on Top of it All'. In 1877 it was the site of the most famous silver mine in the world, becoming the second largest city in Colorado by 1890. To the west looms Mt Elbert (Colorado's highest peak at 14,433 ft). The historic centre still has the Victorian Opera House, saloons and stores, while the modern end has the usual non-architecture of Safeway, Pizza Hut, etc. For motorhomers, the Sugar Loafin RV Park is 3 miles to the west (but closed by October), while in town the Leadville Corral RV Park was run-down and overpriced ($28.95). The motels say 'Welcome Hunters', while one café announced 'Elk's Up'. Sadly, the 'High Pies Shop' was closed.   

From here we drove 80 miles clockwise round the Top of the Rockies Scenic Byway loop. Starting off north-west, the next section of US.24 is called the '10th Mountain Division Memorial Highway', a good 2-lane road climbing 9 miles through pine forest to the Tennessee Pass. We are on the Continental Divide again at 10,424 ft. This pass is marked not by a visitor centre, but by reverent flags and war memorials to the 10th Mt Division and the 99th Infantry Battalion. The 10th Mt Div lost 990 men fighting in WWII Italy, men who bridged the Po and fought on into the Alps, men who trained in this very area to become the USA's only ski and mountain division. The 99th Inf Bn, 'the Vikings', were a special force engaged in the liberation of Norway, who also ski-trained here. Suddenly, we were transported to our own continent and the mountains we knew so well. A strange feeling, by the ski-lifts of Ski Cooper behind the monument.

Descending, on the Pacific side of the Divide, we left the headwater of the Arkansas but still had the railroad for company, serving mines past and present. At 9,300 ft, 6 miles down, we passed the remains of the army training camp, just before today's White Hale campground.

After another 6 miles, at 8,770 ft, there was a bus stop (!) and picnic place just before a high bridge over the Eagle River (built 1940, rehabilitated 2004). We peered down to a mining settlement on the railway, reached by a very narrow side road, then passed below the snowy peak of Notch Mountain (13,237 ft) to the west. We parked for lunch by abandoned mine workings, shortly before the small town of Minturn where there are rooms at the Minturn Inn, just below 8,000 ft.

The Scenic Byway joins the Interstate (I-70) 3 miles further on, and we turned east towards Denver (100 miles or so away). The busy freeway passed the modern mountain resort of Vail, home of the Colorado Ski Museum and Hall of Fame, and continued through the White River National Forest. We climbed again, regaining snow on the rocky verges, pausing at the Vali Pass Summit rest area at 10,630 ft to photograph the range of serious snowy peaks ahead. A narrow cycle-path appeared to shadow the Interstate to the south, empty of riders.

After 23 miles of I-70, we were pleased to turn off onto quiet US.91, leading south back to Leadville, 24 miles away. The affluent Copper Mountain ski resort at the interstate junction had its ski-lifts at the ready, awaiting more powder. The road climbed again, through the Arapaho National Forest, past a dammed lake rimmed by snowy pines, like a calendar of Canada. Above 11,000 ft now, we looked down on a huge area which was being cleared of derelict mine tailings, replanted and restored. Once, 3 boom-and-bust towns had filled the valley, mining gold, silver and lead. Kokomo had the highest Masonic Lodge in the USA (1882-1966).

A little higher, at 11,318 ft (or 11,346 on our GPS?), we recrossed the Continental Divide at Fremont Pass, the highest of our 3 crossings in 2 days! This pass was marked in yet another way – by the modern Climax Molybdenum Co mine. We descended, by the headwaters of the Arkansas River, back through the San Isabel National Forest to Leadville.

After shopping at Safeway, we returned to the peace of Arrowhead Point in time to see another mule deer sharing our campground.

October 7     205 miles    SILVERTHORNE/DILLON, SUPER 8 MOTEL     ($60.30)

Longest day so far, over the Continental Divide's highest pass to Glenwood Springs and east along the Colorado River

Leaving US.24 after 14 miles north, we drove to the ski resort of Aspen – 45 miles along US.82, a road which crosses the Continental Divide at Independence Pass (closed in winter and with a 35-ft vehicle length limit).

We re-entered the San Isabel National Forest, passed the Twin Lakes reservoir (reflecting the surrounding snow-capped 14,000 ft mountains under a clear blue sky) and  paused 6 miles along at Twin Lakes Village, with its seasonal café and cabins and the wooden Nordic Inn (1879). Then the road began to climb above 9,000 ft, passing trailheads for summer hikes, with tent-camping sites at Parry Peak and Twin Peaks.

The serious ascent started 12 miles after Twin Lakes, with 5 miles of narrow road (luckily we were on the inside of the unguarded drop), zigzagging way above the tree-line and up to the Continental Divide's highest pass: Independence Pass signed at 12,095 ft (or 12,118 on our GPS). The peaks of the fourteeners now looked very near, the land was bare and bleak with snow patches and a biting wind. We realised we were at about the same height as New Zealand's Mt Cook, and 3 times higher than our own Ben Nevis!

A 6-mile hairpinning drop followed until a car park at Lost Man Trailhead (10,550 ft), after which we descended more gently, with lunch in a forest layby at 9,826 ft. The temperature inside the unheated motorhome was a pleasant 79 degrees (after a night below freezing!)

We passed more forest tent-camps (all closed now), the yellow-golden-orange trees returning as our height dropped, until we reached Aspen 22 miles after the summit at 8,000 ft. The modern luxury ski resort is well-named (its streets lined with golden aspen trees), but it had nothing else to detain us. We entered along Main Street (as ever), leaving past the waiting ski-slopes and the airport with its lines of private planes.

US.82 now became a busy 4-lane highway north-west to Glenwood Springs, where it meets the I-70 freeway. In winter, with Independence Pass closed, it is a one-way road to Aspen but it is busy enough to have a 'car pool' lane, unseen since Los Angeles, and a phone number for Road Rage incidents! We didn't stop in Basalt (17 miles from Aspen at 6,200 ft), which had the first RV Campground, nor in Carbondale, in the shadow of 13,000 ft Mt Sopris – their names suggest the landscape.

At the large city of Glenwood Springs, 40 miles after Aspen, we met the I-70 and the Colorado River, running together east-west. Here are hot springs, motels, shops, restaurants and ski-ing on Sunlight Mountain, but little for campers. The Rock Gardens Resort, wedged between the freeway, the river and the railway line, just east of the city, demanded $38 for a night – and the best sites, along the riverbank, were reserved for 100 kayakers about to arrive! We decided against!

Heading east on the Interstate, through the canyon shared with the Colorado River and the railway, we drove on the lower level (westbound traffic perched on stilts above us), with a couple of tunnels to ease the gradient. A cycle path followed the river bank below. After 15 miles (5 miles before Gypsum), we turned off to check the advertised 'River Dance RV Resort'. It was unfinished (toilets & showers under construction) and the price was $31 cash only (unheard of!) Again, we declined this generous offer. Of course, they knew that there was no alternative for a long way, as we were entering the Vail Ski Resorts area, with no camping.

Continuing on I-70, as dusk began to fall, we reasoned that a motel room would be better value, and certainly easier to find. Turning off at Avon, about 50 miles after Glenwood Springs, we enquired at the Comfort Inn. Seeing our dismay at the suggested $99.99 (which came down to $89.99 for 'Seniors'), the kind receptionist suggested we keep going, past the ski resorts of Vail and Copper Mountain, and take a room in Silverthorne/Dillon – a bigger town with plenty of motels (and therefore competition).

And so we did, repeating the section of I-70 driven on yesterday's scenic loop but continuing past the Leadville exit to Dillon (at 8,850 ft). It was a splendid drive, reaching 10,630 ft on the freeway under a silver crescent moon. Motels were clustered round the interchange and we headed straight for the Super 8 and its customary warm welcome.

A big TV, even bigger bed, the luxury of a bath, complimentary non-stop tea/coffee/hot chocolate/apple or orange juice, and a light breakfast were all included. We fell asleep watching a 'Harry Potter' on the Disney Channel – and all for less than twice the price of today's campgrounds! Visit www.super8.com for over 2,000 motels in USA and Canada.