Yep – we went to Telluride.  Peter and I ditched the kids with Grandma in Durango and drove over to Telluride to see what all the hype was about.  Boy, they aren’t kidding.  The place is beautiful.

Some say that Telluride is a derivative of  “to hell you ride”, in reference to the remote location of the town and the difficulty in getting there.

According to Wikipedia:  The town was founded in 1878… renamed Telluride in 1887, for the gold telluride minerals found in other parts of Colorado. These telluride minerals were never located near Telluride, causing the town to be named for a mineral which never was mined there.  Somewhat amusing, but at least Telluride can lay claim to a famous outlaw.  Butch Cassidy got his notorious start in Telluride by robbing his first bank there in 1889.

The town still retains its Old West feel and exudes a very laid-back vibe for such a world-class ski resort.  We (Peter) didn’t ski, but we did take the (free) gondola which links Telluride to Mountain Village via a 13 minute, 3 mile ride.  Really, really high in the air…  I concentrated on eavesdropping on the other passengers’ conversations and heard that the iconic Coors label with the mountains is Wilson Peak, part of the San Juan Range, which is 14,017 feet.  That made the 10,500 foot drop that I was looking at from the gondola seem pretty tame.

When I was researching whether to stay in Mountain Village or Telluride, I came across a funny tidbit.  Mountain Village is the subject of a mockumentary called “The Lost People of Mountain Village”.  It’s on Youtube and definitely worth checking out.  You don’t need to be familiar with the area to appreciate the clever humor poking fun at this gorgeous place.  I can’t use the words “artificial” or “contrived” because I actually liked it there.  Not enough to stay in one of the gazillion hotel rooms there, but it was really, really nice.  Check out Youtube and see for yourself.