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    • Day 1
    • Day 2
    • Day 3
    • Day 4
    • Day 5
    • Day 6
    • Day 7
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~15 miles :
from 8,750 ft to 11,000 ft


2,800 ft up


550 ft down

Day 1: Telluride to Last Dollar Hut

On Sunday morning after a stellar breakfast of egg and bacon rolls at the Telluride Bakehouse (plus specialty coffees for some), we packed our worldly possessions into bike panniers and set off after a commemorative photo taken by a passing tourist. Last Dollar Hut is at an altitude of nearly 11,000 feet, and 2,300 feet higher than Telluride. The first few miles were very pleasant, along a bike path in the valley, and then started the first climb up Last Dollar road towards Telluride airport.

This was an excellent warm-up on tarmac, or pavement as it's called over here, and much easier to ride than gravel, dirt or sand. As we passed the tiny airport, the road turned to dirt and the Alpine scenery was dotted with picturesque houses and farms and horse ranches. After about ten miles we stopped among aspen trees for some lunch. By this time the climbing had gotten steeper and I had already walked my bike a few hundred yards which seemed infinitely less tiring than peddling and in my case, almost as fast.

After lunch, the real onslaught of the day began: three switchbacks in about three miles on very steep and rocky terrain. By this time we were all noticing classic shortness of breath at high altitude. True to form, I decided to walk most of the way in order to save my breath. We reached the saddle of the mountain in the early afternoon and then had to lug our bikes up a few hundred yards of extremely steep and rocky trail.

Pushing the bike up was hazardous, with many of us struggling not to slip back down the slope. I could only take a few steps at a time before needing to stop and regain my balance and my breath. Fortunately it was only a short distance before the first hut came into sight nestled in the pine trees at the top of the world. Mike had the key to the padlocks, and we eagerly explored the two metal food storage cabinets. They were stocked with every type of canned food, nuts, cookies, packets of soup, cereals, rice, pasta and much more besides. There were bunk beds with foam mattresses and dry sleeping bags were stored in new metal dustbins.

The Crapper Barrel is the San Juan Experience. Each hut is equipped with the most memorable of hut amenities within striking distance - the crapper barrel. This consists of a metal dustbin drilled full of holes around the bottom part. It has a firmly closed lid and the contraption is enclosed by a wooden structure which supports a toilet seat reigning directly over the lid. On your left, a smaller metal dustbin is destined for used toilet paper, and on your right another one is full of ash or pine needles or dirt to cast over fresh deposits. Always remove the lid before mounting the throne! The views from all six crapper barrels were excellent but Last Dollar hut was spectacular.

We sat in the sun and the cool air enjoying the view of the snow capped mountains opposite and some of us found a tree to lean against as we read for a quiet hour of relaxation before it got too cold. We lit a much needed fire in the wood burning stove as the sun set and Mike and Paul prepared the most delicious angel hair pasta with canned turkey and mushrooms and parmesan cheese. Despite being tired, I didn't sleep well that night because of the altitude and awoke with a dreadful headache that had to be dealt with by medication.