Motorcycle ride in Colorado

Million Dollar Highway (US-550)

73 miles (118 km), 1 hr 30 min, advanced

US-550 crosses Colorado's San Juan Mountains between Ouray and Durango. The stretch from Ouray to Silverton, with no crash barriers in places, clings to dizzying cliffs up to Red Mountain Pass; the road then crosses Molas Pass and Coal Bank Pass, above 3,200 m. Stay fully focused and watch for falling rocks.

Molas Pass. Photo: Andreas F. Borchert, CC BY-SA 4.0, resized

Open in OpenStreetMap © OpenStreetMap

Stops along the way

SStart: Ouray
1Red Mountain Pass, after 13 miles (21 km)
2Silverton, after 23 miles (37 km)
3Molas Pass, after 29 miles (47 km)
4Coal Bank Pass, after 37 miles (59 km)
FFinish: Durango, after 73 miles (118 km)

Download the GPXTrack and stops as a GPX file, for a sat nav or another app.

Photos along the route

Silverton. Photo: Daniel Schwen, CC BY-SA 4.0, resized

Ouray. Photo: Bede735, CC BY-SA 3.0, resized

This ride in the MotoLert app

In MotoLert, this ride is one of the roadbooks: its route, stops and photos are in the app. Premium guides you along it; camera zones and reported hazards stay free. The app is coming soon to iPhone.

Other rides nearby

Scenic Byway 12, from Escalante to Torrey (Utah)

65 miles (104 km), 1 hr 20 min, intermediate

Photo: Greg Willis, CC BY-SA 2.0, resized

Sedona and Oak Creek Canyon (Arizona)

37 miles (59 km), 45 min, intermediate

Photo: Adam Baker, CC BY 2.0, resized

Needles Highway and Iron Mountain Road (Black Hills)

42 miles (67 km), 1 hr 5 min, intermediate

Photo: w_lemay, CC BY-SA 2.0, resized

Roads change: passes close in winter, roadworks, rockfalls, local restrictions. Check the road before you set off. MotoLert does not replace road signs or the Highway Code.

Route planned by MotoLert with Valhalla on © OpenStreetMap contributors data (ODbL). Photos from Wikimedia Commons, with the author and licence under each image.

Credits and licences