A remote Ute homeland became a booming mining town in the San Juan Mountains — and that history still shapes the Ouray you see today.

I kept noticing the reds, oranges and yellows around Red Mountain Pass and wanted to know why the San Juan Mountains are so colorful. The answer goes back to the volcanic history that shaped these mountains.

The more time I spend hiking, biking and driving through Colorado’s San Juan Mountains, the more I want to understand what makes them so rugged, colorful and wild.

What I've found worth doing after more than two months in and around Ouray — hikes, mining history, waterfalls, and the drive to Silverton.

I wasn't looking for Butch Cassidy's childhood home when I spotted it along Highway 89 on my way toward Moab. I stopped to see the cabin and ended up digging into the story of Robert LeRoy Parker before he became one of the West's most famous outlaws.

The old mines, abandoned buildings and mining towns along the Million Dollar Highway caught my attention while driving from Ouray to Silverton. I wanted to know how they all connected and why so much mining happened in these mountains.

The Million Dollar Highway began as a way to move people, supplies and ore through Colorado's San Juan Mountains. I looked into the mining boom, Otto Mears' toll roads and how the route eventually became the highway we drive today.

I drove Colorado’s Million Dollar Highway from Ouray to Silverton and back. Here’s what it’s really like to drive, where the exposed sections are, and what to know before you go.