U.S. Route 550 is a spur of U.S. Highway 50 that runs from Bernalillo, New Mexico to Montrose,
Colorado in the western United States. The section from Silverton to Ouray is frequently
called the Million Dollar Highway. It is one of the roads on the Trails of the
Ancients Byway, one of the designated New Mexico Scenic Byways.
Route description New Mexico
U.S. 550 begins just north of Albuquerque at Bernalillo and passes through the towns
of San Ysidro, Cuba, Bloomfield and Aztec. All of Highway 550 in New Mexico has been
upgraded to four lanes, offering a high-speed connection for Farmington, New Mexico and
Durango, Colorado to Albuquerque and Santa Fe.
Colorado Most of U.S. 550 in Colorado is two-lane mountainous
highway. It is one of only two north–south U.S. Highways in Colorado which runs west
of the Continental Divide The other route is US 491. The route travels north through
the San Juan Mountains. The Million Dollar Highway stretches for about
25 miles in western Colorado and follows the route of U.S. 550 between Silverton and Ouray,
Colorado. It is part of the San Juan Skyway Scenic Byway. Between Durango and Silverton
the Skyway loosely parallels the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad.
Though the entire stretch has been called the Million Dollar Highway, it is really the
twelve miles south of Ouray through the Uncompahgre Gorge to the summit of Red Mountain Pass which
gains the highway its name. This stretch through the gorge is challenging and potentially hazardous
to drive; it is characterized by steep cliffs, narrow lanes, and a lack of guardrails; the
ascent of Red Mountain Pass is marked with a number of hairpin curves used to gain elevation,
and again, narrow lanes for traffic—many cut directly into the sides of mountains.
During this ascent, the remains of the Idarado Mine are visible. Travel north from Silverton
to Ouray allows drivers to hug the inside of curves; travel south from Ouray to Silverton
perches drivers on the vertiginous outside edge of the highway. Large RVs travel in both
directions, which adds a degree of excitement to people in cars. The road is kept open year-round.
Summer temperatures can range from 70–90 °F highs at the ends of the highway to 50–70 °F
in the mountain passes. The snow season starts in October, and snow will often close the
road in winter. Chains may be required to drive.
North of Durango, the highway passes by Trimble Springs, hot springs that have been open for
visitors since the late 19th century. The highway runs north along the Animas River,
under the Hermosa Cliffs. It enters the San Juan National Forest and goes past Haviland
Lake and Elektra Lake. Drivers pass by Engineer Mountain and Twilight Peak before crossing
Coal Bank Pass. Next is Molas Pass, which offers a panoramic view of Molas Lake, the
Animas River Gorge, and Snowdon Peak. Northbound travelers then pass through the town of Silverton,
elevation 9,320 feet, surrounded by 13,000 foot peaks Sultan Mountain, Kendall Mountain,
and Storm Peak. The highway leaves Silverton and proceeds
up Mineral Creek Valley before ascending to Red Mountain Pass. The ruins of the Longfellow
Mine are visible along the way. The highway then goes through a series of steep grades
and hairpin turns before reaching Lookout Point, which offers a view of the town of
Ouray.
This section of the route passes over three mountain passes:
Coal Bank Pass, elevation 10,640 ft. Molas Pass, elevation 10,970 ft.
Red Mountain Pass, elevation 11,018 ft.
The origin of the name Million Dollar Highway is disputed. There are several legends, though,
including that it cost a million dollars a mile to build in the 1920s, and that its fill
dirt contains a million dollars in gold ore. U.S. 550 ends at the corner of Townsend Avenue
and San Juan Avenue in Montrose, Colorado at the junction of its parent route U.S. Highway
50. History
The original portion of the Million Dollar Highway was a toll road built by Otto Mears
in 1883 to connect Ouray and Ironton. Another toll road was built over Red Mountain Pass
from Ironton to Silverton. In the late 1880s Otto Mears turned to building railroads and
built the Silverton Railroad north from Silverton over Red Mountain Pass to reach the lucrative
mining districts around Red Mountain, terminating at Albany just eight miles south of Ouray.
The remaining eight miles were considered too difficult and steep for a railroad. At
one point a cog railroad was proposed, but it never made it beyond the planning stage.
In the early 1920s, the original toll road was rebuilt at considerable cost and became
the present day US 550. The Million Dollar Highway was completed in 1924. Today the entire
route is part of the San Juan Skyway Scenic Byway.
Highway 550 was part of the original 1926 federal highway system. The original highway
extended 110 miles from Montrose, Colorado at U.S. Highway 50 to U.S. Highway 450 at
Durango, Colorado. In 1934, Highway 550 was extended through Farmington to Shiprock, New
Mexico. In 1989, the western end of Highway 550 was replaced with U.S. Highway 64 between
Farmington and Shiprock. In 1999, Highway 550 was rerouted at Aztec, New Mexico to replace
New Mexico State Highway 44 to Bernalillo, New Mexico, at which time all of Highway 550
in New Mexico was upgraded to four lanes. In 2009 U.S. 50 was re-routed onto the San
Juan Avenue bypass to avoid downtown Montrose. As a result, U.S. 550 was extended approximately
one mile Northwest to intersect with the new U.S. 50 alignment.
Major intersections Related routes
U.S. Route 50 U.S. Route 150
U.S. Route 250 U.S. Route 350
U.S. Route 450 U.S. Route 650
See also Cascade Lodge
References
External links
Media related to U.S. Route 550 at Wikimedia Commons