With a wedding scheduled the very next day, we pressed on toward Telluride...



When you approach Telluride by way of Montrose, you feel as if you're driving into Switzerland. I have enjoyed a lifetime of Colorado Rocky Mountain views, but there really is something especially spectacular about Sneffels Range. No picture could do them justice.



We didn't actually stay in Telluride, but Mountain Village. Think of Telluride as a remote, elite, affluent mountain town. Mountain Village is like its {slightly, barely} more affordable suburb which most people could still not afford to live in. Founded in the mid 90s and fashioned to look like a Swiss village. The view from our rooms was divine.



We left our car at the hotel and didn't use it during the entire stay, because Mountain Village has a 3 mile gondola that traverses the mountain. The gondola silently glides along the village from 7 a.m. to midnight every day. You hop on in Mountain Village...



Going up, up, up...

Until you reach the operation house at the top of the mountain, where you can jump off the gondola, which has slowed down, to either ski {if it's winter, obvs}, dine, or get hitched.



But if you should choose to stay on the gondola, it speeds up as it carries you off the side of the mountain, down to Telluride, which is directly below you now. It's a bit startling the first time you drop into Telluride! This gondola has safely transported millions since it was installed, and goes about 11 mph for 13 minutes.



Then, you'll find yourself in the heart of Telluride, where everything is walking distance.



When you're ready to go back to your lodging in Mountain Village, you just hop right back on the gondola. Dogs and strollers are welcome. Sometimes locals or other tourists will join you to fill up the gondola, which can carry 8 adults. Other times you enjoy the ride alone. In early June, we almost never had to wait in line more than a minute.



And you enjoy the breathtaking views or try and spot wildlife. We saw a happy porcupine a couple times, some deer, and according to locals a bear hangs out around the top of the gondola.



We stayed at The Inn at Lost Creek. It was a really nice stay all the way around, and just a short walk from the gondola. Everyone tells you how beautiful Telluride is, but until you've seen it with your own eyes, the words fail.



Each night during our stay, we booked a private hot tub on the roof, where we would watch the sun setting, the constellations revealing, and the satellites passing over steadily--reminding us that a world of high powered, bustling business was still carrying on all over the world. Except here.




Cheers,
Heather