Ridgeway State Park has become one of our favorite destinations in Colorado. The park itself is very peaceful with hiking trails around the Uncompahgre River and large camp site spaces. While this region of Colorado is more arid, the geology of the box canyon and nearby San Juan mountains is spectacular. While the park is nice, Ridgeway is our favorite because of all the wonderful things within driving distance.
To the north is Montrose and the Black Canyon of the Gunnison. The 48-mile canyon reaches 2,722 feet deep and has the narrowest point of 40 feet at the river. The colors of the canyon change dramatically throughout the day and with weather conditions.
To the south is a whole host of adventures in the San Juan mountains. Just south is the town of Ouray that has multiple days of adventures with the Hot Springs, Box Canyon Falls, Perimeter Trail, Cascade Falls, and more.
Continuing South is US 550 and the Million Dollar Highway built by Otto Mears. This is an exceptionally beautiful highway, but it is also quite nerve wrecking. The road is narrow and has no guardrails for much of the drive. Especially the first time we drove this stretch in our truck, it was really intimidating. However, subsequent drives in a narrower Jeep it has been much more pleasant.
On the other side of the Million Dollar Highway is the town of Silverton; one of the terminals of the Durango & Silverton Narrow Guage Train. Catering to the train layover lunch crowd Silverton has many restaurants to choose from and one great dessert place: Rocky Mountain Funnel Cake Factory.
Four wheeling is all around Ridgeway with jumping off points from Ouray, US 550, and Silverton to name a few. In addition to the vistas and mountain scenery the San Juans hold a rich mining history. Seeing all the ghost towns, mine shafts, and the altitudes they were working makes you really respect the men who worked in this area.
Even the nights present majestic scenery. As an International Dark Sky Community, Ridgeway offers spectacular views of the night sky. We are looking forward to getting our new 8-inch telescopes over to Ridgway.
With so many activities within driving distance of Ridgeway State Park, we plan on coming back many more times.
Address:
28555 Highway 550
Ridgway, CO, 81432
(970) 626-5822
Website:
https://cpw.state.co.us/placestogo/Parks/ridgway
Fire Restrictions:
https://westslopefireinfo.com/ouray-county/
Park Activities We Have Done:
- Uncompahgre River
- Astronomy
Local Attractions We Have Done:
- Black Canyon of the Gunnison
- Ouray
- Million Dollar Highway (US 550: Ouray to Silverton)
- Silverton
- Durango & Silverton Railroad Narrow Gauge Railroad
- Jeeping / Four Wheeling the San Juans
- Rockhounding
Where to go to Mass:
The nearest Catholic Church is St. Mary’s to the north in Montrose.
We have included St. Patrick’s Catholic Church in Silverton because as an older, mining town church we think it would be great to celebrate mass there. Especially since we go to Silverton often for four wheeling.
St. Mary’s Catholic Church – Montrose (26 minutes from visitor center)
1855 St Marys Dr
Montrose, CO 81401
(970) 249-3319
See website for Mass times: https://www.stmarymontrose.org/
St. Patrick’s Catholic Church – Silverton (1 hour from visitor center)
349-351 10th St
Silverton, CO 81433
(970) 325-4373
See website for Mass times: https://masstime.us/st-patrick-catholic-church-silverton-colorado/
Emergency Services:
In case of emergency, call 911!
While we hope emergency services are not required, it is good to know how far and who to contact when you are camping. Before leaving on your adventure, please double check this information to make sure it has not changed.
Emergency Room and Hospital (About 29 Minutes From Visitor Center)
800 S 3rd St.
Montrose, CO 81401
(970) 240-7180
Sheriff / State Patrol:
421 6th Avenue
Ouray, CO 81427
Non-Emergency Line: (970) 325-7272
Colorado State Patrol (Montrose Troop 5C)
2420 North Townsend Avenue
Montrose, CO 81401
Non-Emergency Line: (970) 249-9575
Amateur Radio Repeaters:
Ridgeway State Park sits in a box canyon, and we have not been able to reach any repeaters from the campground. Once you are out of the campground, you can reach many different repeaters depending on where you are going.
The Ridgeway / Montrose region is home to Dave Casler, KE0OG, whose YouTube videos were very helpful in getting our amateur radio licenses, @sowewentdad found his videos especially helpful in studying for his Amateur Extra License. We hope to run across him on the airwaves around Ridgeway and thank him for all his hard work over the air someday.
NOAA Weather Frequency: 162.450 MHz
Keep the squelch loose and don’t forget about Parks on the Air! (Park ID: K-1235)
Please take a moment to follow us on X, Facebook, WordPress, or Instagram to hear more from So We Went to The RV Show:
Or subscribe to receive email updates:
So We Went to the RV Show Blog is not affiliated with any of the organizations linked on this page.
So We Went to The RV Show ... 