Kremmling (Junction US 40)—State Bridge—Wolcott (Junction US 24); 41.3 miles, State 11.

Gravel-surfaced, narrow in places and hazardous in wet weather. Route paralleled between Kremmling and State Bridge by Denver & Salt Lake Ry. Accommodations limited. A link between two arterial highways, US 40 and US 24, this route is little used by Coloradoans. The highway is narrow, with many steep grades, and is often closed by winter snows.                

In KREMMLING, 0 miles (7,322 alt., 261 pop.) (see Tour 7b), State 11 branches southwest from US 40 (see Tour 7b) and crosses the Colorado River on an old wooden bridge of massive construction.

The highway crosses the BLUE RIVER, 3.2 miles, near its junction with the Colorado, and ascends by many curves and sharp turns into rough and rugged mountain terrain, sharply contrasted with the green and pleasant lowlands of Middle Park seen in broad and sweeping panorama to the north. Higher in the mountains, hay and small grains are raised in many small valleys. The up-and-down road winds into a narrow valley and again ascends, swinging out on a narrow shelf of rock, twisting around the face of cliffs, affording a constantly changing view. At intervals, high ridges wall in the route; masses of somber spruce and jade aspen, brilliantly colored ledges, and tumbled metallic-hued boulder slides form a pattern vivid as a Persian mosaic. Far below, the glittering serpentine Colorado River traces its course through tiny parks and meadows, which resemble patches of bright green moss. The Denver & Rio Grande Western R. R. follows the course of the river between Kremmling and State Bridge (see below) by way of the Dotsero Cutoff (see Tour 7b). To the north are the high flat-topped mountains of the "bad lands"; to the south and southeast the Gore Mountains lift their dark and jagged outline against the sky.

South of this shelf rock another abrupt descent necessitates careful driving. The highway skirts a forest of twisted scrub cedar and proceeds into Sheep Horn Valley (good hunting and fishing). Following the contour of the mountains at river level, a comparatively straight course, the road ascends a steep and dangerous grade, too narrow in places for cars to pass, and descends gradually through an amazingly colorful region to STATE BRIDGE, 28.1 miles (6,728 alt., 15 pop.). This cluster of weathered buildings, named for the span across the river, lies at the northern foot of Rainbow Mountain, named for its many-hued rock formations.

Ranching is the chief occupation of this region. As late as 1915 it was the scene of an almost continuous struggle between cattlemen, who first settled here, and sheepmen who later drove in their flocks. The ill feeling finally subsided, and stockmen now live at peace.

The GORE MOUNTAINS (L) were named for the Irish baronet, Sir George Gore, who visited Colorado in 1855. His hunting party, one of the largest ever to roam the early West, included 40 retainers, 14 dogs, 112 horses, 6 wagons, 21 carts, and 12 yoke of oxen. Gore hunted through North, Middle, and South Parks before turning northward into Wyoming and Montana; the party is reported to have killed some 3,000 buffalo, 40 grizzly bear, and unnumbered antelope and deer. The slaughter was so great and so wanton that the Indians, fearing for their food supply, thought seriously of slaughtering this Celtic Nimrod and his play-boy followers. Many stories arc told of Gore's irascible temper. On one occasion he attempted to ship out some hides, but the American Fur Co., which controlled transportation to the Missouri River, demanded what he thought was an exorbitant carrying charge. In a rage Gore burned all the hides, and then his wagons, dumping the remaining iron work into a river.

Some pioneers of the West maintained that gold was first discovered in Colorado by a member of that party. When Gore saw the gold, he exclaimed, "This is gold, but I did not come here to seek gold! I don't need it. This is a pleasure hunt." Fearing the gold might cause his men to desert, he broke camp immediately. The man who had found the gold was unable to locate the spot again.

South of State Bridge the road ascends from the Colorado River Valley over a steep grade gouged out of solid shelf rock. WHISKY SPRINGS (L), an old landmark, was named for the many bottles left at the water hole by trappers, hunters, and stagecoach passengers. It is a matter of record that many travelers insisted that they needed several bottles of stimulant before proceeding farther along this hazardous road.

The highway reaches the top of a low divide, 35 miles, and descends into the valley of the Eagle River through arid hills covered with sagebrush. There are few trees here, and the prospect is monotonous and uninteresting compared with the rough wild beauty of the northern section of the drive.

At 39 miles is the junction with an unimproved road.

Left on this road to TRACY'S HIDEOUT, 3.5 miles, an old ranch house reputed to have once sheltered a notorious gunman who finally met his death in a gun fight in Wyoming. An almost-perfectly preserved fossil of the head of a prehistoric three-toed horse, found near the ranch house in 1934, is in the Museum of Natural History at Denver (see Denver).

WOLCOTT, 41.3 miles (6,965 alt., 115 pop.) (see Tour 5c), is at the junction with US 24 (see Tour 5c).