Could anyone give my an idea about how long it would take to travel to Silverton from Denver. Also, any suggestions on lodging for possibly 8 people who will be hiking..thanks.

If I'm not mistaken you're probably looking at 6-7 hours of driving, but it's been a while. When we visited Silverton we were actually staying in Ouray which is a bit larger and has more options for hotels and home rentals. Silverton is TINY little town. Then again, we were there at Christmas and it was almost a ghost town. Maybe there are more accommodations in summer?

jlm has it right, silverton isn't tiny it's really tiny. i stayed in telluride, what a cool town. lots of b&bs along with hotels, better yet, atmosphere. Ouray tho probably has some more economical places to stay. driving time, i don't know but it has to be at least 7 hours.you don't have the super highway speeds the whole way. even further out, durango which will have plenty of places to stay too.

I agree that Ouray is a better choice with lots of choices in lodging and restaurants. They have a good website.
www.ouraycolorado.com/

If you want hiking, go to Yankee Boy Basin out from Ouray. You can follow the dirt road to the top of the steep ridge between the basin and Telluride. (Known locally as To Hell You Ride.)

We tried to climb Mt. Sneffels once, but the wet and fog stopped the effort.
Wasn't worth it and the wet rocks made it risky.

Depending on when you go, wildflowers abound.

We would like to do ALOT of hiking-some 14ner's too-if anyway has any info. there. Any suggestions for lodging in Ouray-or restaurants?

are there two silvertons? i thought there was a silverton next to dillon area, which is two hours from denver.

lincasanova, there is a Silverthorne near Dillon. Only one Silverton that I know of.

In Ouray, I would recommend the Ouray Victorian Inn. It is quiet, clean and tucked back against the mountain with a beautiful stream right behind it. It isn't anything fancy, but it is comfortable, and within easy walking distance of everything in town.

laurelee, you haven't said what time of year you will be going. I am assuming not during the winter, as that could significantly increase your drive time. I would think that 6-7 hours would be about right. Add on another hour if you decide to stay at Silverton (which I wouldn't recommend for the same reasons as the other posters).

I have never done this, but you can take the Durango-Silverton train and get off about halfway to hike in the Weminuche Wilderness. It is one of the most pristine areas because access is so limited. www.durangotrain.com

This is mid July when we will be traveling. We are hoping to do some really long day hikes, 14er's and would like good food and coffee!
Wildflowers would be nice too.

For food and coffee, Ouray will be a much better choice for your base. There is plenty of hiking you can do from Ouray, and there should be lots of wildflowers that time of year - at least at the higher elevations. We were there over 4th of July last summer, and there were lots of wildflowers. Just remember not to pick them as there is a heavy fine. Yankee Boy Basin is beautiful, and I have seen lots of pictures of it with millions of wildflowers. There is also a wildflower festival at Crested Butte every year - a couple hours northeast of Ouray.

Thanks, do you have any suggestions for restaurants or where would be a good place to have as our headquarters for some really great hikes?

Bon Ton is my favorite restaurant in Ouray. It is more upscale. They are part of the St. Elmo Hotel - their website and menu is at <http://www.stelmohotel.com/ouray-co-...t-bonton.html>. Other than that, there are lots of little cafes with the usual chicken tenders and roast beef kind of menus. There is one coffee/ice cream parlor toward the south end of town on the west side of the street. I don't remember the name of it, but it is just a door or two down from the movie theater.

When you say "headquarters for some really great hikes", I assume you mean where to start your hiking from, not where to stay. We have never done the extensive hiking that I think you are looking for, so unfortunately I can't comment much there. The Weminuche Wilderness that I talked about in my previous post seems to be much less traversed than other areas. I would recommend getting a US Forest Service map with trails and campgrounds on it. Many trails start at campgrounds. I also found a website when I was planning our last vacation - I think it might have the info you are looking for. <http://gorp.away.com/gorp/resource/u.../hik_sanj.htm>

Good luck!