Colorado is filled with scenic drives and roads with breathtaking and postcard worthy views, however many of those same roads are also very dangerous. They are narrow with sharp turns, with sheer cliffs and straight drops...oh, and let's not forget about the fact that many of them don't have guardrails.

One of the most dangerous roads is Highway 550, in particular the stretch that rolls between Ouray, Silverton and Durango, also known as the Million Dollar Highway.

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According to the Durango Herald, an 84 year-old man was driving with his wife when he lost control of his vehicle and plunged about 200 feet down an embankment just a couple of miles from Silverton close to a scenic waterfall.

THANKFULLY, both the husband and wife suffered only minor injuries, which is extremely fortunate because there are stretches of that road where if you drive off...you're pretty much done.

The woman was life flighted to Mercy Regional Medical Center before being sent to the Front Range for additional medical treatment. The man was taken by ambulance to Mercy.

This incident could've been a lot worse seeing that there have been many deaths on this beautiful stretch of road. Check out this drone footage of a portion of the drive not too far from where this accident occurred:

YouTube/Cenia Aerial Imagery

Just a friendly reminder: if you're going to be out and about enjoying these incredible drives, it can be tempting to start gawking at all of the beauty around you (it's happened to me before and thankfully I've stayed on the road) but there are spots to pull off safely to stop and enjoy the natural beauty around you.

Take your time, be aware of your surroundings, be respectful of other drivers and pay extra close attention to the weather forecast because the weather up in these higher elevations can change in an instant.

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