When we last left our hero, he had just gotten a head start on exploring the old mining areas northeast of Silverton, Colorado. We resume the next morning when, for some reason, he (that is, I) decided that this first day of July would be spent exploring the old mining areas northWEST of Silverton, Colorado. So off he/I/it went, driving the fabled Million Dollar Highway from Silverton to Ouray, Colorado. The Million Dollar Highway was originally a toll road built by one Otto Mears in 1882-83. Here’s what it looked like back then:
Ummmmm…Yikes! Fortunately, the road was massively rebuilt in 1924 to form a part of the U.S. Highway system (pre-Interstate). But it’s still an adventurous drive. We’ll see some of that later. For now, let’s just take a look at some of the scenery along the upper reaches of this famed road…
Soon, I spotted some surprisingly intact, large, old mine structures. These turned out to be the Silver Ledge Mine. The reason the structures are so intact is twofold. First, the mine operated until the 1950’s. Second, at least one of the structures (the headframe) has been reinforced / stabilized in more recent times. Despite its name, the Silver Ledge Mine actually produced mostly lead and zinc, as well as a small amount of gold. Some pictures of the old mine structures are below…
Getting back on the road, the Million Dollar Highway heads up over Red Mountain Pass. Here’s some of the scenery from that stretch of the road…
After passing over the pass, the Million Dollar Highway passes three ghost towns: Red Mountain, Guston, and Ironton. These towns are spread over one large mining area, and the borders between them are unclear, so I am making no attempt to identify which of the following pictures are from which of the three towns. Deal with it.
OK, so there’s lots of cool abandoned buildings in the ghost towns. That doesn’t mean the amazing natural scenery is no more. Here are a few shots of the Rocky Mountain splendor that surrounds these ghost towns…
OK, that’s your scenery fix for now. Let’s get back to decrepit stuff…
Returning to the Million Dollar Highway, here’s a bit of what I encountered on this final leg from Ironton to Ouray…
I had hoped to spend some time photographing the town of Ouray, but I spent too much time at Box Canyon Falls Park. In addition to the requisite waterfall and hiking trails, this park also had a small museum that I found quite interesting. Did you know that, prior to 1945, many people believed exposure to atomic radiation to be a healthful thing? Or that advertisements for hot springs were full of lies? Yes, before we nuked Japan to end WWII, brochures for Ouray actually tried to lure tourists by claiming the town’s hot springs were radioactive!
After leaving Box Canyon Falls Park, I headed back up to Silverton, reversing my route on the Million Dollar Highway. This time, I tried to focus my photography more on the highway itself, and not just the surrounding scenery…but the scenery is so excellent! I just couldn’t help myself!
Did you guys have fun today? I sure did! Please come back next week. We’ll see some more Rocky Mountain scenery, and more ghost towns. Plus, we’ll get into ore buckets (not literally, you goofball!) and aerial trams. See you later, gals-n-dudes!
Voyages with Parkinson's 