Our last day in Silverton came way too soon for my liking. We were having a great time and there was so much more to explore, I didn’t want to leave.
As we were getting things together for the day, Ray our fabulous camp host stopped by to find out where we were headed so Mark grabbed our trail book and showed him. Ray said we’d picked great trails for our last day as there was much to see.
Our route would take us by the Gold King Mine, site of the 2015 EPA disaster where contaminated water flowed into the San Juan River and affected water in four states, severely hurting the Navajo Nation. I remembered this from our local news when it happened because much of the far northern part of our state is Navajo Nation Land.
Ray also told us we had a great chance to see some elk today and that made my ears perk up. So far, we were in an animal sighting drought. I’m sure the recent 416 fire had a lot to do with that as probably thousands of deer, elk and bear had fled to other parts of the forest. This spot, where we were sure to see lots of elk, was behind a small bathroom building along a trail. Ray said the terrain drops off behind the bathrooms and you can see the giant racks on the bull elk while they graze. Yeah! We were going to see some wildlife!
We headed out of town on a different trail that traveled up into a long gulch. The first part is a perfectly smooth dirt road. This is due to the continued cleanup from the 2015 disaster. There are heavy trucks that run up and down everyday, complete with flagmen reminding you of their presence. The trail next to where they are working on cleaning up the mess and wow, it is awful. From what we could see, it looks like contaminated dirt was put into giant plastic bladders. On the day we drove by, an excavator was scooping out the insides of some bladders and loading it into the dirt haulers.
We crossed the creek leaving the cleanup behind us as we headed onto trail 52 which ended with a box canyon. That canyon revealed an unexpected treat; a mountain lake. There was a clearing with a couple of vehicles and after parking, we got out to explore a little. The lake was pretty from the little parking lot but we knew it would be better close up. Boy, we were right. There were a couple of teeny tiny spots of snow still hanging on up in the rocky mountain and the water wasn’t as cold as I expected. Our RZR’s were sitting in the lot with a giant field of wild flowers separating and the top of the Gold King Mine peeking out from above. It really was pretty and in a better snow year, would be spectacular with snow-capped mountains all around this little lake.
Our animal sighting drought continued so I was really looking forward to the bathroom Ray told us about. We passed it the first time by thinking it was the wrong one, but after reaching Highway 550, we circled back to it. The little detour was a fun trail though! We were in the trees when we passed the bathroom then the trail wound down some steep and narrow switchbacks which I’m sure is where the trail name, Corkscrew Gulch, came from. They were pretty fun. We led the group and as we went down I could look up and see the RZR flags of everyone else. We reached 550 and stopped for a break then headed back to the bathroom.
Five of us certainly were not quiet, no matter how slow we went. I was up and out of the RZR in a flash. I wanted to see elk! I tiptoed ever so quietly behind the bathroom scanning the bushes for any movement. My camera was ready and my eyes were peeled. I looked up and down almost in a grid fashion; I was a woman on a mission. A failed mission, though. I’m not sure how long I tiptoed in the woods behind that bathroom. Mark tapped me on the shoulder that it was time to go. I trudged back to the RZR in defeat. All was not lost, though. The area behind the bathroom was healthy with pretty flowers, lots of brush and trees. I could have stood there for hours taking it all in.
Lake Como was our goal for lunch. The trail took us over Hurricane Pass with the lake sitting just on the other side. As we drove on the ridge Mark could see it on his left, lucky duck. The trail then turned to the left and I got my first sight of it, a rich emerald color standing brightly against the dark and rocky mountains surrounding it. This was the perfect spot for lunch, even prettier than Kite Lake the day before. Our lunch was certainly gourmet; ham & cheese sandwiches with chips, oranges and chocolate chip cookies. We stayed long enough for a little exploration. The pictures don’t do the beauty justice. Everyday was a new treat for us to see. On this day during lunch we saw the only animal we’d seen to this point, the marmot. Each day we saw at least one. They are found in the highest elevations and are surprisingly quick to squeeze in between rocks and escape. Today was different. This little guy was not shy at all. He clearly was used to people and I swear he was posing for us. I didn’t want to get to close so I zoomed in with the camera for several pictures. Another Jeep pulled up and he was gone.
After lunch it was time to check out “the wall” on the Poughkeepsie Gulch trail. We’ve heard about it on both Jeep and RZR forums and were eager to give it a try. Mark talked to the Jeep group at Lake Como for tips on conquering it. The men said that we should be able to get up and if we got stuck near the steepest part of the top, a winch would get us the rest of the way no problem. Okay. Except that we don’t have a winch on our RZR. I’m sure we’ll be fine was Mark’s battle cry as we left the lake and headed toward “the wall.” Eager to try until we saw it. When we got close there was a Jeep having a heck of a time on that steep part and Mark decided that maybe this wasn’t something for all five of us to try. I was bummed. Not so much that we didn’t try it but that we didn’t stick around long enough to watch other people do it. Hopefully we’ll get to on our next trip.
Next up was Eureka Gulch. We looped around on the California Gulch trail that passed two old mills and Animas Forks. The trail banked to the right as we drove towards Silverton. Mark picked a good one for our very last trail for this leg of our trip. We were treated to a few waterfalls cascading down the gulch walls. With almost no snow left anywhere, the big thunderstorms of the last several days dumped enough rain for them to fall again.
Sunnyside Mine sits at the back of the gulch where the trail ends and was a great stopping point before turning around. The mine openings were fenced off so we could only peer down into the darkness. We each took pictures hoping to catch something cool. Mark climbed up to another part of the mine where another opening was fenced off. He shouted for us to stand together for a picture. This was going to be an epic selfie for sure. The man has an eye for it and with his long arms, he’s a human selfie stick.
Turns out, we weren’t done. There was one more mine to see. Brain and Michelle came with us while the other three went back to town. As we passed the cleanup site in the morning we could see what looked like a mine off in the distance. So, back to town we drove by the still moose-free beaver ponds making a right turn onto the morning trail. Again we passed the flag wavers reminding us to be careful of the big trucks followed by the cleanup operations. Instead of crossing the creek like we did hours before, we stayed straight along the left side of the gulch. This trail was nicely shaded among the trees as we traveled toward the toward the mine.
This unnamed mine sure was a treat! The opening was fenced off as expected. This was the most modern looking of the mines we’d seen and we guessed it hadn’t been shut down all that long. The yellow venting system was a surprise to find in the opening. A good portion of the rail tracks were still here and it was easy to figure out where the cars dumped their load down the wooden chute for transport. The view looking out of the gulch was a pretty one and I thought of those long ago miners. Did they get to stop and take in the beauty of their surroundings or were they so focused on their task that they completely missed it? I sure hope it was the former.
We covered a lot of ground this last day, over 100 miles. Our time in Silverton ended with another fun time around the campfire. I wasn’t the only one looking forward to our next trip. Everyone asked Mark when the return trip would be. That is the sign of a fun time. Our fabulous camp host Ray came by for the highlights of the day and shook his head at us for not seeing any elk or moose. I’m thinking our next trip here will be in the Jeep so we can at least roll up a lot quieter than in the RZR and see more than just marmots. Or maybe he’s been fooling us this entire time and there really isn’t a mamma moose in those beaver ponds.
Check out our fun in Silverton on these blogs: