By Kirk Deeter

Editor-at-Large Kirk Deeter and photographer Kevin Cooley spent three days with Trout Unlimited exploring the Alpine Triangle, a rugged expanse of the San Juan Mountains in southwestern Colorado, so named because the region is loosely contained within the shape made by connecting the towns of Ouray, Lake City, and Silverton. TU wants Congress to declare the place a National Conservation area to protect its streams from mining expansion and new road development. Here's what they found on day two.

After a restful night at the historic Wyman Hotel we all rolled out into the quiet streets of Silverton.  The thing is, until the trainloads of tourists arrive in mid morning, Silverton almost feels like a movie set… an authentic western mountain town largely locked in time.  San Juan County (of which Silverton is the county seat) is one of the most sparsely populated counties in the country, with approximately 500 full time residents.

It wasn’t always like this… in fact during the boom years of the frontier mining industry (in the late 1800s and early 1900s) Silverton was one of many thriving mountain communities that were collectively home to thousands of miners and their families.  Some mining towns, replete with grocery stores, dance halls, saloons, brothels, churches, and more, sprung up on the mountainsides, often above tree line (Silverton itself sits at an elevation of 9318 feet).  We paid a visit to Animas Forks on our way out of Silverton.  Here, a ghost town of old buildings still sits near the narrow creek as a fading monument to a largely bygone era (see photo above). [ Read Full Post ]