Silverton, Colorado

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It's easy to guess how Silverton got its name.  The mining boom in the San Juan Mountains drew settlers from all over the globe, and inspired the introduction to Silverton's Home Page, http://www.silvertoncolorado.com/:

Since 1860, Silverton  has been all about three  words."Stake your claim."

Stake your claim!

But mining is not all "boom," as many would-be miners were to learn.  So today’s Silverton is a far cry from that boomtown of yesteryear.  Its 500-strong population is only 10% of its peak at the turn of the 20th century.  In those heady days, the town had four railroads, three smelters, and many mills serving the gold and silver mines high in the mountains.  It even had an ice skating rink.  when the boom went "bust," many towns like Silverton died out, and are now just ghost towns high in the mountains.  But the gritty, tough community of Silverton persevered and stayed on, and now the entire town is a

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National Historic Landmark. A good number of the town's visitors arrive on the Durango-Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, as much a tribute to times gone by as the town itself.  Others, like us, drive across the mountains either from Ouray to the north or from Silverton's southern neighbor, Durango. However you arrive, I suspect you will be charmed.  Then entire town is just 12 blocks long, and the "Walking Tour" is a leisurely stroll that highlights the numerous historic buildings.

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Greene Street seems to be the only paved street in the town, and is home to numerous tourist shops and restaurants, and a few hotels. Our hotel, the Wyman, hosted a wine and cheese happy hour for its guests, an excellent opportunity to meet and mingle with the other guests.  Later, we enjoyed a wonderful evening at the Handlebars Saloon with some new friends from the UK.

The next day we were up early to meet the Durango-Silverton train for our exciting "zip-line" day at Soaring Trees!