Road Trip: Alta

The ghost town of Alta sits deep within the San Juan Mountains, at a lofty elevation of 11,800 feet. Hundreds of people used to live here, but only a few scattered buildings remain. Most of them are barely standing, their wooden boards bleached and weathered. Many of the buildings have collapsed, leaving behind nothing but piles of wood and debris.

Alta was established in 1878, and was the company town for the Gold King Mine. At one point, Alta had a general store and a school, along with several homes. This building, which looks like it could collapse at any moment, was once the mining company office and store.







Looking through the window, you have a great view of Mt. Wilson.









Next to it is the old boardinghouse. It looks like it has been renovated recently because it is in much better shape than the other structures here. It was built in 1939.





The mines operated until 1945, when a fire in one of the shafts ceased operations. The town started to wither away after that, the buildings left behind as a weary and fragile reminder of the San Juan's mining history.





It must have been hard to live here back in the olden days. But it would have been totally worth it, for sure. The views from Alta are breathtaking. Here you have a grand view of Mt. Wilson, which stands at 14,252 feet.



The mountain is named after A.D. Wilson, a topographer who was among the first to reach the summit of the mountain (and not named after the neighbor from Home Improvement or the volleyball from Cast Away, apparently).



If it looks familiar, Mt. Wilson is the mountain shown on the logo for Coors beers.



After that it was about time to start heading back to Durango. Luckily the drive was just as scenic and amazing on the way back.