JWnet - C to C 2020 - Day 3 - Engineer Pass, Animas Forks

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C to C 2020
Day 3 - Tuesday, July 14, 2020
Engineer Pass & Animas Forks townsite

Day 3 (red line) - We'll start at the motel in Gunnison, trek down to Lake City and head west up-n-over Engineer Pass with a nice stop at the Ute-Ulay mine just out of Lake City. Just after Engineer Pass we'll make the required stop at Odom Point, where lunch was enjoyed. There was some spitting rain but not too much. Rain showers, off in a mountain valley, do make for nice photos. After lunch we'll jump down to the Animas Forks townsite to spend a fair bit of time exploring the buildings that are standing and the foundations of the buildings long ago taken down - by either the workers when the town shut down or by the weather over the years.

While you can scroll through the whole page, you may also jump to a specific section:
0) Web page start
1) Engineer Pass start / Ute-Ulay Mine
2) Rose Lime Kiln / Bonanza-Empire Chief
3) Engineer Pass & Odom Point
4) Animas Forks townsite
5) Frisco-Bagley Mill
6) California Pass

On the way out of Gunnison, riding along the Blue Mesa Reservoir, there was a pull-out where we could snap a picture of our dinner spot of last evening. The white vehicle is parked right about where the jeep was at dinner.

Snow speckled mountains in the distance - we're going there!

Info sign
Lake Fork of the Gunnison
Click the sign for a larger version (back button to return)

Welcome to Lake City Colorado

Head'n west on the trail (here, a smooth county road)

The broken dam at the Ute-Ulay mine

The brick chimney does not sit on the ground / built-up floor.

At the right, just inside of the door, is likely the stove/oven that was positioned below the brick chimney

The other side of the wall (of the above photos) - chimney

Let's see if we can peek through the grate...

A car / cart that would be pulled up.

It's not sitting in the wood guide frame.

No wheels needed - just timbers at each side of the shaft and a U-channel of metal on each side of the car to follow the vertical timbers

Farm tractor engine & transmission - with hood - repurposed for lift operation

The water flume, covered, to bring water to the water tank

hmmm - some non-period reconstruction (composite I-joists)

Info Sign
Ute-Ulay - The Mine that made Lake City

Info sign
Troops Enroute

The main gate

A smaller gate, higher up

One of a couple notable houses up this valley...

An off-colored fan of rock, sometimes with a hole in the rock - they dot the area

Info sign
Rose Lime Kiln

Landslide area with downed trees

Disappearing mountainside stream

The landslide area - see the huge blanket of snow? No?

There's a closer look - perhaps three to five feet thick.

Info sign
Bonanza Empire Chief

These two info signs aren't faring well - they're getting battered / bent by yet more avalanche activity.

Info sign
White Death

A "some day" road to explore

We're past the end of the "county road" and are on the more "tail" portion of the trail. In the picture, far left, is the second of the two notable homes - though I'm not certain if this structure is used as a home.

Rain in the distance. Up near Engineer Pass - more mine activity / relics.

Lunch at Odom Point with a light rain.

We're up in those white speckled mountains!

Panorama
Click for a much larger size

While we were up at Odom point, a jogger / hiker ran through the area and down the side of the point. A few minutes later someone asks - where'd the runner go? We looked down the slopes and this is the view - he's checking the map to decide where to go.

Down from Odom Point we're at a pull-out while up-hill traffic passes - about 20 vehicles - mostly side-by-side's

Nice views!

Do rather do enjoy scenic "window shots".

Denver Lake
There are some rock fans near the trail - we'll stop and check'm out.

Not much to see

Panorama
Click for a larger version

At Animas Forks townsite - an old trailer

Animas Jail

Info sign
1882 Animas Forks Jail

The Animas Forks townsite, what is standing, is trying to be saved. A large component for the task is to keep a good roof on each building. This roof structure is new.

A kitchen. The removable board(s) give access to the under floor larder.

Some view out the front door.

Catching the sun / clouds 'just right'.

Info sign
The William Duncan House

Northwest from Animas Forks is the Frisco-Bagley Mill

Additional info at
www.HistoryColorado.org/location/frisco-bagley-mill (archive PDF)

This was a pre-fab building - the numbering used to put the pieces back together.

Massive timbers

I don't think I'd enter the building on a windy day - as a portion of the roof could get dislodged.

A table with some remaining wood strips. The table would have been completely covered with strips like these that remain. Water / slurry would flow over these wood strips with the heavy particles (gold!) settling out - not able to make it over a wood strip.

Across the valley

We noticed that there were remains from a cable-car line that extended across the valley and way high on the mountainside. Almost out of view was an unusual concrete structure. Viewing it via satellite, it's mostly "just a wall". Perhaps a cable-car tower was in the earth at this spot, held up by the wall.

GPS coordinates
37.926178, -107.583532
37°55'34.2"N 107°35'00.7"W