JWnet - 2025 San Juan's & Yampa Bench Road

Monday, July 11, 2025
2025 San Juan's & Yampa Bench Road

Day 2 for the full trip but the first day for trails - Mineral Creek > Poughkeepsie Gulch > California Pass > Engineer Pass & camp on the trail. The optional obstacles on Poughkeepsie Gulch will be the most difficult for the trip - a nice challenge.

1 to 2 is Mineral Creek. 2 to 4 is Poughkeepsie Gulch. Spot 3 is the difficult obstacle spot. 4 to 5 California Pass. 5 is the Animas Forks townsite. 5 to 8 Engineer Pass.

Our nice flag in a picturesque setting. On a different day, it'll be a bit more proud.

A bit of haze - it is what it is.

Downtown Ouray

US-550, The Million Dollar Highway

Bah - guardrails...

Most of the group
Far to near Montana (blue-ish), Wyoming (orange), ?Maryland? (white), ?Maryland? (tan), Colorado (purple), Colorado (dark blue)

...and Florida! (tan)

And we're off!

The trail is Mineral Creek. We will travel the western half of the trail and will turn south onto Poughkeepsie Gulch.

This trail has a couple iconic photo sections - this is a first visit for me.

In quick fashion we come to mine relics to stop and look. The Michael Breen Group mine & mill.

Info sign
The Michael Breen Mine

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Info sign
Early Mining in the San Juan Mountains

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Info sign
The Lasting Impacts of Mining

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Right of center, ground level, is the entrance - purposefully caved in to keep explorers out.

A "tan fan" of tailings rock - indication that a mine is here. A cable passing through the picture - often to carry ore bins.

I believe, right where we entered the nice stand of pine trees, was the Mineral Creek / Poughkeepsie Gulch intersection.

Nice mountain slopes to enjoy

The Jeep in the photo is taking perhaps the hardest obstacle all of the area trails offer. This is an optional item as there is a bypass. Mostly, the San Juan trails are fairly easy - and wonderfully picturesque.

Nearing the "difficult" obstacle is another item to toy with (running to the right is the easy bypass). This little rock thing can be tippy with the right rear in a hole the left front hangs in the air. Differential lockers do help.

This is what it looks like. There is possibility to flop onto the passenger side if one pushings things a bit out of whack. Just back-up and take a different line.

Sure, one could simply drive the easy, flat rocks that are to the right of the jeep - but if you traveled from the east coast - you're going to give it a go (and succeed).

Florida's turn - a slightly different line - no tall left front tire salute.

Now the group's to the main obstacle...

Climbing a thirty? foot tall slope.

Some obstacles have permanent winch anchor points. This one looks bent and used.

Up top... Done!

Obstacle checked - on to a nice mountain lake.

Panorama
Click for a larger version

A fitting scene for the jeep - California Pass - to head down California Gulch to the Animas Forks townsite.

The boiler has fallen onto its side.

On a trip in 2015 it was standing
image

Down valley is the Animas Forks townsite.

A massive mountainside with nice colors.

Panorama
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As of this visit - It's for sale...

Some new structural change to keep it together / preserved - nice to see.

Down to Animas Forks townsite

Center of pic - footings for what must have been a massive mill.

Down valley is the town of Silverton (accessible by low clearance car, on a clean / dry road day, with a bit of care).

We're headed to Engineer Pass looking back at Animas Forks and the massive mill remnants.

I'm a bit ahead of the group - looking back at them.

Views to skim across the tall peaks

We deviated off of the main Engineer Pass trail to a nearby dead-end spur for some pictures.

Panorama
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Some of the pictures make it look like the jeep was out on an edge to fall off - nope.

Panorama
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Potential for computer background image...

or maybe this one - rotated a few degrees clockwise.

There is a forest fire on the horizon. Plume of smoke down low above the ridge, flowing to the west. I believe the lone cloud up high is condensation from that fire.