Discover Durango
Historic mountain town offers scenic train ride and a journey back in time
I didn’t know quite what to expect heading into the city of Durango, Colorado. Driving eight hours from the desert of the Grand Canyon State to the alpine terrain of the Centennial State, I had visions of a town nestled in the Rocky Mountains, with restaurants and souvenir shops lining Main Avenue awaiting the usual throng of summer tourists.
Little did I know that Durango was much, much more than that.
We arrived late on a Friday afternoon to the downpour of a summer thunderstorm, cleansing, sweet-smelling, without the aroma of desert sand as I had gotten used to. It lasted all of 20 minutes. And then the shiny, wet streets were bustling once more.
Durango with its population of 14,000 is larger than your average mountain locale. On this Friday evening, Main Avenue was a throbbing vein of locals and tourists alike. Smiling young adults chatted and laughed as they headed towards the local bars. Live music tinkled through the mountain air as local bands jazzed up the atmosphere to something akin to a party.
Tourists ambled down the sidewalks to explore their dining options. My adventurous taste buds marveled at one culinary find: few towns offer the option of a Himalayan kitchen, and that’s where I ended up seated at a table, sampling the tasty delicacies of Tibet and Nepal from half a globe away.
Begin to discover Durango’s past and you will see that this historic town has kept its old western roots that make it one of the destinations of choice in southwestern Colorado. Downtown Durango is a Nationally Registered Historic District, one of many significant and preservation-worthy sites on a registry administered by the Department of the Interior. Boutique hotels from the 1800’s line Main Avenue with their nostalgic architecture in full display, taking one back 120 years to a more lawless, yet somehow more innocent time.
Durango does not just dwell on its past; there is always something for the here-and-now. Perched at an altitude of 6,512 ft above sea level, the town’s location offers a climate that thrives with activity year-round. Hiking, biking, rock climbing, fishing, kayaking, golfing, horseback riding, and glider and balloon rides are available for the outdoor enthusiasts. Museums, stagecoach rides, jeep tours and other guided visits are on hand for the history buffs. And for souls in need of a peaceful respite, there are hot springs, spas, and numerous shops and art galleries to discover the local flavor and enrich the spirit.
In the fall, one can simply visit the town to marvel at the changing colors of autumn. And in the winter, cross-country skiing, snowmobiling, dog sledding, ice climbing, snowboarding and sleigh ride opportunities are up for grabs.
But the crown jewel of this town’s attractions is one that will take a full day to enjoy and a lifetime to wrap one’s head around: a train ride on the historic Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad.
Completed in 1882, the line was originally built to carry silver and gold ore through the San Juan Mountains between Durango and the historic mining town of Silverton. Today, it carries travelers on an authentic coal-fired, steam-powered locomotive through breathtaking canyons, with spectacular views of the Animas River as the train follows it upstream.
I took the 9 a.m. train on a Saturday morning, enjoying a hot chocolate from the concessions car as we inched away from the station at 35 mph, eventually speeding up as we left the congestion of town. Before long, the view of rural neighborhoods and pine forests opened up to striking, picturesque canyons, with dramatic views of the hundred-mile long Animas River. The train ran beside the flowing water through the forested mountains; sometimes the river’s shimmering surface was a steep hundred-foot drop below, sometimes it was a mere ten yards outside my window.
Three enchanting hours later, the tiny town of Silverton came into view. I stepped out of the train car onto a dirt road in a sparse locale, with multihued buildings on all of three streets exuding a quaint, old air straight out of an old western. Everywhere I looked, the vista ended at the foot of a rocky, pine-covered hill that rose even higher than where I was at 9,300 feet.
I had a few hours to have lunch and explore this town whose famous visitors once included Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday. Restaurants were few, souvenir shops were aplenty, and just as I like my mountain towns, no familiar store chains were to be found. At 3:15 p.m., the train sounded four whistles that signaled imminent departure, and soon we were chugging down the railroad once again, this time following the Animas River downstream.
I sat and lazily welcomed the three-hour ride back to Durango, watching the afternoon sun break through the peaks and trees, often illuminating a wide abyss on one side as impenetrable mountain rock stared me in the face on the other.
As my mind settled in to enjoy a second helping of the scenery, it wasn’t difficult to ponder the colossal effort it took to build such a passage through the mountains. But to boggle the mind and squeeze the heart, I knew for certain that there were women like me, women I would never come to know, who saw these same magnificent views, jostled about in the exact same seat, smelled the same whiff of soot and ash, and wondered at the efforts of the same railroad workers, while traveling on these same tracks 120 years ago.
Such is the gift of a journey to a town like Durango. It isn’t just about a ride through the mountains, and neither is it about a trip back in time. It is much, much more than that. And I shall leave it up to you to find. #
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