Durango Colorado

A town from the past with a slower pace, yet we didn't have enough time to do everything!

We only had a few days in Durango and were trying to get in as much as we could so we were busier than a cat covering crap on a marble floor.

Rating:

A full six-pack! This place has something for everyone who enjoys the American story of the west. Incredible scenery, slow paced activities, adrenaline rush activities, outdoor adventures, and on and on.

We got into Durango during the afternoon and headed straight to the Purgatory Resort. Randy Randerson had been here as a little kid (12 years old) and remembers going to an alpine slide there. This is a concrete half pipe that is laid into the ski slope for summertime use. That's right folks it is a concrete sled track that you get into (no safety gear, no seat belts, no helmet) and sit on a special sled designed to fit the track then race down the mountain as fast as you can trying not to flip over. Sounds safe for little kids right? It was a different time and children were apparently expendable.

We arrived at the Purgatory Resort around 4 and found that the resort closed at 5, so we went running (not an easy thing to do after driving an RV some distance) to get our tickets to ride the Alpine Slide. This turned out to be very special because as it happened, we arrived on the very last day, at the last hour, and were among the last riders of this wonderful ride - they were tearing it down to build a mountain coaster the next day.

We rode the chairlift up and rode the sled down. It was the same as it was all those years ago. Randy Randerson smiled and Barbra Jean Jo Barbara thought it was pretty neat too, although she did remark that "Randy must have been an unloved child to be sent down the 'Death Luge' alone", it even stopped at the bottom at the aid station emergency doors. Coincidence? She thinks not. And why was the exit pad painted blood red, what was that about...? Good times.

We limped back to the RV and made it to the Durango KOA (see blog post) to rest up for the trip to Silverton the next day.

The Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad can take you up to Silverton and back to Durango, or you can take a bus service to Silverton and ride the train back or the other way around. Any way you do it, this is an all day event. We chose the option of taking the bus to Silverton then the train ride back to Durango. This gave us more time exploring the town of Silverton. This worked out great as the town is essentially asleep until the train arrives and people are more than happy to take the time to chat. This also gave us time to sightsee going up the mountain in the bus and gave us time to eat lunch before all of the people got there on the train and flooded the town.

Once in Silverton, our tour bus driver let us know of the different places to eat and gave us some great insights on the town history and colorful folks running it today.

The town is adorable with all of the buildings looking like something out of a Thomas Kinkade picture or minature train set. Everything is in walking distance because it is only 1 mile long by 1 mile wide with the majority of the businesses in a 3 block area .

We ended up having lunch at "Handlebars" - the sign is a freaking mustache, so of course we gravitated to it! Great burgers and we had a nice conversation with the owner.

After lunch, we wandered around the town and took in the local mining museum - a must-see. It is in the old jail, and then you go into a tunnel underground to get to the other buildings and exhibits.

It's a good idea to get to the train platform a little before the train pulls in if you want to take some photos of it chugging into town with that magnificent snow covered mountain in the background. It turns out that this is also right in front of the ice cream shop. Win Win.

Your ticket has your car and seat number printed on it, so there is no rush to board the train trying to get the "best" seat. Relax and enjoy the slower pace. You may need a flask to do this - think ahead.

Once the train is underway, you can get up and wander your way to the snack car, go to the potty, or just pause between the cars and take it all it. It is breathtakingly gorgeous!

TIP: If you are on one of the one-way train trips, then you will want to request to be on the right side of the train going up or the left side coming back down. There is a section of track along the cliffs and one side gets a spectacular view while the other side faces a rock wall.

There are volunteers, retired folks, that go from car to car and answer questions and tell stories. Some of these were even related to the train and Colorado. The scenery is gorgeous as you follow the river between the two towns and we recommend planning for fall (September) to see the wonderful colors.

The ride is about a couple hours long and you are able to open the windows for better pictures or to take in the crisp fresh mountain air.

The last day we spent in Durango was at Mesa Verde (see blog post) but will be back to see some of the other sites like Animas River Rafting (class 3 rapids), Zipline & Aerial Adventure Parks, Hiking Trails, Purgatory Resort Ski & Snowboard, ATV & Off-Road Tours, Dinner Theaters, Winery & Distilleries tours, Horseback Riding Tours, History Museums, Pinkerton Hot Springs, and so much more!

RV tip:

There is RV parking in the train station (and McDonalds), but it is limited, so get there early.