South Fork, Colorado -Talk to me ..........

jrp wrote:
South Fork itself was a stage coach stop back in the 1800's when the west was being explored, Then the first railroad through the mountains was built nearby to supply the large mines near Silverton. The famous western guide & explorer John Freemont was hired to find a route for the railroad, his party got caught in the nearby mountains during winter and retreated to South Fork to survive, a historical marker of that "Freemont Camp" and other early western historical sites are found nearby. The is also a section of the historical old Spanish Trail that goes by just east of South Fork.
South Fork then became a lumber & saw mill town. Nearby Creede was the center of local mining activity and you can find old mine sites around the hills above Creede. An underground mining museum is also found in Creede. In the hills above South Fork is the Summitville Gold Mine, at 12,000 ft. This mine was actively operated off & on from the 1800's to 2000, its shut down now.
A popular annual ATV/Jeep ride is from South Fork, over the mountains past Summitville and Elwood Pass, down the other side to Platoro where a small restaurant makes very tasty burgers. The Platoro Reservoir is claimed to be the highest man made lake in the country. On this remote trail and others nearby, we see black bear, elk, moose, deer, mountain lion, and big horn sheep.
The fishing folks have their favorite hidden spots, beside the popular river trout fishing, there are many hidden high country streams & lakes.
If you're into geology there are several nearby geological sites. The most visited is the Wheeler Geologic Area. Its the volcanic remnants of what is recorded as the most powerful volcanic explosion on the earth, the La Garita Explosion, which happened eons ago and is now extinct. It was a National Monument up till 1950, now its an official wilderness area, so no vehicles. You can hike to it, or ride an ATV or Jeep to the wilderness boundary, then hike the last few miles up to the rock formations.
The Silver Thread Scenic Byway is hiway 149 from South Fork through Creede to Lake City. A beautiful ride anytime but especially in the fall leaf season. Here is my shot of last years fall colors in the hills between South Fork & Lake City.


We go to Lake City at least once a year to ride the Alpine Loop, an ATV/Jeep trail that loops 65 miles through the remote high country, over 2 12,000 ft passes, toward Silverton & back.
For hikers we have hundreds of miles of trails of all varieties & difficulties, along streams, through forests, over mountains or into high country lakes. The popular long distance Continental Divide Trail runs nearby over Wolf Creek Pass. In the remote forest between South Fork, Pagosa, & Creede to Silverton on the west end, is the largest official Wilderness area in the state, the almost 500,000 acres Weminuche Wilderness. here is one of my favorite views, hard to duplicate in a photo, looking into this wilderness area from the north, with that peak on the horizon being the very beginning of the mighty Rio Grande River.


So it just depends on what your interest is, there are lots of special spots in the hills around here. Although these days not much of anything is "secret" anymore.