DURANGO HAS DEEP ROOTS  in western history, yet its present-day appeal is universal to every age and interest, from those who partake of everything and anything from the most strenuous outdoor activities to a quiet nap by the river with a good book. The town serves as a gateway to fun in the southwest, with its easy proximity to mountains, desert and waterways, ancient ancestral ruins, historic mining, ranching, lumbering and railroad towns and nearby national parks. 

The town sprang to life in 1881 when The Denver & Rio Grande reached Durango and served as a supply and transportation hub for the nearby mining communities of the San Juan Mountains. Today that railroad’s successor, the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, carries new precious material, visitors from around the world who come to ride the classic, turn-of-the-century steam trains.

Durango is also home to Fort Lewis College, Colorado’s Campus in the Sky. FLC is a four-year public liberal arts college with twenty-four undergraduate degree programs and an internationally acclaimed Center for Southwest Studies. For the culturally inclined, Durango offers museums, galleries, theater companies, including a live melodrama, musical and dance venues. Here you will also discover a variety of fun restaurants, hot nightclubs, cool outdoor concerts and a multitude of activities.

The action and adventure goes on all year long: Snowdown Winter Carnival in February; Iron Horse Bicycle Classic and Cinco De Mayo in May; Animas River Days in June; Durango’s historic Fiesta Days in August; color tours and a wine tasting train trip in the fall; and, holiday activities including concerts and a visit from Santa, who arrives in town riding a caboose pulled by a locomotive. The railroad runs two or more trains a day to Silverton from early May through late October. (See Silverton stories, starting on page 28.) From November through March, D&SNGRR steams round-trip to the Cascade Canyon.

For skiers, the good stuff starts with Durango Mountain Resort’s opening in November.

Golfers take to the greens in all but the snowiest weather. Year-round, soakers love Trimble Hot Springs, north of town on Highway 550. The water is heated by natural springs and there are three outdoor pools waiting to soothe weary travelers. 

For outdoor enthusiasts, the beautiful San Juan Mountains offer plenty of “wet and dry” sports including wintertime black diamond runs and summertime kayak, canoe, raft and tubing adventures on the Animas and Florida Rivers. Furthering the “western” experience, ten area stables are eager to saddle up “tenderfeet” and experienced riders alike. To see the country up close and personal, rent a jeep, take a guided jeep tour, or rent a mountain bike and explore the trails. 

For airborne inclined adventurers, there are hot air balloon and glider rides. For the younger crowd, Durango Park, located just south of town, has mini golf, go carts and an arcade. The Durango Arts Center on Second Avenue is the home of the Children’s Museum. A special treat for the whole family is the Bar D Chuckwagon, offering hearty barbeque dinners with friendly wranglers who sing up a storm.

Newcomers often take the opportunity to use Durango as a starting point to visit other area attractions. Mesa Verde, a World Heritage Site, is only an hour away. The cliff top ruins of the Ancestral Puebloans (formerly known as Anasazi) draw visitors from around the world. Also within an easy drive is the Anasazi Heritage Center near Dolores, which offers two walkable “ruins,” an outstanding museum and interactive displays, especially appealing to children. In nearby northern New Mexico visit Salmon Ruins in Bloomfield, Aztec Ruins in Aztec and Chaco Culture Historical Park in Nageezi. For a different taste of Native American culture, the Southern Ute Reservation in Ignacio offers special events including their annual Bear Dance and Tribal Fair. The Sky Ute Casino in Ignacio invites visitors to “strike it rich.” The reservation is also home to a fine museum that educates visitors on the history of the Ute tribe.

Neighboring towns
North of Durango, follow US 550, the “Million Dollar Highway” to Silverton, a town of well-preserved mining, railroad (and red light) history. Continue to Ouray, (Jewel of the San Juans) with breathtaking views, natural hot springs, a marvelous historical museum and a railroad museum in Ridgway (at the crossroads to Telluride). Just twenty-four miles north of Ridgway, Montrose is home to the Black Canyon of the Gunnison, the nation’s newest national park which offers plenty of outdoor activities and wildlife viewing.

For more about Durango, visit their "official" web site, http://www.durango.org

Photography
Top: Jim Baumgardt.
Center: Kathryn Retzler
Bottom: James Burke