During April 2020 I made it to Silverton Colorado, the only town in San Juan County with 600 hundred people living there year-round. Once a mining town, it now relies on tourism. The Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, in the high season it brings thousands of people per day.
In winter, not so much. It is hard to reach, with a small, rugged and only expert skiing resort, Silverton is a picturesque « ski bums » paradise with bus graveyard and a single old chair lift. Fifteen to twenty people work for the ski station operating heli-skiing, backcountry terrain, slopes, path and road access.
One of these is Waco, the guy with the red hat. He spent the last 50 years in those mountains. He was a miner for the Sunnyside Mine that closed 1991 and now he is working for the ski resort.
Waco felt nostalgic for the 80s snow powder and times past. He’s glad Silverton keeps it simple... but for how long?
