

1798 REPORT OF THE CHIEF OF ENGINEERS. 



THE GUNNISON ROAD. 



Down the Gunnison ~?iver from its headwaters passes a wagon-road, a great high- 

 way connecting on the north, east, and south with the South Park region, where are 

 the mines of Mount Lincoln and other districts in the Park Range, branches leading 

 to Canon City and Saguache, the Los Pinos Agency, and Lake City. Avoiding the 

 terrible Grand Canon of the Gunnison, it crosses to the Uncompahgre, down which it 

 follows almost to its mouth, where it passes, to the Gunnison, and follows down the 

 latter river and along the Grand, as the Salt Lake wagon-road. This is the natural 

 position of the extension of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad, whose gen- 

 eral line is from east to west, and present terminus, Pueblo, the line thence to Canon 

 City, being part of the narrow-gauge railroad, the Denver and Rio Grande. 



OURAY AND CONNECTING ROADS. 



On the upper part of the Uncompahgre, down the mountain range, forms Mineral 

 City, but about 8 miles distant, and near the rich mineral deposits of Mount Sneffels, 

 lies the village of Ouray, possessing the most flattering prospects for wealth, prosperity, 

 and rapid increase in population of any incipient town in the San Juan. 



A road passes northwest down the Uncompahgre to connect with the Gunnison road, 

 and north and northeast to reach the Saguache and Lake City line up the Lake Fork. 

 Business facilities with Lake City are imperatively demanded, and a shorter route 

 should be at once constructed. 



From Mineral City down the mountains to the rich agricultural valley at whose 

 upper edge lies Ouray, is a mountain trail. The mountains here are terrible in the 

 extreme, excessively steep, great masses of almost vertical wall, on which a footing 

 is often a matter of conjecture, a mounted passage in the range of possibilities only. 

 The trail is, to say the least, very dangerous. The average descent is over 600 feet to 

 the mile, and none but a thoroughly daring mountaineer can ride over it. Trains of 

 11 jacks" or burros transport over it but a small amount of freight, nearly always with 

 the loss of one or more animals. Old il Forty-niners " say that it has no equal in the 

 mining country of Nevada and California. Just before Lake City was visited a man 

 passing the trail on horseback had gone off with his animal and both been killed. 

 The snow-capped mountains near whose summit lies Mineral City, and the end of the 

 toll-road, are in sight from Ouray but inaccessible, and instead of Lake being reached 

 in a drive of 28 miles, a long detour of 100 must be taken. This being directly at vari- 

 ance w T ith rapid intercommunication which is demanded by the necessities of trade, a 

 stock company has been formed for the construction of a toll-road direct from Ouray 

 to Mineral City. After careful surveys and selection of the best grades by competent 

 engineers, the road was commenced and is now stated to be building. 



The difficulties to be overcome may be best imagined by the fact that, while the 

 distance is short, the cost is computed at not less than $60,000, possibly reaching 

 $70,000, of which amount $15,000 stock was subscribed by the citizens of the place. 



THE ANIMAS ROAD TO SILVERTON. 



Silverton and contiguous camps need a shorter outlet ; direct communication at 

 an early day is absolutely essential for prosperity. The wealth of its surroundings is 

 immense, its facilities are poor ; it is shut out from the world, and is wholly subordi- 

 nate to Lake City. 



Owing to the difficulty of getting ores to market much industry is idle. The reduc- 

 tion works there buy nothing under 75-ounce ore, or rock yielding 75 ounces of silver 

 per ton, equal to $90. All but high-grade mines lie idle, while at Lake 40-ounce ore 

 finds a ready market. 



To the south lies a rich agricultural region and coal in abundance, shut out by the 

 Grand Canon of the Animas, where the river runs in a narrow gorge, inaccessible 

 often, with mountain slopes of the steepest kind, frequently 45°, oftentimes nearly ver- 

 tical, while the summits look down upon the bottom of the gorge, 4,000 to 5,000 feet 

 above it. To enable Silverton to obtain produce and coal, most needed commodities, 

 a toll-road through the canon w r as projected, a charter obtained by four persons, and 

 its construction commenced in August, 1876, by Mr. James L. Wightman, a thoroughly 

 practical man. The working parties were passed on the 29th of September last, with 

 about 4 miles of road to open, since which we have learned freight-teams are now 

 passing up to Silverton over the entire road. 



WIGHTMAN'S ROAD IN THE GRAND CANON OF THE ANIMAS. 



This road, projected through one of the grandest and most inaccessible canons in 

 the whole region, deserves more than a passing mention, being on a larger and more 

 expensive scale than any other undertaking for the general welfare and improvement 



