Monday, July 29, 2013

Gateway Canyon

After leaving Gateway we rode down Highway 141 toward Silverton.  We pretty much had the road to ourselves and it was very pretty driving through the red canyon.

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It’s not the Grand Canyon, but it was still pretty grand!

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Do you see the flume attached to the canyon walls?  It was built in 1888 and 1891 by the Montrose Placer Mining Company.  It was part of a 13 mile canal to deliver water from the San Miguel River.  The “hanging flume” delivered 23,640,000 gallons of water in a 24 hour period.  The construction “dazzled the mining pros with its ingenuity”  but in just three years, the mining claim folded and the flume is now a historical engineering marvel “left to the ravages of the weather and time.”

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This is another engineering marvel.  Well, not really, but I think it is pretty marvelous that Wally built this trailer.  The one he ordered for the big trip back east from last year had so many problems and the company ended up going out of business because of so many claims and law suits!  Wally figured out what he wanted and found parts on line and put it all together.  This ride was its maiden voyage and it did quite well!

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