An Early Mineral Creek and Portland Mine Trip

roverrocks

Expedition Leader
Still lots of snow in the high San Juan Mountains of SW Colorado on June 1 when two jeeps and a rover explored eastward up Mineral Creek from Hy 550 near Ouray. This is a 4x4 route that gets plowed in order to help open up the Alpine Loop each early summer. Without the intrepid snow bulldozers the high Alpine Loop would not open up until July most years. This having been a good snow winter we did not have to go up far to hit plowed snow on the trail. Mineral Creek itself is beautiful and powerfully high with numerous turbulent waterfalls and swift deep flows sometimes disappearing under deep snow from winter avalanches that completely bury the stream course. Many waterfalls/streams were seen coming down from both sides of the trail. At the start of the Mineral Creek trail the aspens were greening up well but high up the aspen limbs were still bare. Amazing what a few thousand feet of elevation change encompasses in our thin sliver of atmosphere as one ascends or descends in the high peaks. Springtime at 8-9,000 feet or on south facing slopes and still snowbound winter at 11-12,000+ or north facing slopes on June 1. We knew we could not go all the way to Engineer Pass this early but we wanted to see how high up the trail was open to plus check the snow in beautiful Poughkeepsie Gulch which has a very high 4x4 trail which ascends steeply up a north facing alpine valley and hooks onto the Hurricane Pass/California Pass 4x4 trail.
Well, we made it up about 4 miles to 10,960 feet when our progress was stopped by a significant trail washout/debris/mud outflow from a stream tumbling down the slope to enter Mineral Creek. The trail itself on the other side of the washout was open but we could not get across the washout totally safely so we turned back and headed down to the intersection of Poughkeepsie Gulch and ate our lunch. Poughkeepsie gulch is totally snowed in about 75 yards in from the Mineral Creek 4x4 trail. It will be quite a few weeks before the whole famous Poughkeepsie Gulch 4x4 Trail (does not get plowed) is open in this good snow year. Nobody will be doing The Wall obstacle for quite awhile.
After lunch we descended the Mineral Creek trail and went north on Hy 550 until just before Ouray where we wheeled off to the east up the Portland Mine trail until we reached the old mine itself at 9,300 feet. The sky was a deep blue and the views to the west of high Whitehouse Mountain (13,492') from the Portland mine area were terrific. We poked through the old mining rock piles looking for interesting rocks and crystals and then ended our day by heading down into Ouray where we aired up. The San Juans are opening up and another wonderful alpine summer is upon us. The hundreds of miles of old mining trails are a total joy of high passes, towering peaks, deep valleys, ghost mining sites, and wondrous wildflowers each summer. Here are some pictures of our day. Just breathing the alpine air was intoxicating as this was my first mountain day trip of the summer season. We three trucks will be out and about often in the high San Juans this summer. July is the best month when the alpine flowers and tundra fields are at their short summer peak of glory.
 

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roverrocks

Expedition Leader
More pictures of a beautiful June 1, 2014.
 

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roverrocks

Expedition Leader
More beautiful pictures from a perfect San Juan Mountains day on June 1. These are the last 10 from the Mineral Creek 4x4 trail.
 

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roverrocks

Expedition Leader
These 10 pictures are from the Portland Mine trail and old mine area. The high peak in view is 13,492' Whitehouse Mountain off to the west. The mine area is at 9,300'. The wildflowers are two species of violets and then yellow Oregon grape.
 

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Adventure Jeep

Adventurer
These 10 pictures are from the Portland Mine trail and old mine area. The high peak in view is 13,492' Whitehouse Mountain off to the west. The mine area is at 9,300'. The wildflowers are two species of violets and then yellow Oregon grape.

Love the Portland Mine trail... We head up there each year after the Jeep and fireworks in Ouray.

The trail is open pretty far up for this time of year... Thanks for posting.
 

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