Note to Self: Don’t Go Jeep Trekking in a Hyundai Compact

I’ve already written about Ouray here and here, but there was one crazy wild adventure I had while I was in town that I never got a chance to write about until now.

I think it was my second day in Ouray, and I decided to use the opportunity to explore one of the ancient mining ghost towns that were near Silverton, namely the one called Animas Fork. From the TripAdvisor reviews I’ve read of the town, a lot of people mentioned being able to navigate the unpaved roads just fine even in passenger vehicles and minivans, so I’m thinking I’d have no problems getting up there in my rental.

Silverton is something of a sister town to Ouray, located to the south and accessed only via the famous (and equally notorious) Million Dollar Highway. This was the highway I was dreading to drive on, with its renowned switch backs and appalling lack of guardrails providing overly depressed people ample opportunities to step on the gas and launch deep into kingdom come should they so feel inclined.

The Million Dollar Highway, providing million dollar views.

But by the time I actually got the chance to drive on this road I had become so used to cliffside driving (thanks to Yellowstone and Mesa Verde) that I wasn’t nearly as terrified as I could have been, even in the rain. Regardless, I still took my sweeeeeet time getting from Ouray to Silverton and back.

It was raining on and off when I arrived in Silverton, but the visibility was still good. I found the road leading to Animas Fork and continued onward, stopping occasionally whenever I came across some of the remains of the mining operations that once took place here.

Autumn leaves, smoky clouds, ancient mining equipment, man this is so much better than Disney World.

While I drove, the road remained paved for a good long while, then turned to gravel, and I assumed at this point this was the unpaved road that previous tourists were referring to and had little issue driving on.

But then it got worse. A LOT worse. Suddenly it wasn’t merely gravel anymore. The terrain had become so rocky that it turned my rental into a roller coaster. Because of the rain, the car was also having trouble clearing the many potholes that were now littering the road. All this along a cliff too, and Animas Fork was still about 2 miles away.

I thought I could manage it though. It was pretty scary, especially as the car continued to tip at angles that had me staring at death a few times, but I was already halfway through, and I was determined.

Then I happened to look at my dashboard: the fuel light was on.

Oh no. Oh nononononono , NO NO NO NO, HOLY GOD WHAT HAVE I DONE!?!?!?

So now here I am, on a rocky cliff, in the pouring rain, 10 miles away from civilization, with no cell signal.

I AM GOING TO DIE. 

The ruins here marked the closest I was able to get to Animas before I noticed the fuel light was on.

I must have shifted gears probably over 30 times making a U-turn on that stupid cliff to ensure I wouldn’t get stuck or fall off the edge, then slowly worked my way back. Once I cleared the rocky terrain and the road got more cooperative I shifted into neutral and coasted as much as I could back towards Silverton.

By now EVERYTHING was turning into mud, but I didn’t dare stop. I had no idea how long the fuel light had been on and I still had 8 miles to go.

Come on, come on…

I prayed, maybe whimpered a little, and continued to coast along, until the road mercifully became paved again. As soon as I did I tapped the gas and used the momentum from coasting down the mountain to keep me going. After what had to be the WORST 15 minutes of my life, I was finally back in town again, filling up at the gas station and weeping for joy.

Yeah, I’m thinking Animas Fork is gonna have to wait for another time. Preferably when I have a jeep to use. With wings. And a parachute. Just in case.

I managed to recover enough of my senses after that harrowing experience to hang out at Silverton for the rest of the day, visiting the Silverton museum and then the Old Hundred Gold Mine, which offered a surprisingly enjoyable guided tour of their mines, surprising I say because I usually HATE doing guided tours.

Inside the Hundred Gold Mine

After that I headed back to Ouray, thankful to be driving on civilized roads once again.

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