Calvary 4-Wheelers

Sunday morning we met at the Visitor's Center in Silverton and headed south on US 550 to Purgatory. Our destination was Bolam Pass, which none of us had done before. Our sources told us it was like much of the 'wheeling in the Silverton area, easy to moderate trail with interesting historical sites and breathtaking scenery. We were not disappointed.

We skirted the ski village of Purgatory and climbed an easy trail through pine forest and green meadows filled with wild flowers. We stopped for lunch at Graysille, an abandoned mining camp that, oddly enough, was not a gold or silver mine. Graysille was one of the later mining camps in the area and mined vanadium and uranium. After lunch we held an informal “church” service with singing and a short devotional. The devotional was particularly short as the skies opened up in a pouring rain bringing “church” to an abrupt conclusion.

From there, we continued on toward the top of Bolam Pass. The rain soon let up and we were rewarded with spectacular views at the top of the pass. Once we were over the pass we dropped down to CO highway 145. We took the paved road over Lizard Head to Ophir and then went over Ophir Pass back to Silverton.
[Trip Pics]

Click HERE to return to the 2009 Schedule Click HERE to return to the Calvary 4-Wheeler's page