Along Hwy 550 south of Ouray used to be a town called Ironton. Over 300 people who worked in the mines lived there. Once the mines closed down, the town died and now there is nothing left. We climb up thru the forest and stopped near a beautiful, flat glade where our leader and his family used to camp. We turned onto Corkscrew Gulch road and it lives up to its name -- lots of switchbacks to get around Red Mountain. We then turn onto Hurricane Pass which goes by Lake Como. It is the bluest lake I have ever seen. From there we take California Gulch all the way to Animas Forks. 
This is another huge mining area with some building still standing -- mills, homes, boarding house and stamp mills. Several trails converge here. We head on down the mountain and stop at a campground to have lunch. Unfortunately rain cuts our BBQ short and we all agree we are ready to go back to our RV's. On the way, we stop in Silverton just in time to see the narrow gauge train from Durango come into the station.
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