Cliffs tower on one side, plummet down the other.
The Animas River surges 120 metres below. As we round a broad curve, the black, coal-belching locomotive chugs into full view. Although warned not to poke appendages from the train, I cast caution to the wind and lean out to savour the sight. Tucked over 3,000 metres high in the craggy San Juan Mountains of southwestern Colorado, the tiny community of Silverton attracts 200,000 visitors every summer. Some come for its spectacular location, abandoned mines and handful of Victorian hotels, inns, restaurants and shops.