The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1901-10-24
Conrad Shearer Makes Trip to the
Top of the Rockies in Colorado
and Writes of the Scenery
BEAUTIES OF SILVER PLUME.
A Visit to the Famous Mendoza Mine and a
Trip Through the Mountains Offers
Rare opport unity for Tourists.

One of the most enjoyable and inter-
esting trips Colorado visitor can take
is to go over the loop to Silver Plume.
The Colorado & Southern Railroad
runs excursions during the summer to
this popular pleasure resort, charging
a fare of So for round trip tickets from
Denver.
Your correspondent had the pleas
ure of being a member of a party to
| take in the last low rate of the season
on the 18th inst. After leaving the
Union depot in Denver, the train pass
es out of that city through some of the
finest agricultural districts of the
! State. A travel of about ten miles
took us to the base of the Rocky noun
| tains, where the rise of elevation is
very perceptib1e. Golden, !. small, but
beautiful town, fifteen miles from
! Denver, is the first city reached in the
mountains. Here the long train was
divided in order to make the steep as
cent more easy, a section going to
Black Hawk and Central City and the
remainder to Silver Plume. The next
stop is Elk Creek, twenty-five miles
farther from starting place. This is
little more than stopping point. All
this distance the two trains previously
referred to follow each other, being
but a short space apart. At Forks
Greek, three miles farther, a stop of
ten minutes is made for lunch. Here
the two sections separate, proceeding
almost at right angles. Floyd Hill is
the next station, of no Importance 9TH
er than a mining depot. After pass
ing a few miles further the train pulled
into the finest mountain town on the
line, Idaho Springs. It is walled IN so
as to be of narrow dimensions, but
makes up in length by extending a
great distance along the track. It's
streets are elevated and naturally very
clean. The elevation of Idaho Springs
is about 7,543 feet above sea level.
Fall River is another small and unin-
portant stopping place short distance
from the Springs. Lawson, the next
station, has an elevation of 8,113 feet.
| At Empire, which rises 134 feet higher,
the travellers eye catches the first
| glimpse of true beauty and magnih-
| CGuCG Oh Inc mountain SCSuCI 11ClO
as far as the scope of vision is capable
of pursuing may be observed the lofty
walls of the Rocky group. AT this
season those partly perpendicular and
partly s1oping sides are more or less
covered with snow. Where there is
any earth surface evergreen trees are
growing to give green tint to the
otherwise barren slopes. All the way
to georgetown this same wealth of
scenery may be observed.
Georgetown stands next IN import
ance to Idaho Springs. Being situat-
ed, like other .cities along the line, in
the mountain gorge, it is extremely
narrow and of considerable length.
At this point in the journey the eleva-
ton commences to increase rapidly.
The distance from Georgetown to Sill
yer Plume is four and one-half miles
by rail and one and one-ha1f by the
wagon road. In travelling this dis
lance the train makes an ascent of
over seven hundred feet. It circles
around the mountain sides many
times, and to a stranger it would ap-
pear as if but little progress was being
made. He can look down several hum
dred feet and see below him the track
passed over a few minutes before.
Here too may be seen one of those
wonderful specimens of architecture
known as a mountain bridge. The
one referred to here is 90 feet high and
rs feet from the river bed. It is mas
sive in structure, yet very attractive in
} appearance,
Silver Plume, the object of the trip,
is at last reached. It is small, but
pretty mountain town surrounded by
4 mines of gold, silver, copper and lead.
One of the chief of these is the Men
dota mine, situated about quarter of
a mile from the railway depot. Trav-
elers are permitted to go through the
mine upon paying an admission fee of
twenty-five cents. They are admitted
through a passage called the Victoria
Tunnel, which is about one-eighth of a
mile in length. This passage being
dark, the visitors are each provided
with ta11ow lantern, by means of
which they can explore the entire in
terror of mine. Specimen seekers will
find but few, 1t any, OBJECTS worth car
rying away, but the town is thronged
with children who besiege every trav-
e1er and beg him to purchase their
mineral samples. For an almost in
significant sum the visitor can secure
a valua BILE collection.
The elevation at this point in the
mountains is 9,176 feet above sea level.
The air is so light and pure that per-
son climbing the heights is obliged to
stop several times in order TO take a
proper breath. One of the c1earest and
most beautiful streams of water ever
seen flows through the canon where
the above named cities are situated. It
is known as Clear Greek and the gorge
has been very appropriately named
Clear Greek Canon.
By the time this communication goes
to press your correspondent will have
concluded his vacation and started on
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