Durango semi-weekly herald., 1906-02-01
THE GREAT ANIMAs
CANON SNoWsLlDEs

ollNtllDu
a Herald reporter visited Elk Parl;
Saturday and for two hours watched
the work of the snow brigade in op-
ening the Denver & Rio Grande Up
TO Saturday even The Herald repre-
sentative took II for granted there
might be a few slides between Elk
Park and Silverton, but paid little
attention TO the work necessary to
open the road hence the visit was
well worth the time spent as mat
ter of personal information, let alone
the public, In the first place the
writer has either resided at Silver.
ton or Durango since the building of
the road in 1Ssl-S2. and is perfectly
familiar with winter conditions and
can positively assert that the present
condition of the canon beats anything
the road has experienced with the
possible exception of the first part of
1881, and that year promises to he
thrown into the background provided
we have much snow during the next
two or three months. and each storm
Is going TO play havoc that will take
unaccountable reason all the snow on
the hillsides of the canon slid during
the recent storm and the real damage
started a mile or two this side of Elk
Park there being probably eight to
ten slides before reaching the park.
in one instance two coming from op-
posite directions. completely dam.
ming the river, causing the stream
TO back up and overflow the slides
and track, forming crust of ice
still discernable. But the real slides
begin after leaving the park for Sil.
verton, and Saturday afternoon shov.
elers were at work on slide Just
the other side of the big snowshed
This shed was erected good many
years ago to cover gulch supposed
to he the worst for slides in the dis.
uict. This time the slides came down
as usual, completely choking both en-
frances TO the shed, and while at II
the snow divided and ran over
point and draw just beyond the shed
10 greater depth and distance than
the gulch protected by the shed.
About $50 men started work on this
slide Friday. and those in charge
were not expecting to clear this par.
ticular place before this evening. I'm
asine the height of the Newman build
ing and YOU will have a fair estimate
OF the depth of this slide. Shovelers
were trying to cut through from botn
directions. On this side tunnel cut
on the level OF the track permits the
backing of coal car into which Is
dumped the snow, and this has to he
handled -four to five times by the
shovelers, Then the car is run back
an eighth of a mile and has TO he
shovcled out. On top is force of
-,aen located in tiers cutting down,
r-s'eev-ss--or.---. handle
Moro, and one bareheaded bef the
shooting. asked if he hs hean
eral persons mentE dy the surplus
witness SAID II it was ordinary
70 -F.e snovelers had to deal with
tne work would progress faster. but
it's next thing to ice and has to be
cnt out with pick, and 1t takes plenty
of muscle to drive the pick deeper
than three inches or to shave OFF more
than an inch or two with the cleaver
side. We know from trial with the
pick, Then. mixed with the slide
are trees. rocks and boulders This
particular slide al its maximum is
35 feet deep and possibly 200 yards
long, Then Just beyond this slide is
another possibly 300 yards long with
an average of twenty feet deep.
After clearing the above slides only
small ones block the track until the
Cleveland mine is reached, where
they become more numerous and
deeper for a distance of nalf mile.
While the big slides are located as
above. it looks as though the entire
canon was one slide from the way
the track Is covered, and in addition
the river is cholled up at two places
and running over the slides.
The above gives our readers an
idea of what the ID. & II. G.. has to
contend with. and while Messrs. Lee
and McAtee hope to raise the block
ade by Friday we are not looking for
such happy result before Saturday
or Sunday While others traverslng the
entire distance say II will take ten
days from last Saturday.
The writer watched the 200 men
shoveling for over an hour and was
sgreeably surprised at the way the
Japs handle a shovel II there is
any occupation that tires one It Is
handling snow. Those of us who
have shoveled sidewalks can vonch
for this. Therefore, after personal
observation. we can say the Japs are
doing splendid work.
Elk Park is a regular bee hive A
long string of cars furnish sleeping
hunks for shovelers and others are
used for cooking and dining room
purposes. The section house Ia also
crowded and the road Is working
about all the men that can be given
accommodations. Both Superlntend-
ent Lee and Assistant Superintendent
McAtee have been on the ground
since Tuesday and will remain until
the road Is open.
Referring hack to 1894 the cannon