Hurricane Pass
We would never have the roads if we would not have the
mine tailings - and cyclists would be poorer for it.
Hurricane Pass is an extraordinary road, one of at least
three bikable passes that criss cross this area in a
superbly alpine environment. And then there are also the
mine tailings, which make rich pickings for amateur
garbalogists. Actually, the idea that you can't have one
without the other, the road without the mining waste,
implies that the mine tailings could never be cleaned up.
This is a sad thought, but probably realistic when seen in
a historical american context. There is another way to
look at the mines. These old dilapidating buildings with
their accompanying decay have such a strong cultural
connection with this part of the San Juans, that it is
actually hard to imagine the mountains free of debris.
They add something to the area, in the same way that
industrial architecture can add something to a city.
Anyway - without the San Juan mining boom of the 1870s
Hurricane Pass would not exist. Nobody else would have
seen a reason to build it. But the role of Hurricane Pass
as a reliable double summit in conjunction with California
Pass is a new development. All maps, including the
ones portrayed on informational signs along the route,
show the pass really as road leading up Cement Creek,
ending at the summit, without connection to California
Pass and only a more southerly direct connection to
Poughkeepsie Gulch. This brings up another point about the
origin of the extraordinarypass roads in this area.
While historically relatively insignificant, their role in
bringing tourist dollars to the area has been recognized,
and these days they are being cared for, graded and
actually modified.
This may explain why the 94 edition of "passes of
Colorado" identifies the pass as "Poughkeepsie
Pass", in spite of the fact that it does mention the
connection to California Pass ( which the book identifies
as Hurricane Pass ). "Passes of Colorado"
suggests a historic approach route up Poughkeepsie Gulch,
which if it existed via the shelf route, was quite a
dangerous treck. Today the stretch connecting the two
summits is well graded and safe, but impassable because of
snow except during the peak of summer. The current name of
the pass is undisputed, since the forest service has
erected a sign complete with altitude at the top.
click on profile for more detail
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1.(9700ft,mile00) START-END
SOUTH: Ironton on Red Mountain Pass road
2.(12217ft,mile03) Corkscrew Pass
3.(11500ft,mile05) Cement Creek road joins from
right
4.(12290ft,mile06) trail to Sunnyside Saddle
leaves on right
5.(12407ft,mile07) TOP: Hurricane Pass
6.(12300ft,mile07) profile continues left down
Poughkeepsie Gulch. Main road continues right up
California Pass.
7.(10140ft,mile10) jeep trail from Engineer Pass
joins from right
8.(8860ft,mile12) START-END WEST: Red Mountain
Pass road |
Approaches
From South. (via Cement Creek road or Corkscrew
Pass) The three possible approaches to this pass are
difficult to divide into principal and alternate approaches.
They are all represented as principal approaches. Furthermore
at least two interesting ways exist to get to upper Cement
Creek on the southern approach. The most direct way is C110,
heading directly to Hurricane Pass from Silverton. Leaving
Silverton, a "dead end" sign advises travelers. But
a smaller sign a little later - too small to be readable for
most motorists - also advises of two passes in this direction,
Corkscrew Pass and Hurricane
Pass. No mention is made of California
Pass yet, which is also accessible from here. That comes
one road transition later, after the route has changed to a
wide dirt road, passing by the most rustic ski area in
Colorado. Soon the road is face to face with major mining
operations in Gladstone. A sign naming all three passes now
points up a road to the left. The road is quite steep, but
smooth enough to be a better climbing workout than 90 percent
of Colorado paved road passes. Slightly before gaining half of
the elevation required to reach the summit, a steep track from
Corkscrew Pass descends from
the left to join the Hurricane Pass road. The route over
Corkscrew Pass is included in the profile above. But the
description is on the Corkscrew
Pass page. A little higher some rocky spots demand that
everybody gets off the bike, but compared to other unpaved
roads used by motorized traffic, this is as smooth as it gets.
If this part of the approach is not rideable it is because of
sheer steepness, not because of excessive rocks and lack of
traction.
From North. (via California
Pass). Approaching Hurricane Pass from the north requires
first crossing the higher California Pass. As mentioned
earlier, the short shelf road dip between the two passes is a
relatively new phenomenon and not shown on most maps. See California
Pass for more details.
From West. (via Poughkeepsie Gulch) This is the
shortest route from pavement to the top of Hurricane Pass. It
is also the roughest, and therefore far from the fastest. It
is described in a downward direction because traveling
the route this way is less torturous. The meandering route
heading down to Como Lake looks appealing from the top of
Hurricane Pass. After a short decend to the low point between
Hurricane Pass and the next pass to the north, a sign advises
that travel along the downhill option is not advised. This
only heightens interest since it tends to keep away motorized
travelers. The problem with this route is that for every 10
feet it descends, it climbs 5, and all that over a majority of
rocks. Soon a route that appears like a narrow manmade
talus slope leads down to timberline. But it doesn't get
easier. Now the roadbed shares in the water of the adjacent
stream. Conditions improve somewhat after the Poughkeepsie
Gulch joins the Engineer Pass
route. Finally, when you pass a shelf cut into sheer rock with
Red Mountain Pass coming
into view below, while traveling over a rickety wooden bridge,
it will probably all seem to have been worthwhile.
Tours
Dayrides. A ride starting in Ouray, using a southern
approach over Corkscrew Pass
and Hurricane Pass, descending via what is described as the
western approach through Poughkeepsie Gulch measured 29 miles
and 5970 feet of climbing in 5.2 hours (m3:050829).
A ride combining Hurricane Pass and California
Pass, containing the southern and northern
approaches, leaving from Silverton and returning
via CaliforniaGulch and Animas Forks, measured 32 miles
with 5500 feet of climbing in 4.2 hours. This is the route
shown on the profile.
History
San Juan Mining Boom: (<Stony
Pass) The pass is a demonstration for the remarkable
talent of San Juan miners to locate ore near the top of
mountain passes. Naturally at the time the pass was just a gap
between mountains. The pass road itself is a result of the
mines. Both Hurricane Pass and California
Pass have mines located near the top, the Adelph and Alpha
mine, the ruins of which can still be seen near the top today.
According to "passes of Colorado" the Cement Creek
road approach of the pass was used between 1879 and the late
1880s to supply the two mines. This location puts them them
right square in the middle between Ouray and Silverton. Both
towns had railheads, which were required to exchange the ore
for spendable money. After cycling, and also partially walking
over the route, cyclists will be uniquely qualified in
rendering their opinion on what route they would have chosen.
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Colorado Pass Tables Page
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