SILVERTON – The cables in the tram line that carried buckets of ore from Arrastra Gulch across the Animas River to the Mayflower Mill two miles north of here hang slackly from their towers, unused for 60 years.
If Cameron Winters prevails, twin single-span ziplines – 3,800 feet long – will run parallel to the old tram line, carrying daredevils between a point high in the gulch to the mill.
A natural bowl in the gulch was the site of the Mayflower Mine, now long shuttered.
“We can build the zipline in a couple of months to be ready for summer,” Winters said in a telephone interview. “All we’re waiting on is approval.
“We’re optimistic, but when you deal with the government, you don’t know if it’s yes or no or how long it will take.”
The San Juan County Historical Society, which owns the mill, is aboard, said society chairwoman Bev Rich.
The ticket price of the zipline will include a tour of the well-preserved mill; the zipline and mill tour would be available only in the summer because of weather.
Winters, who owns the Full Blast Adventure Center, a seasonal zipline and paintball venue in Durango, applied for the zipline here in December 2013, Shannon Borders, a Bureau of Land Management spokeswoman, said.
The BLM is involved because the zipline would fly over natural resources under agency jurisdiction, she said. The BLM is waiting for an assessment from the State Historic Preservation Office before subjecting Winters’ proposal to scrutiny of the National Environmental Policy Act.
The historic preservation office would look at the commercial venture for any adverse effects to the mill, which is a National Historic Landmark.
Winters already has clearance from private property owners over whose land the zipline would fly, Rich said.
Adventurous souls would be shuttled to the jumping off point in gulch for a two-minute, gravity-propelled ride to the mill, Winters said.
Riders would travel up to 60 mph while dropping about 1,000 feet in elevation.
They would receive an orientation and get into harness, helmet and gloves before being shuttled to the starting point to board one of the ziplines, Winters said.
The length of the Silverton zipline falls short of others around the world. A Google search found 20 longer ones. The longest apparently is a 7,260-foot ride in Rocca Massima, Italy. Close behind is a 6,690-foot zipline north of Cusco, Peru.
dale@durangoherald.com
