Platoro Cabin 1 — Rio Grande National Forest

Overview

Platoro Cabin 1 is located downtown in the small mining town of Platoro, Colorado, at an elevation of 10,000 feet in the Rio Grande National Forest. The cabin was built in 1963 by the Rio Grande National Forest as base quarters for various Forest Service Crews working in the surrounding areas until the early 1990s. Today the cabin is a getaway for guests seeking relaxation and recreation in south central Colorado. Visitors to the area should be aware that Platoro is only occupied when snow levels allow driving access, which is usually less than six months of the year.

Recreation

The area around the cabin offers a variety of recreational opportunities year-round. Summertime brings great scenic driving tour opportunities in and around Platoro and Summitville. Anglers have a spectacular backdrop while fishing Iron Creek or Treasure Creek. Nearby Platoro Reservoir, which feeds the Conejos River, provides excellent fishing for kokanee salmon, rainbow and brown trout. Great hiking can be found around the area, as it spans both the Rio Grande and San Juan National Forests as well as the South San Juan Wilderness. Big game hunting is popular in fall, while snowmobiling, skiing and snowshoeing are popular winter activities.

Facilities

The cabin has a combination kitchen/living room, a bedroom and a bathroom. It is furnished with two bunkbeds, with single beds on the top and foldout double beds on the bottom, accommodating up to six people. It has a heater, stove, refrigerator and lighting, all powered by propane. The kitchen is equipped with a table and chairs and cooking gear. In the bathroom there is a flush toilet and showers. Although the cabin has most amenities, guests do need to provide their own food, sleeping bags, linens, towels, dish soap, matches, first aid kit, toilet paper and garbage bags. Guests are also encouraged to bring an additional light source in case of emergencies. Nearby Platoro Cabin #2 is similar to Platoro Cabin #1, with the addition entry ramps and wheelchair accessible facilities in the bathroom and the kitchen. The town of Platoro has access to rental cabins, a small lodge, outfitter-guide services and horseback rides.

Natural Features

Platoro is a natural and unspoiled destination nestled in the San Juan Mountains of southern Colorado. Platoro started out as a boomtown in the late 1800s following the discovery of large deposits of gold and silver in the area. The nearby San Juan Wilderness is an area defined by peaks and cliffs as well as pinnacles and ridges. The headwaters for the Conejos, San Juan and Blanco Rivers are located here as well. The erosion of rich volcanic rock in combination with heavy snowfall has produced forest ecosystems in the area that transition from lodgepole pine to aspen, then through Engelmann spruce and subalpine fir to alpine tundra.

Contact Info

This location is unstaffed. To speak with our main office for general information, please call: (719) 274-8971.

Nearby Attractions

Summitville is a nearby ghost town where gold was first discovered in 1870, then mined until the early 1990s. When contaminants leaked off-site and flowed into the local watershed the government forced it to shut down. Now a water treatment plant is on the site as part of a federal clean up program.