Silver Thread
Length: 117 miles
Driving time: 3 hours
The colorful old mining camps of the Silver Thread offer history, scenic beauty, and a heavy dose of authenticity. The heights around Creede and Lake City remain strewn with abandoned mining structures, most of them accessible via rugged backcountry roads. Between the two towns, Highway 149 shadows the upper reaches of the Rio Grande, serving up a bounty of natural wonders - sparkling North Clear Creek Falls, the Slumgullion earth slide, and the shark-like fin of Uncompahgre Peak. These mountains can be unforgiving: In 1848 explorer John C. Fremont lost a third of his men - and a quarter of a century later the infamous Alferd Packer cannibalized his companions - in two ill-fated winter expeditions.
The byway was recently extended on the north end from Lake City to Blue Mesa Reservoir, at the intersection of US Highway 50 and State Highway 149. This new section provides access to a diversity of scenic wonders, historical landmarks, and extensive recreational opportunities for hiking, camping and fishing.
Click here for the photo tour.
Features:
- Coller State Wildlife Area
- Rio Grande National Forest
- Wheeler Geologic Natural Area
- Creede Underground Mining Museum
- Creede Historical Society Museum
- Rio Grande County Museum (near Silver Thread)
- Creede Repertory Theatre
- Hard Tack Mine Tours & Museum
- Hinsdale County/Lake City Museum
- Denver & Rio Grande Railroad
- San Luis Valley Museum Association
- Silver Thread Scenic Byway App
Local Chamber(s) of Commerce
Byways Corridor Management Plan

- Information
-
Creede & Mineral County Visitor Center & Chamber of Commerce
904 S Main St, PO Box 580
Creede, CO 81130
719-658-2374South Fork Visitor Center0028 Silver Thread LandSouth Fork CO 81154719-873-5512Lake City and Hinsdale County Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center800 Gunnison Ave
Lake City CO 81235
970-944-2527
- Contact Us
-
- Lenore C. Bates
Colorado Scenic Byways Coordinator
2829 W. Howard Pl.
Denver, CO 80204 - Colorado Tourism Office
1-800-COLORADO
Visit the website.
- Lenore C. Bates
Partnerships