Lone Cone Mountain (Durango, Dolores, Ridgway: sale, leases, home)

[Sunset_Va]

I have a request for the Colorado forum , if anyone has a photo of Lone Cone Mountain, would you consider posting it here?
My understanding, its in Southwest Colorado, I found one photo on the web, but it was not as clear and scenic as I wished.

Many thanks if you can help with my search.

[jazzlover]

I've spent a lot of time down around Lone Cone in years past, but all my photos of it are slides that I've yet to digitize.

There are a few photos of it on flickr.com . Here's one:

[giz2000]

Originally Posted by jazzlover

I've spent a lot of time down around Lone Cone in years past, but all my photos of it are slides that I've yet to digitize.

There are a few photos of it on flickr.com . Here's one:

That is absolutely gorgeous! We don't have any of that in FL...

[Sunset_Va]

Jazzlover

My sincere thanks, that is exactly what I was searching for.

That photo is beautiful.

[DOUBLE H]

Great pick Jazz! I know that area as well, I'm guessing it's 20 miles south of Norwood on the Dolores/Norwood road. Miramonte reservoir is just west of Lone Cone.

[jazzlover]

My most interesting memory about Lone Cone happened years ago. We were heading down the Norwood-Dolores Road up near Lone Cone on a Labor Day weekend. Unlike today, hardly anyone was up there, even on a holiday weekend. We happened on a huge patch of wild raspberries, perfectly ripe. Well, nothing else to do but pile of the vehicle and go start grazing! There were 4 or 5 us spread out over probably a couple of acres, just eating ourselves silly on those raspberries. Well, I heard some rustling about 30 feet away in the bushes. I figured it was one the other guys with us, and kept on eating. In a few minutes, I had worked my way over to where I had heard the rustling. There the bushes were all smashed down for about a 20 foot radius, and there was a steaming pile of bear scat right in the middle. It was then that I realized that the rustling I had heard was not one of my buddies. Thankfully, the bear chose not to challenge us, though we were sure eating the hell out of his raspberry patch . . .

[DOUBLE H]

And there ARE bears around that area, oh yea there are! I worked for the USFS as a road construction laborer for the latter 5 months of 1968 and our crew saw a lot of them. We were based out of the old Olinger building on Main st. downtown Durango, and the equipment garage was by the tracks where the old Safeway store was.Most of the bears we saw were closer to Groundhog reservoir, another favorite fishing spot. Favorite spot is Miramonte, my best friend yanked out an eight pound German brown out of there once! Been a couple years since I've been back down there, gotta get back!

[Sunset_Va]

I have looked at the photo of Lone Cone Mountain Jazzlover posted, many,many times,something about it is enchanting.

Are there any ranches below the timberline? Or is it Federal land?

Chilling story about being so close to the grizzly in the berry patch. I was hiking the visitors trail near the visitor center in Denali, alone, enjoying the trail, when I remembered, that in Alaska, wildlife can be anywhere.

[jazzlover]

Originally Posted by Sunset_Va

I have looked at the photo of Lone Cone Mountain Jazzlover posted, many,many times,something about it is enchanting.

Are there any ranches below the timberline? Or is it Federal land?

Chilling story about being so close to the grizzly in the berry patch. I was hiking the visitors trail near the visitor center in Denali, alone, enjoying the trail, when I remembered, that in Alaska, wildlife can be anywhere.

No grizzlies left in Colorado, just black bears. There are private ranches intermixed with federal land around Lone Cone. A lot of the private land all the way from near Ridgway to down around Lone Cone was owned by Marie Scott. She accumulated ranch land for her whole life. At one time, I believe she owned close to 100,000 deeded acres (that is not a typo), plus probably at least that much acreage in federal grazing leases. The most prime part of her holdings up near Dallas Divide was sold to Ralph Lauren for his Double RL ranch after Scott's death. The rest was sold to numerous other purchasers. Unlike the out-of-state yuppie dumb***es who have trashed the Colorado mountains with their second home McMansions, Scott lived simply in a small ranch house, despite being one of the larger single landowners in the United States.


Read about her here:

Marie Scott - A Biography | TheFencePost.com

Marie Scott was a real character--about as tough a ranchwoman as you could find. I met her once at a livestock sale yard years ago. Quite a lady . . . She was one of the "real" Coloradans that I admired, nothing like the wannabe Coloradan knuckleheads that infest the state now.

[Amy WJ]

Now that's my kind of woman! Thanks for sharing her story.