OverviewThis old mining town in a box-canyon in the San Juan Mountains has a colourful history. At the height of the gold rush 5,000 prospectors crowded into the town, the name of which probably derives from tellurium, a non-metallic element in gold and silver ore, or less probably from "to hell you ride" - a sobriquet that could apply to Butch Cassidy, who robbed his first bank on Main Street in 1889. In those days, Main Street divided the town: a residential district on one side and a flourishing red light district on the other. Altitude: 2660m-3734m | |