100 years ago: “Cave Basin is located in Southwest Colorado, about 20 miles north of Bayfield, in La Plata County, on the divide between the Pine and Vallecito rivers, at an elevation of about 10,000 feet, and can be reached from Ignacio, a point of the Denver & Rio Grande railroad about 26 miles east of Durango. An Ignacio connection can be made with an automobile stage line running directly to the camp and through Bayfield where all kinds of supplies and camp equipment can be found.”
75 years ago: This appeared in the section titled Animas Valley News: “Eleven new pupils have enrolled at the Waterfall School since the first of March.”
50 years ago: “Clark Matis, 17-year-old son of Mr. and Mrs. Arvo Matis of Durango, is the new Junior Nationals cross country ski champion. Matis beat the next runner by almost four minutes in the race held at Squaw Valley, Calif. Matis will graduate from Durango High School this year.”
25 years ago: “Durangoan Bob Bruce, 23, got himself into a predicament while climbing on loose shale about 120 feet above Colorado Highway 3. Afraid to go up or down because of the treacherous footing, Bruce stayed rooted in position for about an hour until help arrived from the Mercy Medical Center’s Mountain Response Team and from Animas Fire Protection District. Bruce was brought down uninjured.”
Most items in this column are taken from Herald archives, Center of Southwest Studies and Animas Museum. Their accuracy may not be verified.