Entry No. 29 — the Durango file — filed under: engineering history

Ames Hydroelectric Generating Station

On June 19, 1891, a small stone powerhouse in a river canyon outside Ophir made electrical history: L.L. Nunn and a team of Westinghouse engineers flipped the switch on the world's first commercial AC power plant, transmitting 3,000-volt electricity 2.6 miles up a mountain to the Gold King Mine at a fraction of the cost Edison's DC technology would have required. The system — two 100-horsepower Westinghouse alternators driven by a Pelton wheel under 320 feet of water head — proved that Tesla's alternating current could beat direct current across rugged terrain. Xcel Energy still generates power here today from the 1905 powerhouse, making it one of the oldest continuously operating hydroelectric facilities in the country. Three commemorative plaques, including an IEEE Milestone marker, stand roadside beside the humming transformers.

The move: Park on the gravel shoulder, read the IEEE Milestone plaque together, and let the absurdity land: this quietly chugging river-canyon building is why your phone charges. Then drive the Ilium Road loop through the canyon for a scenic payoff on the way out.

📍 Before you go The plant is a working industrial facility — you view it from roadside, not inside. Access is via a maintained gravel road (County Road 63L off CO-145); a standard passenger car is fine in dry conditions, but check road conditions before visiting in winter or after storms. No admission fee, no formal parking lot — pull off on the shoulder. From Durango, allow roughly 1.5 hours each way via US-550 and CO-145 through Lizard Head Pass. The drive itself through the canyon is part of the experience.

• 📍 Ophir / Telluride
• 💸 Free
• ⚡ Up for anything
• 🌗 Outdoors

Where: Ames Road (County Road 63L), approximately 5 miles west of Telluride via CO-145; turn south at the Ilium Road junction. The plant sits at the end of the canyon road near the Howard Fork confluence. GPS approx. 37.8647°N, 107.8820°W.

Hours: Added 2026-06-11 — confirm current hours before you go.

Plan a visit & invite your people →

Proof: source 1 · source 2 · source 3 · source 4

last checked: 2026-06-11