Entry No. 23 — the Durango file — filed under: outdoor-weird
Tomboy Ghost Town & the Social Tunnel
“The Rothschilds bought a gold camp for $2 million and gave its miners a bowling alley and tennis courts.”
At 11,509 feet in Savage Basin, the Rothschilds of London bought a gold camp for $2 million in 1897 and gave its miners a YMCA with a bowling alley and tennis courts—Tomboy teams bowled tournaments against the rival Smuggler mine. Single women were banned from camp, so romance happened 2.6 miles down the shelf road at the Social Tunnel, a blasted rock cut where miners met Telluride women halfway. The mine quit in 1928. The ruins didn’t.
The move: Drive or hike Tomboy Road from the top of Oak Street, stop inside the Social Tunnel—the rock cut literally built for courtship—then picnic among the collapsed boarding houses with marmots whistling at you.
📍 Before you go Tomboy Road leaves from the north end of Oak Street in Telluride: 5 miles and about 2,650 feet of climbing on a narrow shelf road with real drop-offs, so bring a high-clearance 4x4 or strong legs—it is also a popular hike and mountain-bike route. The Social Tunnel sits around mile 2.6; the townsite spreads across the basin below Imogene Pass, which continues over 13,114 feet to Ouray if you want the full loop. Snow blocks the upper road except roughly midsummer through early fall, and unlicensed OHVs are prohibited on the first stretch out of town. Ruins are fragile and on patented mining claims—look, do not pry.
- 📍 Telluride
- 💸 Free
- ⚡ Up for anything
- 🌗 Outdoors
Where: Tomboy Road (Imogene Pass road), 5 miles east of Telluride, CO 81435 — starts at the north end of Oak Street
Hours: Added 2026-06-11 — confirm current hours before you go.
⚠ Seasonal or scheduled — always check before you go.
Plan a visit & invite your people →
Proof: source 1 · source 2 · source 3 · source 4
last checked: 2026-06-11