photos by Jared Boyd

Where do you find mothers lovingly cursing their daughters as they push a turn-of-the-century wheel barrow loaded with steel balls through an orange maze? Or hundreds of spectators turning out to watch professional tug-o-war teams battle it out on a wooden table with footholds? The answer is: Silverton, home to the annual Hardrockers Holiday weekend. The last, large mine in the San Juan Mountains closed in the early 1990s. As a result, last weekend's Hardrockers Holidays is about as close as the region gets to the true essence of hardrock mining. The traditional mining celebration has been honored in Silverton for 31 years, and judging by last weekend's crowds, it is not going away anytime soon. From throwing horseshoes to driving 3-foot-plus rods of steel into refrigerator-sized rocks with an oversized sledge, there are a variety of niches for competitors. Nearly anyone can participate in the event, but prepare to be humbled if you've never worked underground.