GR-001 Crystal River flowing past the Lost Horse Mill (Dead Horse Mill)

The Crystal River is a tributary of the Roaring Fork River, approximately 40 mi (64 km) long, in western Colorado. It drains a glacial valley, called the Valley of the Coal Miners, south of Carbondale which was historically known as a center of coal mining in southwestern Colorado. Crystal River rises in the Elk Mountains on the north side of Schofield Pass, passing through the ghost town of Crystal City. It then flows north past Marble, then into Pitkin County past Redstone. It joins the Roaring Fork below Carbondale. State Highway 133 follows the river along much of its route north of Marble.

 

From Crystal City to Marble the river flows through the Crystal River Canyon, a narrow valley with numerous snowslide runs, rockfalls, and other hazardous terrain. Crystal Rivert is locally known as a fishing and hiking attraction.

 

The Crystal Mill or the Old Mill is an 1892 wooden powerhouse located on an outcrop above the Crystal River in Crystal, Colorado, United States. Although called a mill, it is more correctly denoted as a compressor station, which used a water turbine to drive an air compressor. The compressed air was then used to power other machinery or tools. Today it stands as a Colorado icon.  In the 21st century, the mill is usually called the Crystal Mill or the Old Crystal Mill. Many decades ago, when the mill was still in use, it was called the Sheep Mountain Power House at the Lost Horse Millsite, or simply the Lost Horse Mill. Sometimes it is erroneously called the Dead Horse Mill.

 

This photograph is from Yayoi (5 May 2014) Goodreads.