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Hoosier Pass Colorado

Photos Mike Sinnwell April 2006

It was the last weekend in April 2006 and it was 70 degrees. Nice day for a trip into the mountains. Everything was going good to about 8000 feet. Started to snow a little and by the time I got to the pass, at about 11,500 feet, it was near white out conditions. You got to be prepared as anything can happen, and it usually does. Several hiking trails at the summit will lead you to a couple of Colorado's Fourteeners.

Don't forget to stop and check out Father Dyers cabin. The famous snowshoe preacher and mail carrier. He was born in 1812 and lived until 1901. He was a preacher singing the praise of God in any establishment he could get into. That included but was not limited to, tents, cabins. Saloons, barns, shanties, stores, mines, and logging camps. He also moonlighted as a mail carrier because being a preacher did not pay to well.

If you think you have a tough job you should consider what Father Dyer did when he strapped on 11 foot long homemade snow skis so he could carry the mail over this 13,180 foot pass in the winter time. He carried the mail from Buckskin Joe to California gulch. He also carried gold and hauled a sled easily weighing over 25 pounds.