Durango

History

The D&RG (Denver and Rio Grande Railroad) established the town of Durango to serve the mining district of San Juan. They select   ed a location south of Animas City for their warehouse after Animas City declined to pay the D&RG a dowry. Durango, which means “water town”, was named after a town in Mexico.

Area and Climate

The beautiful town of Durango is situated on the Animas River’s shores, where the U.S. Highways 550 and 160 converge. The town is extremely walk-friendly, since it only covers approximately 5.6 square miles of ground.

Sitting at 6,512 feet above sea level, Durango, Colorado enjoys perfect 4-season weather with normal temperature throughout the year. The winter season in this town is often mild and sun-drenched, with temperature remaining from 10° F to 50° F. Irrespective of the snowfall in Durango that averages roughly 71 inches annually, removing snow from the driveway is manageable, as the town is located in a low, sunny valley. Spring brings rain (with rainfall of 19 inches per year) and warmer weather. Temperature in summer rarely go up to more than the high 80° F, and reservoirs and rivers remain moderately full during the summer season, filled by thawing snow from the San Juan Mountains’ deep winter snows. Days during fall are comfortably dry and cool, the ideal time to go on a hike to the mountain or drive on one of the area’s picturesque byways.

Real Estate and Cost of Living

A mountain town, Durango has everything from first-class carpentry to the most up-to-date green building methods. The real estate market features offerings that will meet the goals, budget and lifestyle of home buyers. The homes and estates in the Southwest are in incredibly high demand, and the Southwest has several of the best real estate firms to help with the buying process.

This region features some of the most gorgeous terrains in the U.S., ideal for those who love a magnificent view and rugged outdoors, together with basic necessities, like utility services, schools and banks.

The cost of living index as of March 2012 in Durango is 96, which is almost average, as U.S. median is 100.

Lifestyle and Things to Do

Main Ave., which features a mall, gift and tourists shops, restaurants, clothing boutiques, lounges, bars, newsstands, and other retail stores, cuts through Durango’s city center. A lot structures in the business district are several stories high and feature apartments in the upper floors. Both the two oldest hotels in Durango, The Strater Hotel and The General Palmer, are located on Main Ave.’s south end and near the train station. It is home to numerous restaurants as well. A lot serve specialty cuisines, including Japanese, Thai, French, Italian, and Mexican, while others serve American dishes. Each week, thousands of tourists walk the streets of Main Ave., making it Durango’s most popular tourist destination for shopping and relaxing.

The Snowdown Festival, which is an event that has a parade and fireworks display, is also held in Durango. The main attraction is the parade, and it often takes place either on the last Friday of Jan. or the first Friday of Feb. Throughout the week, competitions are held by many local businesses, including bee plunge, joke off, a beard growing contest, hot wing eating contest, and many more. Moreover, the town of Durango, along with adjoining Pagosa Springs, hosts Music in the Mountains, an annual summer music festival that includes performances from several of the best classical musicians in the world.

Durango is situated in the Animas River Valley, with the San Juan Mountains surrounding it. It runs through the city center and features gold medal fly fishing waters, and is renowned for kayaking, canoeing and whitewater rafting. The town is well known for outdoor activities as well, such as rock climbing, hiking, backpacking, road biking, mountain biking, off-roading, year-round fishing, hunting, golfing, and kayaking.

Floor Plans