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Dunton Hot Springs, also known as Dunton, Colorado, is a former mining town that sits at 8,600 feet on the West Fork of the Dolores River in the San Juan Mountains in the Southwest corner of Colorado. Dunton is 25 miles southwest of Telluride, Colorado, and 35 miles (56 km) north of Cortez. Dunton was a thriving mining town when it was first settled back in 1885, with 300 residents at it's peak.
On June 24, 1889, Robert LeRoy Parker, who would soon become known by his alias Butch Cassidy, the notorious train and bank robber, robbed his very first bank in nearby Telluride, and then rode on over to, and hid out for awhile in Dunton. While there one night at the local saloon, he carved his name into the bar's bar top, as many others had done before him. That bar top with Cassidy's name is still there to see to this day.
By 1918, the mine was closed and the town became an abandoned ghost town. But throughout the years it's natural hot springs still drew some to this very isolated and now abandoned town. The town was sold to private owners in the 1930s, and by the 1970s became a dude ranch and was a popular spot for travelers who were road tripping. Then it sold again in the 1990s and today is a luxury resort. For more info on this hot spring resort, visit their website here: Dunton Hot Springs.
