Yankee Boy Basin, Mountain basin in San Juan Mountains, Colorado, US
The Yankee Boy Basin features extensive meadows filled with colorful wildflowers surrounded by steep mountain slopes reaching elevations of 12,300 feet.
During the late 1800s, the basin became a center for mining operations where prospectors established numerous claims searching for gold and silver deposits.
The basin serves as an outdoor laboratory for botanists and researchers studying alpine ecosystems and high-altitude plant adaptations in the Rocky Mountains.
Access to Yankee Boy Basin requires a high-clearance vehicle with four-wheel drive, and visitors should plan their trips between June and October.
The basin contains several convergent watersheds that create a network of seasonal waterfalls during the spring snowmelt from Mount Sneffels.
Location: Colorado
GPS coordinates: 37.99610,-107.77800
Latest update: March 3, 2025 02:43
Colorado features natural areas and historical sites away from common routes. The locations range from sand formations at Paint Mines Park to Zapata waterfalls. Bishop Castle displays hand-built stone architecture in the forest, while Devil's Causeway presents narrow rock bridges in the wilderness. Fossil discoveries, dinosaur tracks, and abandoned mining towns document the state's history.
Red Mountain Pass
12.3 km
Mount Sneffels
1.5 km
Bridal Veil Falls
8.6 km
Box Canyon
9.1 km
Lizard Head
23.4 km
Dallas Divide
14.6 km
Lizard Head Pass
23.5 km
St. Elmo Hotel
9.7 km
Mount Sneffels Wilderness
7.4 km
Vermilion Peak
22.4 km
Telluride Historic District
7.1 km
Dallas Peak
4.1 km
Fort Peabody
8.3 km
Gilpin Peak
1.7 km
Teakettle Mountain
1.5 km
Western Hotel
9.8 km
Ouray City Hall and Walsh Library
9.9 km
Wright's Opera House
9.7 km
Ouray County Courthouse
9.9 km
Ouray Historic District
9.6 km
Bear Creek Falls
10.3 km
Silverton Historic District
22.8 km
San Juan County Historical Society Mining Heritage Center
22.6 km
Telluride Historical Museum
6.9 km
Million Dollar Highway
11.3 km
San Juan County Courthouse
22.6 km
Silverton City Hall
22.8 km
Blue Lake Trail
4.6 kmReviews
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