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Alta

Ghost town · San Miguel County, Colorado

Telluride quadrangle, USGS topographic map (1897, 1:62,500)
Telluride quadrangle, USGS topographic map (1897, 1:62,500) · U.S. Geological Survey, Historical Topographic Map Collection · Public domain

Alta is a ghost town in San Miguel County, Colorado. It is one of 4 former communities in San Miguel County on the federal names register. That ranks the county 17th among the 48 Colorado counties with a vanished settlement on record.

The U.S. Geological Survey lists Alta as a historical populated place on the Telluride topographic quadrangle: the name is no longer in official use for a community, whether the settlement was abandoned, absorbed into a neighbouring town or renamed. The recorded location is 37.8864° N, 107.8528° W.

Key facts

USGS quadrangleTelluride
Elevation11,054 ft
Nearest living townOphir, CO
Distance to it2.4 miles
GNIS feature ID187155
Coordinates37.88638, -107.85284

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What's there now

Alta is no longer a community in its own right. The nearest living town is Ophir, CO (population 144), about 2.4 miles away in a straight line, and the site sits at roughly 11,054 feet above sea level. Much of the land around former townsites is private; check access before you visit.

Nearby places

Questions

Where is Alta?

Alta is in San Miguel County, Colorado, at 37.8864, -107.8528.

How many ghost towns are in San Miguel County?

San Miguel County, Colorado has 4 ghost towns on record at Wayfarrow.

Sources and licences

Facts marked "approximately" carry an uncertain date in the source. Text on this page is generated from the sources above; no encyclopedia prose is copied. Last updated 2026-11-05.