The first Colorado stop on my 2016 Colorado Roadtrip was up to Cripple Creek.  I had read some interesting historical info about the place and decided it was another mining town that I had to see.

Just 50 or so miles due west of Colorado Springs, it’s quite a climb to get up there on Route 24.  It’s almost a 5,000 ft elevation gain to get to Woodland Park and then to Divide.   Then I took Route 67 south into Cripple Creek.  It’s a scenic drive all the way.  But we didn’t see too much of the scenery as we had a white-out snow squall for much of the drive on Route 67.  After dodging tornadoes and severe weather on the plains, now I had to deal with snow.

Our overnight stop was at a KOA campground just outside of Cripple Creek.  In the blinding snow, I almost missed the turn.  All I could see was the sign and a snow-covered dirt road entrance that looked pretty dicey.  I drove by slowly and thought perhaps this is where the KOA used to be.  But when I turned around and drove by again, I saw a fifth wheel slowly making its way up the hill.  I figured if the fiver could make it, I could make it so I turned up the road and plowed my way through 5 inches of wet snow.

After about 500 ft, the KOA came into view through the snowy blizzard.  The KOA is up on the side of the hill at elevation 10,049 ft.  It’s the highest KOA in the US and the highest elevation that I’ve ever camped.  I felt the thin air immediately as I got out and trudged up through the snow to the office.  I felt winded after walking up 5 steps to the porch.  A slight headache came on shortly afterwards

The owner led me to my site in a tractor and plowed it out for me so I could pull in.  Here I was camping on Memorial Day week-end.  The temps were in 30’s and the ground snow-covered.  Not really what I had in mind for the start of the summer camping season, but the weather was supposed to improve in the next couple of days.  And at this time of year, the snow doesn’t last long in the dry air and intense sun at 10,000 ft.  But at least I had electricity for heat, free wifi, and a good 4G LTE signal.

After a cold night in the 20’s, things did improve the next day.  The views from the hillside campground were pretty good.  As the sun hit the hillside the snow slowly started to melt.

Cripple Creek is just 5 miles down the road.  Down is the correct term as there’s about a 600 ft elevation drop into Cripple Creek.  The views driving into this small town are spectacular.  We stopped at the Visitor Information & Heritage Center which has some good historical info about the town.

Cripple Creek History

Cripple Creek sits in a high valley.  It’s actually an ancient caldera, but more about that later.  The area was originally home to the Ute people.  Ranchers started arriving in the last 1800’s using the valley to pasture cattle.  In 1890, rancher and hobby miner, Robert Womack discovered a rich gold ore deposit which started the last big Colorado gold rush.  Before Womack’s discovery, about 500 people lived in Cripple Creek.  By 1893 there were 10,000 people and by 1894 there were 55,000.

It quickly became one of the largest cities in Colorado with electricity, street cars, multiple railroads, and several opera houses.  It also had over 130 saloons, 35 gambling halls, and numerous brothels. The miners had money (they earned $3 per day) and needed entertainment.

The key mineral mined in Cripple Creek was gold and it made millionaires of over 30 local people.  Here’s some other interesting facts.

• The Ute’s were befuddled by the white miners digging up the land looking for rocks and readily gave away rights to their lands for a few dollars.
• Fire destroyed the town in 1896 and it was rebuilt with brick buildings.  Most of the building lining Bennett Ave today were built in 1896.
• The caldera that Cripple Creek sits in is approximately 6 miles in diameter.  It was not an active volcano but did emit gases from molten activity below the surface.  The caldera was formed when the surface collapsed.  The molten activity left the caldera full of minerals near the surface when the collapse occurred.
• The original mining was done by digging shafts down into the surface to find the gold deposits.  By 1900, there were over 500 working mines in the area.  Today, the area is littered with old mining shafts and equipment.
• The boom times and largest gold production for Cripple Creek occurred from 1890 to 1910.  Mining continued up through the end of WWII.
• One of the most famous brothels in Colorado was the Old Homestead in Cripple Creek.  It was called a parlour house at the time and customers had to go through a vetting process before they were allowed in.  Only the richest men in Colorado were allowed into the Old Homestead.  Customers were given an appointed date and time for an evening of entertainment.  You couldn’t just show up or walk in door without being vetted and having an appointment.  An evening usually included music, singing, gaming, dinner, and time with the women.  At a typical brothel, the going rates were between $1-$5 for “entertainment”.  At the Old Homestead, an evening of entertainment started at $250.

Cripple Creek Today

By the 1970’s, Cripple Creek was almost a ghost town with only a few hundred people.  Mining started back up in 1976 with a surface mining operation in the same district where the old mines were located.  The process involves constructing large open pits and using a chemical leaching process to extract the gold.  Gold mining is still in production today and employs approximately 500 people.

In 1991, Colorado voters allowed Cripple Creek to legalize gambling as a way to revitalize the area. Today, many of the old buildings house casinos and Cripple Creek has become a tourist destination.  Bennett Avenue is still colorful and many of the old brick building facades have been carefully restored.  The population is currently about 1,200.

We visited the Visitors Information & Heritage Center, the District Museum, and strolled down Bennett Street to have lunch.  Gambling was not on our agenda but it was for many tourists we saw at the one arm bandits.  Other attractions include touring the Mollie Kathleen Mine and the Cripple Creek Narrow Gauge Railroad.

Here are some more pictures from our visit.

We spent two nights in Cripple Creek.  It’s a touristy place but, for this history buff, it was a worthwhile visit to see one of Colorado’s historic towns.