The Paint Mines

When most people think of Colorado, they probably envision mountains (thanks, John Denver). But Colorado has lots of beautiful, scenic landscape that isn't mountainous at all. Take the Paint Mines, a few miles east of Colorado Springs, outside of Calhan. It's a park that's open to everyone, but usually when we go there we're the only people to be found. It's a lonely place, and I love that. The Paint Mines offer some of the most interesting topography in eastern Colorado. The colorful minerals were mined by the original Coloradoans, the Ute Indians, for both pottery and ceremonial pigments. Archaeologists have found Indian artifacts there, as well as the remains of a homestead left behind by white settlers in the 1800s. Pretty cool!

This photo was actually taken with my back to the Paint Mines, looking northward. You can see how wide open the sky is, and how the land stretches out forever. Over the next few days I'll post more pictures of the Paint Mines, so you can see just how beautiful and interesting a place it is.