Last summer, a group of photographers were meeting out at the Paint Mines to photograph the Milky Way. I had never been out there before even though it was practically in my backyard. That night, I became hooked on the park and it became one of my favorite places to photograph, to hike and to include on my visitor's itineraries.
For me, the Paint Mines are beautiful, fascinating and relaxing all at the same time. It never seizes to amaze me how you can be driving along and the terrain can look flat and somewhat boring. Then all of the sudden you encounter beautiful rock formations that are shades or purple, yellow, orange and white.
Unlike the Garden of the Gods, the Paint Mines seem to be a hidden treasure in this area. I’ve met people who have lived in the Colorado Springs area for decades that haven’t ever been out to the Paint Mines.
The Paint Mines are officially known as the Paint Mines Interpretive Park. The park consists of roughly 750 acres. It is located not far from Highway 24, about a mile south of Calhan, in northeast El Paso County. The Paint Mines got there name because American Indians used the clay for ceremonial paint and for pottery.
The Paint Mines are remote enough that there is not a lot of light pollution. So, the first time I went out there, I was meeting a group of photographers to take pictures of the Milky Way. Although I realized that I pushed my lens and camera beyond their technical capabilities with the night sky pictures, I was hooked on the Paint Mines.
The park, which is controlled by El Paso County, has three parking areas. One has restrooms. There are about four miles of easy trails. There are benches at some of the scenic overlooks. It is very easy to get turned around and lost in the dark - especially if you stray off the main trails. Unlike many of the other open spaces in the Colorado Springs area – no pets, horses or bikes are allowed. I’m assuming this is to protect the rock formations. The good news is that people seem to actually comply with these rules. For more information check out the following links:
http://www.historycolorado.org/oahp/calhan-paint-mines
http://adm.elpasoco.com/CommunityServices/ParkOperations/Pages/PaintMinesInterpretivePark.aspx
If you are interested in living the Colorado lifestyle or if you need a horse property specialist, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Sincerely,
Sondra Meyer
Realtor/Photographer
Colorado Horse Property Specialist
Colorado.
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