Trip
Hiking – Paint Mines Trail
RMOTHG—The Paint Mines Interpretive Park near Calhan, Colorado provides a hike through grasslands around the Paint Mines, and an interpretive hike on a trail in the Paint Mines formations. The fantastic rock formations with their colored stripes remind one of a badlands landscape. Plains Woodland native peoples mined the clays here to make paint. During historic times, the clay was mined to make bricks for buildings in Colorado Springs and Pueblo. Van Briggle Pottery also collected clay from the area.
Contacts
- Wed, Oct 25, 2023
- Rocky Mountain Over the Hill Gang
- Hiking
- Adults
- Easy
- Easy
- Mileage: 3.25 mi
- Elevation Gain: 374 ft
- High Point Elevation: 6,788 ft
- Pace: Hike: casual 1.5 mph Exploring formations: slow
- 3 (7 capacity)
- Cancellation & Refund Policy
Meet in Cabela's parking lot, 10670 Cabela Dr, Lone Tree. Don't park near restaurant or hotel. Meet at 8:20 a.m.to arrange carpooling for 8:30 departure.
RT mileage from Cabela's is 122 miles. At .30 per mile, the cost per car is $37 divided by the number of people in the car.
The drive one way takes approximately 1 hr, 15 min. It's a pleasant drive through lovely countryside.
If you prefer to meet at the Paint Mines Interpretive Park S TH, please inform leader in advance.
Driving Directions: from Cabela's, turn right onto Ridgegate Parkway. After 3 mi., turn right on S Chambers Rd.
After 1.9 mi., turn left onto E Hess Rd.
After 2.2 mi., turn right onto CO 83 (S Parker Rd.)
from Denver, take CO 83 Parker Road for 22 miles.
Turn left onto CO 86 E for 25 mi.
Turn right onto CO Rd 77 for 6.3 mi.
Turn left onto CO Rd 94 for 13 mi. Turn left onto Paint Mines Road for 1.8 mi.
Paint Mines road is unpaved and washboarded. Brief stop at main parking lot to use toilets there, then proceed to south parking lot. Go past the small parking lot for the Overlook. Turn left to get to S TH.
First we hike from the south entrance on a trail with good overlooks of the formations. Our pace will average 1.5 mph on this trail.
Once we reach the formations, we will go much slower, allowing everyone to explore the twists and turns in the formations and to take photos. We will spend an hour or more exploring the hoodoos and winding slots in this unique area.
This is an area with no shade. Climbing on fragile formations is not allowed.
We will then hike back to the south entrance.
we can have lunch after at a cafe in Calhan.
Required Equipment
10 essentials, hat and sunscreen. People usually like to take a lot of photos of the unique, colorful formations! Poles are helpful as the trail in the formations has ups and downs.