Idaho Springs, Georgetown, Silver Plume, Black Hawk, Central City | COME TO LIFE Heritage Center. Venture 1,000 feet underground on a tour of Capital Prize Mine, and break for an afternoon bite — the town’s main street also has antique, craft and coffee shops. Board the Georgetown Loop Railroad for a narrow-gauge train ride to Silver Plume and back for views of the Clear Creek Valley and an optional walking tour into an 1870s mine tunnel. Bread Bar in Silver Plume, housed in an 1800s-era bakery, serves up cocktails named after famous local characters. Georgetown Loop Railroad Winter Fun Small but mighty Echo Mountain Resort in Idaho Springs is the closest ski area to Denver — and one of the few that offers night skiing. You can also book a backcountry-skiing excursion with Jones Pass Guides in Empire, who will whisk you to all of the fluffiest powder via snowcat. Day 3 Step into a mini Western-style Las Vegas for some action in “the richest square mile on earth.” The former mining hamlets of Black Hawk and Central City are just 1 mile apart and are lined with bustling, grand casinos as well as mom-and-pop gaming saloons and 19th-century storefronts. Another option is the Central City Opera House, a 1878 jewel-box theater built by Welsh and Cornish miners still hosting performances each summer (part of the Colorado Historic Opera Houses Circuit). History hounds will love the original Gold Rush maps and documents found in Black Hawk’s City Hall Annex and the new Gregory Street Plaza, a pedestrian-friendly retail area. There’s also the new Maryland Mountain Quartz Valley Open Space Park, a trail system for hikers and bikers that passes by mining-era relics. You can easily head over to Golden Gate Canyon State Park or hop on the Peak to Peak scenic byway toward Estes Park, both kaleidoscopic journeys amid spring wildflowers and fall foliage. Central City Opera House CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: JIM DAVID; ECHO MOUNTAIN RESORT; MILES/ANDREA BUROLLA. COLORADO . COM 125
Colorado Official State Vacation Guide 2023: Page 125
