Holiday Markets
Find unique, Colorado-made gifts in Spanish Peaks Country which offers multiple holiday markets filled with handmade finds showcasing local artists.
About
The Geologic Features of La Veta
The Spanish Peaks are located just east of the magnificent Sangre de Cristo Mountain range and just south of the town of La Veta, Colorado. The Spanish Peaks and all [...]
Finding Calm: Spanish Peaks Style
If you're seeking calm during trying times, look no further than Spanish Peaks Country where our wide landscapes and stunning views can help bring peace of mind. We know it's [...]
Stonewall
Stonewall is a small mountain village located around a large gap in the Dakota Wall at the foot of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. At an elevation of 8,000 feet, [...]
Cameron Mine
The Cameron Mine was opened prior to the incorporation of the Colorado Fuel and Iron Company under the Colorado Coal and Iron Company. It was named after James Cameron, a [...]
Spanish Peaks Country Heritage
Prior to the Europeans arrival, Spanish Peaks Country served as a crossroads for the native people of southern Colorado and northern New Mexico. Taos Pueblo in New Mexico was a [...]
Legendary Trails of Southern Colorado
The Pueblo and Taos Indians The Pueblo Indians of Taos in the 1300s had a well-established system of hunting and trading trails in southern Colorado. Long before Coronado’s men “discovered” [...]
Sheep and Little Sheep Mountains
Sheep (10,635′) and Little Sheep (9,679′) Mountains are in a line heading northward from Mt. Mestas. Both of these mountains are composed of the same granitic stock materials as Mt. [...]
The Dakota Wall
The Dakota Wall, a sandstone formation nicknamed the "Backbone of the Rockies," was formed when fault lines were broken and turned upright. These great sandstone walls stretch all along the [...]
Silver Mountain
Silver Mountain rises just east of Mt. Mestas and is composed of the same granitic materials. However, Silver Mountain is also at the center of a set of granitic dikes radiating outward like spokes on [...]
The Wet Mountains
The Wet Mountains, a small sub-range of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, are named for the amount of snow they receive each winter. Most of the Wet Mountains are in [...]
Trinchera Peak
Standing at 13,517 feet, Trinchera ("trench") Peak is the northernmost thirteener in the Culebra Range of the Sangre de Cristos. Trinchera Peak is located near Cuchara where the Culebra Range [...]
Greenhorn Mountain
Greenhorn Mountain sits near the northern edge of Spanish Peaks Country. Although the mountain's summit is just 12,347 feet and only ranks as the 1,107 highest peak in the state, [...]
Mt. Lindsey
14,042-foot Mount Lindsey is a high mountain summit on the Sierra Blanca Massif in the Sangre de Cristo Range. The summit and most of the southern flank of the mountain [...]
The Trujillo Homesteads
The Trujillo Homesteads, settled in the 1860s and 1870s by Teofilo Trujillo and his son, Pedro, are located in Alamosa County along the western boundary of the Great Sand Dunes [...]
The Taos Mountain Trail
Part of the noted Taos or Trapper's Trail leading from Bent's Fort to Taos ascended the Huerfano River from the Arkansas River to the old community of Badito, branched southwest [...]
Mt. Mestas
Mt. Mestas is a mountain summit in the southeastern Sangre de Cristo Range. The 11,573-foot peak is located 3.2 miles southeast of North La Veta Pass. The mountain was known [...]
Tom Sharp
Tom Sharp was born in Hannibal Missouri, the same birthplace as and within a few years of Mark Twain and the “Unsinkable” Molly Brown. Tom Sharp served the Confederacy during [...]
Historical Characters of Spanish Peaks Country
Francis X. Aubry Francis X. Aubry Also known as “The Telegraph,” Francis X. Aubry pioneered the “Aubry Cutoff” on the Santa Fe Trail. From a point on the Arkansas River, [...]
Volcanic Plugs, Buttes, and Cones in Spanish Peaks Country
Huerfano County has been described as “a broken, tilted and eroded plateau bridging the mountains and the high plains.” Most of the tilting we see today occurred during the Sangre [...]
The Great Sand Dunes’ Geology Explained
Given how unique the Great Sand Dunes are, it’s impossible not to have questions about them. The following are some of the most widely asked. Hopefully, yours is on the [...]
Zebulon Pike and the Search for the Source of the Red River
The United States acquired the Louisiana territory in 1803, and soon afterward, Thomas Jefferson sent Lewis and Clark on the famous mission to explore the northern part of the purchase. [...]
The Great Dikes
The Great Dikes of Spanish Peaks Country formed during the same period of volcanic activity as the Spanish Peaks, Mt. Mestas, and Silver Mountain. These vertical granite formations were formed [...]
Kit Carson
Kit Carson grew up on the Missouri border, watching his older brothers, one-by-one, disappear up the Missouri River or over the Santa Fe Trail. After his father died in a [...]
Blanca Peak
At 14,351 feet, Blanca Peak is Colorado’s fourth highest peak and the highest summit of the Sierra Blanca Massif, the Sangre de Cristo Range, and the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. [...]
California Peak
California Peak, the 84th highest peak in Colorado, sits along the spine of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains directly north of Mt. Blanca. The 13,855-foot thirteener is more specifically located [...]
Juan Bautista de Anza & Cuerno Verde
Cuerno Verde: Spain's Don Juan de Oñate founded New Mexico on behalf of his home country in 1598. This new frontier expanded for hundreds, if not thousands of miles in [...]
The Bent, St. Vrain & Company
The Bent, St. Vrain & Company was formed in 1830 by William and Charles Bent, sons of a wealthy and influential St. Louis judge, and Ceran St. Vrain, a Taos [...]
Huerfano Butte
Ten miles north of Walsenburg, just off Highway 25, is Huerfano Butte, a conical-shaped circular plug that draws hundreds of visitors every year. It rises from the ground, contrasting the [...]
Top Reasons to Visit La Veta and Cuchara
The La Veta - Cuchara Chamber invites you to visit its special piece of Spanish Peaks Country. Here are its top reasons to visit La Veta and Cuchara. La Veta and [...]
Libre: Spanish Peaks Country’s Counter-Culture Artist Commune
In the mid-1960s, a group of college-aged artists purchased a six-acre plot outside of Trinidad and built livable domes out of railroad ties and discarded lumber. They, along with other [...]
La Veta Oktoberfest
If you haven’t had a chance to attend La Veta’s Oktoberfest, what are you waiting for? Held on the first Saturday of every October, this incredible day includes a car [...]
Spanish Peaks International Celtic Music Festival
Attend the Spanish Peaks International Celtic Music Festival and become enchanted by world-renowned Celtic artists and scholars guaranteed to keep you singing, dancing, and enjoying music day and night in [...]
Huajatolla Heritage Festival
The Huajatolla Heritage Festival is a special two-day event in Spanish Peaks Country that honors the area's Hispano and Native American cultures. This June, come and honor Hispano and Native American [...]
Gardner Chuckwagon Supper
Each summer, hundreds of old friends from throughout the nation travel to Gardner to reminisce about old times and enjoy pleasant camaraderie during the Annual Gardner Chuckwagon Supper. The smells [...]
Gardner Hippie Days
Hippie Days is a celebration of Libre, a community in Gardner established in the late 1960s as an alternative to traditional American life. Libre is filled with families or individuals [...]
Francisco Fort Day
Francisco Fort Day is a celebration of the Francisco Fort Museum and the beginnings of La Veta, Colorado. Admission is free, and visitors are treated to special presentations. This celebration [...]
Art in the Park
The Spanish Peaks Art Council (SPACe) hosts Art in the Park in La Veta every year on the weekend closest to Independence Day. During this art festival, all kinds of [...]
Sonic Bloom Festival
Gardner's Hummingbird Ranch is home to the Sonic Bloom Festival, one of the longest-running music festivals in Colorado and a mecca for electronic and jam band fans alike. Each June, [...]
Rocky Mountain Star Stare
Rocky Mountain Star Stare is an annual premiere star party sponsored by the Colorado Springs Astronomical Society. Located on 35 acres of land, RMSS's "Starry Meadows" is conveniently located just [...]
Mountain Mining Days
Each September, the Walsenburg Downtown Revitalization Committee presents Mountain Mining Days, an end of summer celebration at Miners Plaza in Walsenburg. The fun starts with a downtown parade featuring marching [...]
Stonewall Century Ride
The Stonewall Century is a challenging road bike ride along one of Colorado's most beautiful scenic highways. Join the race each August and enjoy some of the best road riding [...]
Spanish Peaks Music Festival
The Spanish Peaks Music Festival comes to La Veta for two days each July and features a solid lineup of awesome country music. People come from all over and pour into [...]
Marathon of Legends
The Marathon of Legends is a running race in beautiful Spanish Peaks Country. The race is a team relay, which means teams can be made up of 2 to 11 [...]
Dog Days of Cuchara
Bring your dog! Dress up like a dog! Wear a crazy hat! Anything goes! This street party and parade offer live music, a family parade, kids games, big dog and [...]
Holiday Parade of Lights
Come to Spanish Peaks Country for a themed light parade that ushers in the holiday season in downtown Walsenburg. Traditionally scheduled for the day after Thanksgiving, the lineup starts at [...]
Spanish Peaks Harp Retreat
Spanish Peaks Country plays host to a very special, intimate harp retreat held every year during the Celtic Music Festival. Harpists come from around the globe for classes and workshops that [...]
Cuchara
Cuchara is a charming, mountain village tucked on the eastern slopes of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains in the heart of the Cucharas River Valley. Surrounded by the San Isabel [...]
La Veta
La Veta sits on the eastern side of La Veta Pass through the Sangre de Cristo Mountains and at the northern opening of the Cuchara River Valley. A busy trading [...]
Walsenburg
Walsenburg, Huerfano Country’s county seat, sits in the heart of Spanish Peaks Country. With I-25, Highway 160, and Highway 10 meeting in Walsenburg, this quaint, Southern Colorado gem is a [...]
Huerfano County Historical Society
Take a deep dive into Huerfano County’s history with the Huerfano County Historical Society. This organization collects archival photos, newspapers, and Huerfano County records from the 1890s to the present. [...]
The Spanish Peaks
The Spanish Peaks are geologically distinct from the faulted and uplifted mountains of the Sangre de Cristo range to the west. To the geologist, the Spanish Peaks are prime examples [...]
A People’s History of the Spanish Peaks
The Spanish Peaks of Southern Colorado have been among the most important landmarks of the southwestern United States, guiding Native American tribes, Spanish and French trappers, gold seekers, hunters, and [...]
Uptop Historic District
In 1877, The Denver and Rio Grande Railroad crossed the Rocky Mountains for the first time over La Veta Pass in Huerfano County. Aptly named “Railroad Above the Clouds,” this [...]
The Sangre de Cristo Mountains
The Sangre de Cristo Mountain Range is one of the longest ranges on Earth. It stretches from Poncha Pass in Central Colorado to Glorieta Pass southeast of Santa Fe, New [...]
Gardner
Gardner is a small community halfway between the Wet Mountains and the Sangre de Cristo Mountains in upper Huerfano County. Historically, the area was crisscrossed by Ute, Comanche, and Apache [...]