San Luis Valley
Mineral County
22 Porch Notes tied to Mineral County — the local details that change from one part of Colorado to the next.
Money and taxes (1)
Home and property (1)
Water and land (5)
Water and land
A remote Mineral County parcel often means a well and a septic system
Rural Mineral County properties often rely on a private well and an on-site septic system rather than town utilities, and both come with rules a buyer should check.
Read note ->Water and land
An ancient supervolcano helped shape Mineral County's mountains
Much of the rock around Creede formed during enormous volcanic eruptions tens of millions of years ago, including the La Garita supervolcano's blast, and that origin still shapes today's peaks, cliffs, and rock shapes.
Read note ->Water and land
Continental Reservoir is a high lake for boating and trout, with rules at the ramp
Continental Reservoir near Creede has a boat ramp and stocked trout, but motorboats must run wakeless and carry a Colorado registration and aquatic nuisance species stamp, and the lake is usually frozen in winter.
Read note ->Water and land
Mineral County sits in the headwaters of an interstate river
Mineral County lies in the upper Rio Grande basin, where water is administered under an interstate compact, so water rights here carry obligations far downstream.
Read note ->Water and land
Wagon Wheel Gap is a narrow rock gateway with its own geology story
Wagon Wheel Gap, where the Rio Grande squeezes through a rock narrows southeast of Creede, sits on the edge of an ancient volcanic caldera and has an interpretive site explaining its geology and old fluorspar mining.
Read note ->Outdoors and wildfire (4)
Outdoors and wildfire
Fishing the upper Rio Grande near Creede follows the water's own rules
The upper Rio Grande through Mineral County is a well-known trout fishery, but rules and access change by river segment, so check the regulations for the stretch you plan to fish.
Read note ->Outdoors and wildfire
Moose, elk, and bighorn sheep all share the Creede high country
The forest around Creede holds elk, introduced moose, and bighorn sheep, and knowing where and how to watch them safely makes for better viewing and fewer surprises on the road or trail.
Read note ->Outdoors and wildfire
North Clear Creek Falls is an easy stop on the Silver Thread, but only in season
North Clear Creek Falls has a developed overlook just off Highway 149 near Creede with paved parking and railings, but the access road is closed and snowed in for much of the winter and spring.
Read note ->Outdoors and wildfire
The Wheeler Geologic Area is a maze of volcanic rock that takes real effort to reach
Wheeler Geologic Area near Creede is a striking field of eroded volcanic ash spires reached only by a long hike or a rough four-wheel-drive road, with seasonal access and wilderness camping rules.
Read note ->Cars and driving (1)
Local rules (1)
History and culture (9)
History and culture
A summer theater helped Creede survive after the mines slowed
The Creede Repertory Theatre began in 1966 when college students answered the town's call for a new draw, and it grew into a professional company that anchors the local summer economy.
Read note ->History and culture
Creede Carved Its Fire Station Into the Canyon Wall
After fire took the town more than once, Creede put its firehouse inside the cliff at the head of Main Street, where trucks wait in rock tunnels.
Read note ->History and culture
Creede grew up around a silver rush, and the town still shows it
Creede began as a late-1800s silver boomtown, and that mining past explains the town's setting in a narrow canyon and the old workings in the hills above it.
Read note ->History and culture
Creede's mining museum was carved straight into the rock
The Creede Underground Mining Museum was blasted out of a solid rock cliff by local miners and doubles as the town's community center, preserving hard-rock mining methods.
Read note ->History and culture
Creede's silver boom drew the outlaws, and one of them is buried here
When silver brought 10,000 people to Creede in the early 1890s, it also brought a rogue's gallery of Old West names, including Bob Ford, who was shot dead in a Creede saloon in 1892.
Read note ->History and culture
Taste of Creede: a painter's festival that turned a mountain town into an arts hub
A festival started by a watercolorist more than 35 years ago fills Creede's Main Street with working artists, a Silver Chef cook-off, and a one-hour Quick Draw each Memorial Day weekend.
Read note ->History and culture
The Bachelor Loop is a self-guided drive through Creede's ghost towns
The Bachelor Loop is a marked Forest Service driving tour above Creede that visits old mines and the ghost town of Bachelor, with numbered pullouts that explain the silver district.
Read note ->History and culture
Walk Inside an 1891 Silver Mine on Creede's Amethyst Vein
The Last Chance Mine near Creede lets you walk inside a real 1891 silver mine and see purple amethyst still in the rock wall.
Read note ->History and culture
Wheeler Geologic Area was once Colorado's first national monument
The Wheeler Geologic Area near Creede is a maze of eroded volcanic ash that was protected as Colorado's first national monument before its remoteness led to a different status.
Read note ->