20 Attractions to Explore Near Phoenix Gold Mine

The Mount Evans Scenic Byway, just 60 miles west of Denver, is the highest paved road in North America. A day trip to the top is a journey that snakes and climbs through nearly 9,000 feet of elevation gain, from the high plains of Denver through five climate zones to the 14,264-foot summit of Mount Evans, one of 54 peaks in Colorado that soar to 14,000 feet and above – the famous “fourteeners.”

This largest water wheel in the state of Colorado, was constructed in 1893 by Charlie Tayler. Tayler used this water wheel to power an ore processing stamp mill at his gold mining operations on Ute Creek. It was moved to its present site in 1946, a gift to the people of Idaho Springs by his estate. It was restored during the spring and summer of 1988 by volunteers and private contributions. It was dedicated during Gold Rush Days, July 16-17, 1988.

Argo Gold Mine & Mill is a national historic site located about 45 minutes from Denver. featuring an intact gold mill built at the entrance of the Argo Tunnel. The tunnel was built between 1893 and 1910 to drain the gold mines in Virginia Canyon, Gilpin Gulch, Russell Gulch, Quartz Hill, Nevadaville, and Central City and allow easier ore removal. It began in 1893 with the construction of the Argo Tunnel. After 17 years it reached Central City, about 4.5 miles away.

This is the fifth oldest professional opera company in the country and is renowned for exquisite world-class productions, a robust young artist training program, creative education activities and community engagement. It has offered operatic and theatrical productions that drew prominent actors and performers in the late 19th-century, and in the early 20th-century it was a motion picture theatre.

Teller House is a historic hotel in Central City, Colorado. Built in 1872, the building now serves as a restaurant.The bar at the Teller House is well known for the "Face on the Barroom Floor," a painting of a woman's face on the wooden floor, done in 1936 by local artist Herndon Davis, as a joke after being fired by the Teller House.

The historic City of Black Hawk is a home rule municipality located in Gilpin County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 127 at the 2020 United States Census, making Black Hawk the least populous city  in Colorado. The tiny city is a historic mining settlement founded in 1859 during the Pike's Peak Gold Rush. Black Hawk is now a part of the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Front Range Urban Corridor.

Echo Mountain is a ski, snowboard and tubing area located in Clear Creek County, west of Evergreen, Colorado. It is the closest ski area to the Denver metro area.The main lift, the Hot Laps Special, is a fixed-grip triple that has a turn around time of 4 minutes 39 seconds. The entire mountain is wired for sound so music can also be played. The two lodge buildings are of modern industrial design featuring many windows overlooking the slopes, corrugated metal walls and exposed ceilings.

Juniper Pass is a high mountain pass at an elevation of 3.368m (11,049ft) above the sea level, located in Clear Creek County. The road to the summit is totally paved. It’s called Colorado State Highway 103, aka Squaw Pass Road. The harrowing highway has steep drop-offs on both sides.

Chief Mountain Trail is a 3.1 mile moderately trafficked out and back trail located near Idaho Springs, Colorado that features beautiful wild flowers and is good for all skill levels. The trail offers a number of activity options and is best used from June until November. Dogs are also able to use this trail but must be kept on leash.

Squaw Mountain is a high mountain peak at an elevation of 3.493m above the sea level, located in Clear Creek County, in the U.S. state of Colorado. At the summit of Squaw Mountain there is an array of communication towers, plus a two story stone lookout tower, built in 1925. Visitors should be prepared for high altitude conditions. Summertime temperatures average 70 degrees but can drop as low as 30 degrees at night or during the frequent summer afternoon thunderstorms

Yankee Hill is a mountain in the Front Range in United States. The prominence is 41m/135ft. It is one of the iconic attraction in this area and also there is so challenging trek route too.

Squaw Pass Road (now Mestaa’Ėhehe Pass) is a beautiful, scenic high mountain pass that travels through Clear Creek County in Colorado. The road is at an elevation of 2,984 meters and it winds its way through the mountains, offering stunning views of the surrounding area. The road is also popular for its many switchbacks and hairpin turns, which make for an exciting drive.

Echo Lake Park is a park located along the Mount Evans Scenic Byway about 33.5 mi west of Denver, Colorado. The park provides a stone shelter with picnic tables and barbecue grills on one end of the lake, and the 1926 Echo Lake Lodge and an Arapaho National Forest campground are found at the other. Access to backpacking trails, including the Chicago Lakes trail and Lincoln Lakes trail, can be found adjacent to the lake. The park is part of the Denver Mountain Parks system.

Georgetown Lake is a 2,818-acre reservoir in Deer Lodge and Granite Counties, Montana. The reservoir impounds the North Fork of Flint Creek and lies at an elevation of 6,337 feet just west of the Anaconda Range. The reservoir is a popular recreational area with campgrounds, resorts and picnic areas along its 17.36 mi shoreline.

St. Mary's Glacier is just outside of Idaho Springs, making it perfect for a day trip. Enjoy the St. Mary's Glacier hike, fresh air, and beautiful scenery. Enjoy this 3.9-km out-and-back trail near Idaho Springs, Colorado. Generally considered a moderately challenging route, it takes an average of 1 h 46 min to complete. If you walk around St. Mary’s lake then hike up the glacier, you will gain incredible views of the Rocky Mountains to the west.

St. Mary's Glacier is a hike with stunning views of the Colorado Rocky Mountains, a beautiful lake, and, of course, the glacier. The nearest community is the unincorporated Alice, Colorado and is accessible via a 1.5 mile hike from a parking lot in Alice. Along the trail, there are also plenty of opportunities for photos – this hike is totally Instagram-able. Here’s your guide to everything and anything relating to the St. Mary’s Glacier hike!

Mount Goliath is a peak high on the shoulders of Mount Evans located outside of Idaho Springs within the Arapaho National Forest. Here in this fragile alpine environment Denver Botanic Gardens oversees the highest cultivated garden in the U.S., managed in conjunction with the U.S. Forest Service. Amid grand mountain vistas, the 1.5 mile Pesman Trail winds through subalpine and alpine areas of bristlecone pines and wildflowers.

The Mt Goliath Natural Area is located 16.5 miles south of Idaho Springs on the Mt Evans Scenic Byway. It protects the largest, northernmost stand of Bristlecone Pine trees in North America, and is internationally recognized as one of the purest locations to study alpine ecology.While bristlecone pines highlight this area, it also supports localized micro-climates with plants found nowhere else below the Arctic Circle.

The Hotel de Paris is an historic hotel and museum located in the town of Georgetown, Colorado. The building stands on 6th Street, across from Georgetown Town Hall. The museum is a popular tourist attraction, known for its well-preserved interiors containing over 5,000 items from the Victorian era, 90% of which are original to the Dupuy era.

The historic Town of Georgetown is the territorial charter municipality that is the county seat of Clear Creek County, Colorado, United States.Georgetown is now home to slightly more than 1,000 residents. But on weekends, its capacity overflows with visitors who want to shop, sightsee, have lunch or spend the night at a Victorian bed-and-breakfast inn.