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The folks at Spahn & Friends Bison Ranch will entertain you with a fascinating tour of their working buffalo ranch, located in a picturesque valley just an hour southeast of Trinidad. After the tour, stay for a buffalo burger picnic or camp in a grove of trees next to an old sheepherder’s cabin. You can even bring your own food to make your breakfast next morning in the ranch house kitchen.
Morning and afternoon tours by reservation on Mondays & Fridays, mid-June thru Labor Day, or by special arrangement. Spahn & Friends Bison Ranch, 505-278-2306/2316, spahn-friends.com
From Trinidad, go east on Main Street and beyond about 7.5 miles and turn right onto Highway 160. Continue for about 18 miles. You will see an antenna tower on the left just before your right turn onto County Road 113. Go about 9 miles on this road that aims straight for the mesa through unfenced pastures. Turn left at Road 8.8. Go another 5 miles and stop, if you like, at Trinchera, one of the few intact mining towns left in the area, (population now about 7). Go south on Road 19.8 (at the still-operating Trinchera post office) and continue about 7 miles, where you will turn right at Heartland Road A36. A couple more miles and you are there.
Camp Trinidad Tour
During World War II, Camp Trinidad was established to house prisoners of war. "It was not complicated to escape," recalls former Afrika Korps major Tilman Kiwe in reflecting on his many escape attempts from Camp Trinidad, Colorado, and Camp Alva, Oklahoma. About his third attempt, he recalled:
"The organization of the [Trinidad] camp first obtained an American uniform for me that the guards must have traded for our military decorations or pretty wood sculptures. A tailor in the camp fashioned a very smart civilian raincoat. The problem was that it was grey-green, but we were not short of chemists in the camp. With boiled onions they obtained a marvelous shade of orange-yellow, and with tea they darkened it a bit to a perfect, inconspicuous color.
“Before leaving this time I worked to perfect myself in English, especially in American slang. There was a prisoner in the camp who had spent 23 years in America; he was an interpreter and he took me well in hand. I could soon pass absolutely for an American.... Preparations were making progress. The organization had furnished me with the necessary money-about a hundred dollars.... The day was set for the escape.... I slid under a barrack. They were all on blocks; though there wasn't much room, I changed clothes, and stepped out in the uniform of an American Lieutenant. I waited until around 10:30 and went to the guard post. The sentinel must have thought I was taking a walk. I gave him a little sign with my hand, said ‘Hello,’ threw him a vague salute, and hop! I was outside!" (From www.uboat.net/men/pow/escapes_us_2.htm)
Camp Trinidad is located on the conservation easement of Cougar Canyon, a Nicklaus Design golf community in East Trinidad. To tour this fascinating camp and hear more, call toll free 1-877-547-7455 for a tour appointment.
On the banks of the Purgatoire River more than 150 million years ago, dinosaurs left over 1300 footprints, the largest dinosaur tracksite in North America. What did cowboys think of the tracks? How did a young schoolgirl reveal them to the world? Guides will answer these questions and more.
On the guided auto tour of Picket Wire Canyon, visitors also see petroglyphs, remains of a Catholic mission and cemetery, and the historic Rourke Ranch with adobe and jacal-style buildings.
It has been suggested that some of the petroglyphs in the canyon, mixed in with the more familiar art of the native Plains Indians, were made by a culture with roots in Asia—viewzone.com/picket1.html.
Paleontologists continue to find giant fossils belonging to the canyon’s former inhabitants—santafetrailscenicandhistoricbyway.org/pcarticle.html.
The only convenience along the route is four toilets. Otherwise, bring it with you: your own four-wheel-drive, high-clearance vehicle; high-top hiking boots and old tennies in case you want to cross the river; long jeans, sun hat, rain gear, and layers for changes in weather; lots of drinking water (at least one gallon per person); insect repellent, a first-aid kit with any needed medications along with an EPI-PEN if you are allergic to insect stings. Pets are OK if restrained. Encounters with rattlesnakes, scorpions, and centipedes are rare, but be prepared to watch where you step and sit. Spring and fall are the best times to go.
All-day tours (8am-4pm) on Saturdays in April, May, June, Sept, Oct. Additional tour dates available for groups. Call the Comanche National Grassland office at 719-384-2181 to reserve a space. Tours are popular and fill up fast.
From La Junta (87 miles northeast of Trinidad on Highway 350), go 13 miles south on Hwy 109. Turn right (west) on Road 802 (David Canyon Road) and continue for 8 miles. Turn left (south) on Road 25 and go 6 miles. Turn left at Picket Wire Corrals onto Road 500A. Travel along 500A for 3 miles, following the signs to Withers Canyon Trailhead.
From dawn to dusk only, you may also hike, use a nonmotorized bike, or ride horseback into this area. See Recreation Activities.
More links for this important national site:
exploresoutheastcolorado.com/picketwire.htm
viewzone.com/picket1.html
springfieldcolorado.com/canyons.html
santafetrailscenicandhistoricbyways.org
summitpost.org/canyon/152588/dinosaur-lake.html
Ghost Town Tour
Tour the mining ghost town of Primero by stagecoach and stay for refreshments on the big-house porch at Colt Ranch. Or schedule a post-tour chuckwagon dinner. Colt Ranch is 16 miles west of Trinidad. Call to arrange a time and get directions. 719-845-0353,
Horseback Tour
Tour historic Yellow Pine Ranch by horseback through pastures, streams, and forest. Rides are available during the summer months for adults and children ages 7 and up. Two-hour tours are available mornings, 9am-11am. One-hour afternoon tours are at 12, 2, and 4. The owners may be doing ranch chores, so call before 9am or after 5pm if you don’t get an answer during regular hours. Tours are by reservation only. Yellow Pine Ranch is just beyond Cuchara on Highway 12, west of Trinidad. 719-742-3528, yellowpine.us.
Mansion Restoration Tour
Enjoy behind-the-scenes tours while the Colorado Historical Society restores Trinidad’s Bloom Mansion to its original glory. Call 719-846-721.
For group tours of all museums, see Museums.
Nature Tours
Regular tours of the flora and fauna at Trinidad Lake State Park are informative and entertaining. You may also schedule a custom tour for your group.
Call 719-846-6951.
Trinidad Trolley Tour
Free tours of Trinidad are hourly from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. every day, Memorial Day through Labor Day. For private group reservations winter or summer, call 719-846-9843 x133.
The Ave Maria Shrine is located in a serene setting behind Mt. San Rafael Hospital. Individuals and groups are welcome.
For tours and pilgrimages, call 719-846-6129.
Farm & Ranch Tour
In a remote and inspiring region of Colorado that is not seen by the casual visitor, you will find a working ranch and farm in a landscape of red sandstone canyons and prairie. The ranch offers horseback tours as well as full vacation packages and is only 115 miles from the center of Trinidad. Call or email for reservations—719-384-5813, wootensj@hotmail.com. More on Purgatoire Adventures Unlimited.
Heritage Journey Tours
This company offers tours of rugged canyons, unusual rock formations, and rock art created by early Plains Indians as well as tours of regional WPA structures. Backroads tours and evening scenic tours to watch for wildlife are also available.
For more daytrips on the historic Santa Fe Trail, see
santafetrailscenicandhistoricbyway.org