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Phantom
Canyon Road
Attractions/Sights
Phantom
Canyon Road // Communities // Back
to the Road Map
Beaver
Creek |
Beaver
Creek Wilderness Study Area
Turn east here, then north
to reach the trailhead for the 27,000 acre Beaver Creek Wilderness Study
Area. This rugged, remote area offers opportunities for hiking, trout fishing,
hunting, camping, and wildlife viewing. For more information, contact the
Bureau of Land Management in Cañon City.
Vindicator
Valley Trail & Teresa Mine
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Golden
Loop Historic Parkway Trails & Exhibits
A Series of interpretive
sites & trails through the Cripple Creek Mining District with access
from the Phantom Canyon Road, includes the Vindicator Valley Trail through
1890's mining structures, including the Theresa and Vindicator Mines -
in winter open for cross country skiing. Also on the drive is Stratton’s
Independence Mine, a National Historic Register Site and Cresson Ore Sorting
House - a recreation of the original; Battle Mountain Trail - a Millennium
Trail; The Gold Coin Mine Site in Victor; Little Grouse Mtn Trail - an
interpretive site that encompasses mountain and mine views; Golden Loop
Driving Tour Through Historic Mining Backcountry Roads of the Cripple Ceek
Mining District; Gold Camp Trail - Interpreting the History of Poverty
Gulch from the Hoosier Mine to Cripple Creek.
Steel
Bridge
A wooden trestle originally
stood here. A fire destroyed the trestle in 1896, stopping train traffic
for a week while a new bridge was hurriedly erected. To prevent a repeat
of the catastrophe, the present structure of steel replaced the wooden
bridge in 1897. The road to the east leads to a trailhead for the Beaver
Creek Wilderness Study Area.
One
of the Tunnels Along Phantom |
Upper
Tunnel
When floodwaters damaged
the original railroad grade in 1895, this tunnel and the lower tunnel were
bored to help raise the tracks out of the reach of flood waters
Wilbur
Loop
A series of switchbacks,
the Wilbur Loop was constructed so trains could climb the final and steepest
grade out of Phantom Canyon. With their work completed, the helper engines
were disconnected at the top of the grade in Alta Vista and sent back to
Cramer to pull up another train. The original Alta Vista depot is now located
in Victor. |
Please
note that this is a brief description of a few of the attractions, sights
and historical exhibits along the road. |
