One of the best parts of scouting? Finding fun hidden areas to hike or camp where you live.
A few weeks back, we joined our scout troops on an awesome hike and adventure at Paint Mines Interpretive Park, just outside Colorado Springs. I actually had bookmarked it awhile ago as a place I wanted to visit, so we had to do it when it came up as a scouting activity.
The park is definitely a must-see--gorgeous bands of color in the cut out rocks, and even more with the sun shining down. We learned from the signs that there are spires and hoodoos (seriosuly an awesome word), created through erosion. It's honestly hard to describe in words how absolutely beautiful the park is.
The trail system is easy to follow, about 4 miles worth of fairly easy walking. We walked about 2.5 miles of it and will likely go back and try a different route. Some of the trails do take you to higher and lower points within the park, which is wonderful since many areas are not supposed to be climbed independently.
Paint Mines is in the northeastern part of El Paso County, near Calhan. It took us about 40 minutes from our house in the southeastern part of Colorado Springs to get there. It's all city roads up till the very last bit of the parking lot, so it was a smooth drive and definitely worth the trip.
A few weeks back, we joined our scout troops on an awesome hike and adventure at Paint Mines Interpretive Park, just outside Colorado Springs. I actually had bookmarked it awhile ago as a place I wanted to visit, so we had to do it when it came up as a scouting activity.
The park is definitely a must-see--gorgeous bands of color in the cut out rocks, and even more with the sun shining down. We learned from the signs that there are spires and hoodoos (seriosuly an awesome word), created through erosion. It's honestly hard to describe in words how absolutely beautiful the park is.
The trail system is easy to follow, about 4 miles worth of fairly easy walking. We walked about 2.5 miles of it and will likely go back and try a different route. Some of the trails do take you to higher and lower points within the park, which is wonderful since many areas are not supposed to be climbed independently.
Paint Mines is in the northeastern part of El Paso County, near Calhan. It took us about 40 minutes from our house in the southeastern part of Colorado Springs to get there. It's all city roads up till the very last bit of the parking lot, so it was a smooth drive and definitely worth the trip.
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