Colorado’s Scenic and Historic Byways: Gold Belt

Our series travelling Colorado’s Scenic and Historic Byways continues along the Gold Belt! The Gold Belt Scenic and Historic Byway is a rugged road that winds through historic gold mining camps, noteworthy geologic features, and stunning high-country scenery in south-central Colorado between Florence and Florissant.

The Gold Belt is a 131-mile route that was designated as one of Colorado’s first Scenic and Historic Byways in 1989. The Byway also holds the distinction of being one of 13 America’s Byways in Colorado, as well as being designated a National Scenic Byway by the U.S. Secretary of Transportation in 2000. The many historic, geologic, and entertainment attractions along the byway are detailed in the Gold Belt section of the 2015 Colorado Scenic Byways Economic Development Strategies document.

The path that the Gold Belt Byway follows has a long history as part of the infrastructure that helped fuel the gold rush that took place in the area in the late 1800s. The Shelf Road, a portion of the byway carved into a canyon wall 200 feet above a stream bed, was first completed in 1892 as a way to link the Arkansas Valley to the mining district. The former gold camps accessed by the Shelf Road, like Victor, Adelaide, and Cripple Creek, are all featured while driving the Gold Belt. More information about Colorado’s gold rush can be found in our previous blog post.

An even longer history of the region can be discovered in the fascinating geological features along the Gold Belt Byway. The route passes through the Twin Mountain Geologic Area, the Cripple Creek Caldera, and Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument. A Gold Belt guidebook published by the Colorado Geologic Survey takes visitors on a field trip through geologic history and provides in-depth information about the Ancestral Rockies, volcanic features, and significant fossils found in the area. Kids can also join in on the geologic fun with the Bureau of Land Management’s Junior Explorer Gold Belt Byway activity book.

By using the resources above, history buffs and geology enthusiasts of all ages can go on a fascinating journey through Colorado’s rich mining history along the Gold Belt Scenic and Historic Byway!