SIA 2010 Overview. Part One. Part Two. Part Three.
The SIA tour led our group to the Mollie Kathleen Mine, the Cripple Creek & Victor Narrow Gauge Railroad, and Victor, Colorado. Our last stop of the day was a part of the Cripple Creek & Victor Mine: American Eagles Scenic Overlook. It is an 1895 mine complex with a shifter’s office, a superintendent’s house, a blacksmith shop, and the headframe and hoist from the mine. The buildings are weathering away, in that picturesque sort of way. It provides an opportunity for visitors to see (a sort of) ghost town. It overlooks the continental divide, the wind blows strong, and the view is breathtaking.
The trail to the overlook is a long stairway.
From the overlook. The foreground is the currently operating open pit Anglo Ashanti mine.
Miles upon miles beyond the mine.
The superintendent's house.
Looking inside the superintendent's house.
Another view of the house.
Floorboards of the shifter's house.
Time at work.
As you can tell by the pictures, I spent most of my time around the buildings, as a true building lover would, but the industrial archaeologists, true to themselves, spent most of their time around the mine structures. Thus, I cannot explain much about the mine itself. This was the case for much of the day, which amused me. However, we all gazed across the continental divide. How beautiful. Another must see spot.
Preservation in Pink 