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Part of the La Garita Wilderness, the dramatic stone formations of the Wheeler Geologic Area were carved by wind and rain into volcanic tuff framed by evergreen forest. Rocks resemble rows of sharp animal teeth, and bear names like City of Gnomes, White-Shrouded Ghosts and Dante’s Lost Souls. It's a spectacular and fairly strenuous full-day hike in a remote setting at 11,000ft near the Continental Divide.
Wheeler is accessible by hiking (7 miles) or via a grueling 14-mile 4WD road from Creede.
27.31 MILES
In AD 1270 a catastrophic earth flow moved almost 5 miles down the mountainside and dammed the Gunnison River to form Lake San Cristobal, Colorado’s…
20.03 MILES
Twenty-five miles west of Creede and only 0.5 miles from signs on Hwy 149, these impressive falls are visible from an overlook on the fenced edge of a…
9.99 MILES
The grassy riverbanks in the Coller State Wildlife Area attract elk, deer and moose in winter. You can see bighorn sheep throughout the year on the south…
Creede Underground Mining Museum
7.91 MILES
Opened in 1992, this fascinating museum was hewn from the ground by mine workers, and the tours, which really bring home the grim reality of life in the…
Rio Grande County Museum & Cultural Center
27.29 MILES
This museum and cultural center features Pueblo and Ute rock art, Hispanic history and early photographs of Monte Vista’s ‘potato row’ wagons loaded high…
7.89 MILES
Mineral treasures attracted miners by the trainload, but this museum chronicles the more intriguing opportunists and scoundrels who arrived to take…
7.89 MILES
Mineral treasures attracted miners by the trainload, but this museum chronicles the more intriguing opportunists and scoundrels who arrived to take…
2. Creede Underground Mining Museum
7.91 MILES
Opened in 1992, this fascinating museum was hewn from the ground by mine workers, and the tours, which really bring home the grim reality of life in the…
9.99 MILES
The grassy riverbanks in the Coller State Wildlife Area attract elk, deer and moose in winter. You can see bighorn sheep throughout the year on the south…
20.03 MILES
Twenty-five miles west of Creede and only 0.5 miles from signs on Hwy 149, these impressive falls are visible from an overlook on the fenced edge of a…
5. Rio Grande County Museum & Cultural Center
27.29 MILES
This museum and cultural center features Pueblo and Ute rock art, Hispanic history and early photographs of Monte Vista’s ‘potato row’ wagons loaded high…
27.31 MILES
In AD 1270 a catastrophic earth flow moved almost 5 miles down the mountainside and dammed the Gunnison River to form Lake San Cristobal, Colorado’s…