Gold Belt Tour
Super fun little adventure driving the Gold Belt Tour scenic byway, specifically this 25 mile section of dirt road south of Victor, CO. It was originally the route of a narrow-gauge railroad built to transport gold rich ore out of the Cripple Creek mines in the late 1800s. Only a couple of the original railroad bridge structures remain today, the short one I'm parked on in the aerial photo and then the one with the red railings. It was neat imagining a steam train winding it's way through those rocky crevasses way back in the day, and appreciating how much effort had to go into carving a pathway like that. Today the tracks are long gone of course and the dirt road that remains has become a state historic byway. The northern half is surrounded by beautiful ranch lands, then further south it runs through public lands and is dotted with many free dispersed campsites along the river. Not too many people out there, and looked like some pretty secluded spots to explore and enjoy! I did actually happen to run into a family visiting from Germany though, who were very surprised and excited to see the #bmw2002 out there lol
