How To Visit Leadville’s Mines, Responsibly

September 14, 2021

We are truly glad that visitors are excited about our historic mining structures—we are too! We welcome you to visit and marvel at them. But please, take only pictures and leave our last few Wild West structures untouched. Here’s why.

STAY SAFE

These structures are approximately 140 years old, and they can be dangerous. Timbers that old can break unexpectedly, causing a fall that could seriously injure you. That goes for timbers underground too. Stick to roads and established trails even when walking, in case a weakened tunnel is beneath you. Always stay outside of, and off, structures and shafts.

SHARE THE JOY OF DISCOVERY

Most of the area’s structures have already crumbled and our artifacts have disappeared. Please help us preserve the remaining ones, so that other visitors can have the joy of imagining what life was like in the silver mining days.

LEARN ABOUT OUR CULTURE

If you travel to learn about culture, Leadville and Twin Lakes are great places to go! Did you know that the mines are part of our culture even today?

While the mines are abandoned, they still carry meaning for locals who live here. Leadville remains home to many miners who once worked underground and to people whose ancestors dug in the mines you see. People you may meet in town are proud of their mining heritage, and these structures remind them of their past.

PRESERVE OUR HERITAGE TOURISM

Visitors travel for many miles to learn about our mining heritage, and we love meeting them. Heritage tourism is a large part of the local economy in our remote mountain town. Please help preserve the structures and artifacts that let us tell visitors this rich story, well into the future.

Preserving the mining artifacts is a way of respecting the Leadville community.

VISIT US, RESPECTFULLY

Please come visit Leadville’s East Side Mining District. Please look at our historic mines and artifacts and photograph them. Wonder about the people who came before you, their bravery and tenacity, the lives they led, and the precious metals they dug from the ground.

We hope that you enjoy these mines every bit as much as the locals do. We simply ask that you leave the structures and artifacts as you found them, so that others can enjoy these reminders of the past for many years to come.

We look forward to seeing you!

Fall Watch 2026 – What’s the Status and How to View

FALL WATCH 2026 – Keep Watch for Weekly Photo Updates Fall is putting on a beautiful show around Leadville and Twin Lakes, with a strong mix of greens, golden yellows, […]

10 Winter Adventures

DISCOVER 10 WAYS TO HAVE FUN AT THE TOP OF THE ROCKIES! Enter a winter wonderland with adventures for all ages and ability levels. Offering guaranteed snow, a charming historic […]

Where To Bring Kids In Leadville And Twin Lakes This Winter

Snow shows up early and stays late in Leadville and Twin Lakes, and nearly every winter activity here works for kids. Nordic trails and a free tubing hill at Tennessee Pass, sledding and skating in town, beginner terrain at Ski Cooper, dog sleds, snowmobiles, snow zipping, the train, ice fishing, the mining museum, and hut nights a family can actually handle.

Ghosts Of Leadville, Colorado

Leadville was built fast, rich, and rough, and the Victorian buildings on Harrison Avenue are still standing. A guide to the town’s ghost stories and the places you can go stand in while you think about them: the Delaware Hotel, the Silver Dollar Saloon, the Tabor Opera House, Evergreen Cemetery, the Moyer and New Discovery mines, the Matchless, and the House with the Eye.

OctoberVille: Fall For Leadville And Twin Lakes All Month Long

Leadville Main Street is turning all of October into OctoberVille, a month long celebration with a rescheduled fireworks show and parade on October 17, The Addams Family at the Tabor Opera House, Trick or Treat Street, and a city wide gift card deal that adds $25 free to a $100 card.

Fall Colors Soar On Another Level: The Best Spots Around Leadville & Twin Lakes

When autumn arrives in Leadville and Twin Lakes, the high-altitude sun lights up the mountainsides in gold, orange, and crimson. Here, at over 10,000 feet, the colors pop brighter, arrive […]

Shamrocks in September: A St. Paddy’s Day Warm Up

Leadville celebrates St. Patrick’s Day twice a year. Irish Weekend 2026 runs September 18 to 20, with a sunset sing-song at the Irish Miners’ Memorial, the practice parade down Harrison Avenue, the Young Dubliners at the Tabor Opera House, and peak aspen color all weekend.

The JOMO in Leadville and Twin Lakes: Slow Down and Savor the Simple Joys

As more travelers embrace the art of slow travel, Leadville and Twin Lakes deliver the essence of JOMO, the Joy of Missing Out. Here, it’s not about what you skip, […]

Fall Fun At Leadville And Twin Lakes

A refreshed guide to fall in Leadville and Twin Lakes: when and where the aspens peak, plus the rest of the season, from the year round zipline and an ATV run up California Gulch to the Interlaken boat tour, fall fishing on Gold Medal water, winter hut reservations, and the Tabor Opera House fall lineup.