Eagle Motel

Why is it "Manitou"?

by OlenaKyiv

When Palmer bought the soda springs and surroundings area for development in 1870, he called Indian waters “La Font”, a touch of elegance. An English friend, William Blackmore, persuaded Palmer to change the name to “Manitou”, after an Indian figure portrayed in Hiawatha, a poem written by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.

Miramont Castle Museum

by OlenaKyiv

Jean Baptiste Francolon, a French Roman Catholic priest, became the parish priest of Manitou Springs in 1893. After a pilgrimage to Rome in 1894, Francolon began building Miramont Castle, incorporating nine styles of architecture from memories of his family home and travels with his diplomat father. The four story building was constructed mostly of Manitou greenstone.

Francolon and his mother, moved into the Castle in 1896. They lived there until 1899, when tget abruptly left the area and sold the property to The Sisters of Mercy, who opened a sanitarium there in 1904. The institution closed in 1928; thereafter only visiting Sisters from other parishes stayed at Miramont.

In 1946, Miramont was sold and converted into apartments. By July 1976, the Manitou Springs Historical Society purchased the derelict property and restored it with the help of many local volunteers.

Castle Opened:
Memorial Day – Labor Day 9 am to 5 pm Tue-Sun
Labor Day – Memorial day 10 am to 4 pm Tue-Sun.

Address: 9 Capital Hill Avenue (take turn up Ruxton Ave on the corner with Stratton spring (Girl’s sculpture)).

Phone 719-685-1011

Miramont Castle Web Site

Red Rocks Canyon Open Space

by leafmcgowan

A beautiful open space off of highway 24 across from Old Colorado City, and inbetween Colorado Springs and Manitou Springs, is a free hiking and picnicking space. People started using this canyon as early as the Archaic period (ca. 7,000 B.C.E.) from evidence found archaeologically. Because it was close to Fountain Creek - it was an ideal space for settlement. During the late 1800's the area was raped for building supplies needed for pioneering Old Colorado City and its surrounding communities, such as Manitou Springs. Gypsum, sand, and sandstone was quarried from these hills ... the Kenmuir Quarry was most popular in the area until the early part of the 20th century. In 1886, the Colorado-Philadelphia Company Mill used the land to refine the ore shipped by train from the gold mines in Cripple Creek and became one of the largest mills of its kind in the United States until the Golden Cycle Mill was built in the early 1900's. In the 1920's - John George Bock purchased the property with intent on building a resort there with a community center, high-rise tower, commercial center, and a golf course - by 2002 their family only succeeded in building a few residences, outbuildings, two doze mobile home sites, a 53 acre landfill, and 2 gravel quarries. In 2003, the City of Colorado Springs purchased the property from the Bock's to be used as a public open space.

The Cliff House

by OlenaKyiv

Visit Cliff House Hotel. On the ground floor it has old fashioned sitting room and dining room. Also on the walls you will find old pictures of the Cliff House before fire. We looked at one of the rooms of the Cliff House. It seemed to us very small, although the price for one night was $200. I guess you pay for history not for square feet.

Manitou Springs

by rebibi

"The perfect place for many attractions"

Manitou Springs is just a little place west of Colorado Springs but a perfect starting point to visit Cliff Dwellings, Garden of the Gods, Caves of Winds, Seven Falls and of course Pikes Peak.
The village itself is pretty small with some nice stores especially for Indian crafts

"Pikes Peak , 13 110 Ft"

Take the world's highest Cog Railway ($ 26.-- per person) which takes 1 1/4 hour or drive the 19 miles up to the summit through five different life zones.
Be aware of the altitude up there but enjoy the panoramic views of Colorado Springs, Garden of the Gods and the snow-capped Rocky Mountains

"Manitou Cliff Dwellings"

These Cliff Dwellings are rather small. An interesting place to learn the architecture of the ancient Anasazi. Natives perform dances.