10 quirky and obscure roadside attractions around Colorado

When we get bored in our own backyard, our eyes wander to distant lands.

You think: Maybe the rubber tree forest in India could break up the monotony of all of Colorado’s evergreen forests. Surely Turkmenistan’s maniacal Land of Fairy Tales amusement park would beat another day at Elitch Gardens.

Take it from James O’Neill, the chapter head of Denver’s branch of Atlas Obscura, a database of the world’s most curious attractions: You don’t have to fly halfway across the world to get off the beaten path.

“Denver is one of the most diverse cities (for obscure attractions),” O’Neill, 35, said. “In the same day, you can see Buffalo Bill Cody’s grave and then go to a silo that’s been converted into a recording studio.”

Through Atlas Obscura, O’Neill hosts events every month to showcase Colorado’s quirkiest side, including a “macabre, strange” historic drinking tour of Denver and gazing at the stars overnight at the UFO watchtower in the southwestern Colorado town of Hooper (population: 103).

However, for as much as Atlas Obscura wants Coloradans to get off of their computer and into the state’s weird expanse, O’Neill also considers himself a gatekeeper for the state’s most secret secrets. So, when I asked him about the most off-the-beaten-path attraction in Colorado, he demurred.

“I can’t tell you,” he said. “I don’t want everyone to know about it.”

To find out that secret, you’ll have to get tight with Atlas Obscura’s Denver chapter. But O’Neill did leave us with a few recommendations for plotting your own course around Colorado’s funhouse of curios. Find those among our roundup of 10 roadside attractions around the state below.

Check The Know Outdoors for the list.

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