Colorado is known for its dark mountain roads and historic hotels – both places known for having haunting stories to tell. Here are some of its most haunted places.
At the Museum of Colorado Prisons, guests have reported doorknobs turning by themselves and an unexplained tobacco smell in the laundry room. A ghostly presence has even been witnessed in Cell 19, where a woman was killed.
Strater Hotel
Durango’s historic Strater Hotel is the oldest in southwestern Colorado, having played host to famous figures from Presidents John F. Kennedy and Gerald Ford to Will Rogers and author Louis L’amour. While its hallowed grounds may attract guests for Durango & Silverton Railroad rides during train season, the hotel can also become quite haunting during other times of year.
Apparitions have been reported, disembodied voices have been heard and ghostly orbs can often be found on infrared cameras. One of the more notable hauntings involves a little boy who drowned in one of the hotel pools who is said to wander the rooms looking wet.
Although the hotel doesn’t actively promote their hauntings and only briefly mention them on their website, Maria’s Bookshop in Durango or online offers a wonderful pictorial history storybook about their colorful past that features them prominently. This can be purchased to learn more.
Boulder Theater
Colorado is known for being filled with haunted locations that are said to be visited by mysterious spirits. When visiting private properties that may be haunted, be sure to obtain all necessary permissions first – many ghost hunters have been ticketed or arrested for illegal trespassing and entering without authorization.
Though Estes Park’s Stanley Hotel may be well-known for its supposed paranormal activities, Colorado boasts numerous other haunted locations – with Boulder Theater being one of them – having inspired numerous ghost tales and reports.
Boulder Theater’s ghost, said to be that of a woman brutally raped and murdered by a custodian during the 1960s, is said to still haunt its building; some people even claim hearing a ghostly organ playing itself during the nighttime hours.
George Paper, who managed the theater during its 40s heydays, is also said to haunt the building, playing around and turning lights and faucets on and off like in real life.
View Hotel
Colorado is known for its breathtaking mountain scenery and world-class ski resorts, but the state also offers many eerie places that draw in visitors seeking an exhilarating spine-chilling experience. Haunted hotels, abandoned mines, and even crematoriums provide plenty of potential spine-tinglers in Colorado that attract those in search of thrills.
The Stanley Hotel in Estes Park is one of the most haunted hotels in Colorado, boasting a long and storied history that dates back to when upper-class individuals lived here at the turn of the 20th century and inspired Stephen King’s novel “The Shining.”
There have been numerous reports of paranormal activity at this hotel, such as cold spots, strange noises and apparitions. Guests have reported hearing children’s voices and hearing piano music in the grand ballroom while staff have also had strange experiences like seeing kegs tip over on their own – it remains unknown whether these experiences are caused by ghosts but certainly add an air of mystery and unease around this establishment.
Gold Mines
During Colorado’s Gold Rush of the 1800s, hopeful fortune seekers flocked to its high-alpine regions in search of their next big score. Settlers established settlements on hillsides, meadows and near creeks and rivers – creating a wave of small towns.
Historic towns hold onto ghosts of those who didn’t fare so well in life; their memories still haunting these haunted locations as leaves turn colors and air chills down, providing the ideal setting to discover Colorado’s past.
Explore Clear Creek Canyon by driving or hiking, passing Vicksburg ghost town or hiking to Interlaken ruins. At Animas Forks, where the heart of hard-rock silver mining once thrived; now the buildings stand abandoned yet hauntingly beautiful.
