Ladder to the Stars

Milky Way over train tracks outside Leadville, Colorado. Taken in June 2020.

Milky Way Over the Theresa Mine

Theresa Mine with Milky Way in Independence, Colorado, outside Victor.

Milky Way Over the Hornbek Cabin

Adeline Hornbek's homestead was a 2-story, 4-bedroom log house boasting nearly a dozen glass-paned windows. When completed in 1878, the house was the first in the valley to have more than one story. Taken in Florissant, Colorado September 2018.

Milky Way Over Tennessee Creek

Milky Way rises over Tennessee Creek outside Leadville, Colorado. Taken June 2020.

Moonlit American Basin with Milky Way

A crescent moon lights up American Basin, a high alpine basin sitting at 11,400 feet in elevation just below the summit of Cinnamon Pass.

Milky Way Over the New Monarch Mine

Milky Way over the New Monarch Mine in the Leadville Mining District, Leadville, Colorado.

Milky Way Over Ore Cart Tracks

Milky Way over the ore cart tracks of the New Monarch Mine in the Leadville Mining District outside Leadville, Colorado. Taken in June 2020.

Ghost of Ironton

Milky Way taken in the ghost town of Ironton, which is between Ouray and Silverton in the Red Mountain Mining District. Ironton was founded in 1883 and about a dozen old homesteads still remain. And if you like ghost stories...we lit the inside of the house with a small flashlight with my baseball cap on top of it to diffuse the light, and after about 25 photos, a very loud bang came out of the house. We were the only ones around at about 10pm. My friend was 15 feet away, helping me light paint the exterior of the house. "Did you hear that?" she said loudly. Um, yeah, I heard that. Not sure if it was a critter, or a ghost of Ironton, but we finished up, collected our light from inside, and called it a night.

Vindicated Milky Way

Milky Way over the Vindicator Mine Ore House in the Vindicator Valley, outside Victor and Cripple Creek, Colorado.

Last Dollar Sorting Bins

The Last Dollar Mine began operation in 1896 and was up the mountain from this location. The ore came out of the mine and down the mountain on a conveyor, and then was dropped into these bins. The rock that was discarded by the sorters fell directly below and behind cribbing on the other side of this structure. Then, ore chutes came out of the bins and into the railroad cars, which took it to the mill for processing. This is only a portion of the complex that was there at the turn of the century, and looking at this from the other side would reveal a 3-story structure built into the hillside.

Last Dollar Sorting Bins

The Last Dollar Mine began operation in 1896 and was up the mountain from this location. The ore came out of the mine and down the mountain on a conveyor, and then was dropped into these bins. The rock that was discarded by the sorters fell directly below and behind cribbing on the other side of this structure. Then, ore chutes came out of the bins and into the railroad cars, which took it to the mill for processing. This is only a portion of the complex that was there at the turn of the century, and looking at this from the other side would reveal a 3-story structure built into the hillside.

Hoosier Pass Mines

Two relocated mines on top of Hoosier Pass outside Cripple Creek, Colorado.

Crystal Lake Milky Way

Took this along Crystal Lake, just outside Ouray, Colorado, under a crescent moon.

Live

A 1000-year old Bristlecone Pine perseveres underneath the Milky Way on Windy Ridge on the top of Mount Bross outside Alma, Colorado.

Blue Mesa Milky Way

The Milky Way was the brightest I'd ever seen it on a moonlit night over Blue Mesa reservoir near Gunnison, Colorado.

Milky Way Over Barn

Milky Way rises on March 2018 over an abandoned barn on the eastern Colorado Plains.

The Dark Stage

Milky Way over the ruins of the historic 1861 Glendale Stagecoach Station in Penrose , Colorado. It is said to be haunted by Katherine Cooper. Katherine was singing in 1877 when gold prospector Julian LaSalle first met her, and they fell in love. But Julian had business to attend to, and left on the stagecoach with Katherine’s words calling out that she would wait for him. They corresponded through the winter and made plans for their wedding, but Julian never showed up on the appointed day. He had been robbed and killed by highwaymen along the way. Katherine wouldn’t touch food or drink after this, and so died a self-imposed death. But her ghost has been seen at the station, a sad gray apparition in a wedding dress, still awaiting her beloved Julian.

Windmill on the Colorado Plains

This old windmill was facing perfectly with the Milky Way behind it and sunrise on the horizon.

Homestead Under the Milky Way

The Hornbeck Cabin is part of the Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument in Florissant, Colorado.

Midnight Milky Way

The Milky Way at midnight on Wilkerson Pass in Colorado.

Eleven Miles of Stars

The Milky Way rises vertically over Eleven Mile Reservoir in September.

Namaste, Milky Way

Yoga under the Milky Way off Gold Camp Road outside Victor, Colorado.

Connection to the .stars

Contemplating the universe on Gold Camp Road outside Victor, Colorado.

Theresa Mine Under the Stars

The Theresa Mine Under the Milky Way. Located in the Vindicator Valley in the ghost town of Independence, Colorado.

Vindicated

The Vindicator Mine in the ghost town of Independence, Colorado.

Vindicator Mine

The Vindicator Mine in the ghost town of Independence, Colorado. This was my very first Milky Way photo, taken in June, 2016.

Keyhole at Eleven Mile

The Milky Way rises vertically over Eleven Mile Reservoir in September.

Instant Kharma

Yoga under the Milky Way on Gold Camp Road outside Victor, Colorado.

Windmill and Milky Way

A lonely windmill stands under a field of stars in Ramah, Colorado.

Infinity Road

The tail end of the Milky Way over a lonely road in eastern Colorado.

Milky Reflections

The Milky Way is reflected in Ramah Reservoir in Colorado.

Windmill and Fence Under the Milky Way

A lonely windmill and fence under a starry night on the eastern plains of Colorado.

Valley Ruins

Old mines ruin dot the Vindicator Valley in Victor, Colorado, in the Cripple Creek Mining District.

Milky Way with Perseid Meteor

This was taken off Gold Camp Road outside the Cripple Creek Mining District during the peak night of the 2017 Perseid Meteor shower.

Holy Night Skies

St. Mary's Church in Ramah, Colorado as the Milky Way rises about 2:30 am.

Milky Way Over Abandoned Homestead

This barn and old house sits on the eastern Colorado plains.