Colorado is home to some of the most beautiful and iconic hikes in the country, but did you know that we also have quite a few walks that are eerie and creepy? If you enjoy your trails historic and spooky, you will want to check out this Colorado hike that takes you through the ruins of an abandoned mine, Ghost Town Hollow.

Welcome to the Elk Park Trail, a moderate four-mile, out and back hike that leads hikers to the little-known Ghost Town Hollow.
Google/Sharon Bartholomew
Tucked onto the slopes of Pikes Peak, the Elk Park Trail may seem like any ordinary mountain trail, with its breathtaking scenery and grueling elevation (11,800 feet, to be exact), but as you walk around, you will find an assortment of abandoned oddities, the most prevalent of which is rusted old mine equipment.
Google/Sharon Bartholomew
This is just one example among many of abandoned mines in Colorado, but we think this one is particularly eerie.
As the story goes, mining on Pikes Peak wasn't nearly as lucrative as companies and miners had hoped.
Google/Sharon Bartholomew
So when the extractive efforts were abandoned, the miners simply absconded, leaving behind old, rusted equipment and dilapidated log cabins that can still be seen today.

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While the old equipment and forgotten homes are eerie in their own way, the most unsettling part of the hike is the Oil Creek Tunnel (or Cincinnati Mine), which is said to have killed two miners during its construction and now boasts the sounds of dripping water and blowing wind.
Google/Sharon Bartholomew
These sounds contribute to the eeriness of the locale and the mine shaft, itself.
Not only is the Oil Creek Tunnel the scariest part of the trail, but it is also the turn-around point on this hike to an abandoned mine in Colorado.
Google/Sharon Bartholomew
This affords hikers an opportunity to re-visit the derelict equipment and quiet mountain landscape on the way back down to the trail head.
The Elk Peak Trail is open year-round but is best used in late spring through early fall.
Google/Sharon Bartholomew
You can explore Ghost Town Hollow virtually through this YouTube video from Ezri Does Things:

Tickets are required to drive, park, and/or hike along the Pikes Peak Highway.
Google/Lalith Chandra
For more information, please visit the City of Colorado Springs' website.

Cell service can be spotty in remote mountain areas, so be sure to bring along a paper trail map and a downloaded version that you can use offline on your smartphone for navigating. You can get both from AllTrails Plus. Explore even more of Pikes Peak with a guided tour of some of the area’s best known features, like Garden of the Gods.

Have you made the hike to this abandoned mine Colorado? Tell us about your Ghost Town Hollow experience in the comments. For even more Centennial State haunts, take a road trip to some of the scariest places in Colorado.

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Elk Park Trailhead, Woodland Park, CO 80863, USA