Last Updated on: 27th April 2025, 09:06 am
The Paint Mines Interpretive Park isn’t quite what most visitors are expecting when they picture Colorado. But these colorful badlands, within easy reach of either Denver or Colorado Springs, reveal how geologically diverse the state really is.
The Colorado Paint Mines are best experienced by hiking through them. But as we’ll cover shortly, there are a few different ways to go about it, and doing the entire loop hike may not be for everyone.
With that said, seeing the entire park shouldn’t take you more than a few hours. Furthermore, the hike is rather easy, so other than some water, sunscreen, and a hat, no special equipment is needed.
For more information on reaching the Paint Mines Interpretive Park and where to stay in the area, be sure to check the end of the article.
Exploring the Paint Mines Interpretive Park
Navigating the Site
The park is free to enter and is open from dawn to dusk, and there are a few different places you can park.
In addition to the Main Parking Lot, you’ll also find the Overlook Parking Lot, which is well worth a stop at some point. You’ll find hiking trails branching off from either.
Though I started from the Main Parking Lot and hiked through the entire site as one long loop trail, I wouldn’t consider either the far northwest or northeast sections of the Paint Mines Interpretive Park as essential.
Many visitors will be fine just heading to the Overlook Parking Lot and then descending straight into the most interesting and colorful portion of the site.
Note that while there are plenty of physical maps placed throughout the site (see image below), you can also download a trail map on AllTrails.
As mentioned, I started hiking from the Main Parking Lot. From there, you have two paths to choose from, and I went with the one to the left that takes visitors northeast.
As I’d soon discover, this is a rather uninteresting section of the site. It largely consists of prairie grass, and you’ll only spot a few tiny sections of colorful badlands here and there.
It wasn’t until the trail took me back south, to an area where multiple trails intersect, that things got interesting. As such, unless you’re a completionist, I’d recommend skipping the northernmost section of the park.
Though this is not considered the main part of the park, this central area offers some great views of the Paint Mines’ colorful badlands. The clays here were deposited around 55 million years ago and then subjected to various types of erosion.
This general area has been inhabited by humans for at least the past 9000 years. And the park gets its name from the fact that Native American tribes used these colorful clays for their paint and pottery.
Numerous ceramics have been found at the site, dating between 100 and 1450 AD. In addition to using the clay for paint, native tribes also gathered petrified wood for things like spear tips.
Next, I continued on with the long loop by heading east and then north. This area was similar to the northwest section of the park mentioned above – largely flat prairie with only a few glimpses of badlands here and there.
Again, this part is skippable for most visitors. This section does, at least, take you up a large hill from which you can look down at the Paint Mines from above.
While you’d never guess from these photographs, I nearly canceled this outing due to gloomy weather.
Miraculously, just as it was time to decide whether to head to the Paint Mines or take a detour, the drizzle stopped and the clouds cleared up, and I was lucky enough to explore the Colorado Paint Mines under clear blue skies.
Of course, when it comes to unique geological formations like these, seeing them under direct sunlight is always ideal.
After what felt like ages, the path finally started taking me closer to the most stunning part of the Paint Mines Interpretive Park.
As I’d later realize, this is also the section that visitors view from the Overlook Parking Lot, though I was approaching from the opposite side (west).
After enjoying some incredible views from directly above the Paint Mines, the path took me downhill for an even closer look.
While far from my first experience exploring badlands, they’re one of my favorite types of natural environments to explore, and I rarely grow tired of them.
Most people are surprised to find a landscape like this in Colorado, a state most known for the Rocky Mountains. Yet within easy reach of Denver, one can find a landscape closely resembling somewhere like Utah’s Toadstool Hoodoos.
Here, you’ll also find the narrow spires that geologists call hoodoos, in addition to various gullies.
But note that in contrast to other badlands, such as New Mexico’s Bisti Badlands or parts of South Dakota’s Badlands National Park, visitors cannot freely explore the Colorado Paint Mines and are expected to stay on the path.
Note that if you are following the main AllTrails map for the area, simply labelled as the ‘Paint Mines Trail,’ the most interesting pathways are excluded from that route, for some reason.
But once you make it to the southern end of the site, you’ll want to explore all the little trails you can find as thoroughly as possible, as this is the most interesting part of the entire site.
The area just below the overlook is almost entirely white, yet is still full of fascinating formations. Once you get deeper into the badlands, it can feel a bit like traversing a labyrinth.
But eventually, you should either reach either a natural dead end or a sign telling you not to proceed.
The area opposite the overlook is a lot more colorful, with parts of it even appearing golden. Apparently, the red and yellow hues of the clay here are caused by the presence of iron oxide. The purplish hues, meanwhile, are a result of manganese oxide.
As mentioned, these little side trails do not appear on the longest AllTrails map. So while the total estimated time for the ‘Paint Mines Trail’ is an hour and twenty minutes, you might end up spending a lot of extra time exploring all the washes and gulleys.
All in all, my explorations of the Paint Mines Interpretive Park (minus the overlook) took me a little over 2.5 hours. But as discussed, just sticking to this main area beneath the overlook will be enough for many visitors.
Ultimately, I got back on the main trail and followed it northwest toward the Main Parking Lot, stopping to look at some more badlands formations on the way.
The Main Overlook
Though I’d just been hiking beneath it, I finished my visit to the Colorado Paint Mines by stopping at the Overlook Parking Lot. It was well worth it to make the extra stop to see the most colorful portion from above.
As mentioned, for those who are short on time, you could simply park here and descend into the badlands via one of the nearby trails. But looking back, considering how lucky I got with the weather, I have no regrets about walking the entire loop trail.
Additional Info
The Paint Mines Interpretive Park is located in El Paso county, just 45 minutes or so from Colorado Springs, or a little over an hour from neighboring Manitou Springs.
From Denver, it’s about 90 minutes to 2 hours, depending on traffic. What route Google tells you to take will also largely depend on traffic at that moment.
Traffic in Denver’s surrounding towns and suburbs can often be pretty bad, though you could still easily visit the Paint Mines Interpretive Park as a day trip. And you might even have some time left over to see something in Colorado Springs afterward.
I actually visited the Colorado Paint Mines when traveling between North Platte, Nebraska and Denver. The site is 4.5 hours from North Platte, but considering how it won’t take up much of your time, those following similar road trip itineraries could easily squeeze it in.
Either town would make a fine base for the Colorado Paint Mines, not to mention numerous other landmarks, such as the Garden of the Gods, Manitou Incline, and more.
In Colorado Springs, highly-rated mid-range options include Quality Inn & Suites Garden Of The Gods and Home2 Suites.
And those able to splurge a bit more might want to look into Historic Home w/Pikes Peak Views or the Cheyenne Mountain Resort.
Neighboring Manitou Springs is smaller, so many of the centrally located accommodations are motels, such as the Eagle Motel or Villa Motel. The Cliff House at Pikes Peak would also be central enough to walk everywhere.
I’m far from an expert on Denver. But when researching hotels for my recent trip, I had a very challenging time.
Nearly every time I found a place that seemed to be a good value in a convenient location – whether the city center or suburbs – I encountered numerous reviews complaining of strange individuals loitering in the hallways and parking lots.
In the end, I chose to stay at La Quinta Inn in the southwestern suburbs of Lakewood. This was also convenient for some of the day trip I’d be taking. The area turned out to be fine, though it may not be convenient for those spending multiple days in central Denver.
Whichever place you choose, I would carefully read the reviews, as Denver seems to be going through a rough time at the moment.