Fascinating Family Adventure in Pueblo
Today we went to Pueblo and found Hobbitville and a castle! We found Hobbitville at Pueblo Mountain Park and we found a castle along the highway in Rye, just outside of Pueblo.
This was another fun family adventure. We took our puppy with us. Well…she is a big puppy. She is a 1 year old German Shepherd. She loves going on adventures with us.
How did I find these two places
As I have mentioned before, I use ol’ trusty Google Maps. Haha! Ok Google Maps is not 100% reliable, but it gets the job done, most of the time. I was looking for green spaces in Pueblo. We’ve already been to Pueblo State Park, so I was wondering what else Pueblo was to offer. Well I found a gem!
Outside of Pueblo a little ways a is great park, with a creek running through it. I thought that it would make a great adventure for us.
Then as I was looking for a way home, I saw that there was a place called Bishops Castle. And next to the name was a blue camera on Google Maps. So I click on it and there was this old looking castle that you can go into and explore!
That was right up our alley. And there wasn’t a fee involved. Amazing!
Pueblo Mountain Park
Pueblo Mountain Park is tucked away outside of Pueblo in the town of Beulah. The park is about 600 acres. They have some amenities, a lodge, gazebo and conference hall. It appeared that they might have weddings there too. There was an archway near the creek.
The bathrooms… I wish I took a picture of them. They look like HUGE rain barrels. There isn’t a door, but a curved hallway that opens up where the toilet is. It was odd, but when you gotta go, you use what’s there.
When we first got there, we parked near the lodge and explored that area. We walked down to the pond on the Pond Creek Trail. It’s a short trail but ther was still a lot of snow and we only had on hiking boots/shoes. We turned around and went back up to the Jeep.
We drove around the park looking for a place to have lunch. Some of the park was still closed off due to it not actually being “open” yet.
We choose a spot next to the creek for lunch. After lunch we explored a little bit. We crossed the creek and went up the hill. And that is when we found Hobbitville! At first we thought that the forest service department gathered the branches but they all looked so perfect. As we were exploring more, that is when we saw the sign. It was super cute and the kids loved it.
The drive to Bishop’s Castle from Pueblo
After our exploration of Pueblo Mountain Park, we left to head out to Bishop’s Castle.
The way that Google Maps took us, looked to be the same road that we took from Pueblo to get there. This turns to a dirt road. The drive takes you through San Isabel National Forest. We did pass a couple cars on this road. This was a pretty drive especially since there was still snow in places.
Bishop’s Castle
This castle is very interesting. It’s made of stone like you’d imagine. There are a lot of metal stairs that were sketchy looking. David and the kids went into the castle to explore. They didn’t climb too high up. They didn’t feel safe.
As I was exploring the bottom level there was little “rooms” that might have been used for something. Luna (dog’s name) and I climbed some stairs but if someone is coming down and you’re going up, someone had to go back. That happened to me twice, so I just stayed on the ground level.
There was a group of men there, speaking another language, they were terrified of the dog. Like stopped in their tracks, slowly backed up and walked quickly away from us, scared. We encountered them again. They froze, like scared stiff froze. I apologized and walked away. So after that I just stayed on the side waiting for the family to get finished.
What to expect at Bishop’s Castle
- There isn’t any parking. You park alongside the road.
- They have porta potties for restrooms
- There was a little store but I didn’t go check it out.
- The day we went the walking paths were flooded or super muddy. If you go in the spring you might need boots.
An animal sighting on the way home
We saw Big Horn Sheep on the way home!! In the first picture there is a stop sign WAY in the distance. We went right and shortly after, we saw the Big Horn Sheep sign. Then shortly after that we saw the Big Horn Sheep. It was super exciting. The dog was super confused at what she was looking at.
Frequently Asked Questions
Family Fun Adventure wrap up
We use Google Maps to find fun family adventures, most of the time. Sometimes I read a blog post about a place and I think we should check it out. But these two places I found on a map. Never would I have googled ” castle in Colorado”.
We are definitely going back to Pueblo Mountain Park some day. There was so much we didn’t get to see. And we had the crazy dog with us, which limits our adventures.
We might visit Bishop’s Castle again. We definitely won’t bring the dog. 😉
Have you ever been to Pueblo Mountain Park or Bishop’s Castle? What were your experiences?
