Mingus Ranch

Mingus Ranch is a cabin where guests can step back in time and feel like they're staying on an early 20th century homestead. The cabin was built in 1908 and was operated by the same family for six decades before it became a Forest Service property. In collaboration with the Frontier Pathways Scenic and Historic Byway and the Colorado State Historical Society, the cabin and neighboring barn have been renovated to match their original appearance and filled with period-specific furniture and antiques. Hiking, mountain biking, horse riding, off-road vehicle riding, hunting and wildlife viewing are all enjoyable activities here. An extensive network of hiking trails and roads for biking are nearby. The modest two-story ranch building is an example of a typical high country ranch. The cabin sleeps six and conveniences include electric heat, an electric stove and minimal electric lighting. Furnishings consist of one bunk bed, two single beds, a queen sized bed, a kitchen sink not equipped with running water, a table and chairs, and some cooking pots and utensils. A vault toilet, picnic table and campfire ring are located outside, as well as a horse corral; the outhouse is several hundred feet from the cabin. No drinking water is available, so it's important to bring plenty. Other items to bring include bedding, food, garbage bags, dish soap, sunscreen and other basic camping gear. There are minimal lights at the facility, so visitors should bring additional light sources. Please leave the cabin as clean as you have enjoyed it for the next visitor. The cabin is perched in a sprawling meadow at an elevation of 9,400 feet near the base of Round Top Mountain in the heart of the Wet Mountains. Surrounding the meadow are spruce and other mixed conifers, and the scenic Greenhorn Mountain is due south. Westcliffe, a mountain town 26 miles northwest of the cabin, has grocery stores, restaurants, gas stations, banking, a medical clinic, and other amenities: take State Highway 165 north for 9 miles to the junction of State Highway 96, then SH 96 west for 17 miles. Colorado City, 29 miles south of the cabin on SH 165, has a grocery store, gas stations, and a public golf course.