El Paso County

Welcome! My name is Pauline Flores, a Colorado Youth Ambassador for Making Colorado. My blog captures the essence of the people, places, and things that make El Paso County in Colorado unique and wonderful.

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The Punch Bowls is a little known hiking spot in Colorado Springs

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The Glen Eyrie Castle is hidden among the trees and was the estate of General William Palmer, the founder of Colorado Springs.

The tours held here offer a wealth of information about the history of Colorado Springs

For more information visit Glen Eyrie

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The Black Sheep is a tiny bar/concert venue in Colorado Springs. If you blink you might miss it!

All kinds of bands and music artists play here. You'll find artists of all types from underground, to local, to internationally famous! Just last Monday the Plain White T's had a concert here. The great thing about the Black Sheep is that the price of tickets could be as low as $10. Rock and hip-hop artists are most commonly showcased here.

The last photo definitely shows that the owners have a sense of humor. This is what the sign looked like on April Fool's Day!

For concert dates click here: blacksheeprocks.com

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Want to experience Christmas in the middle of summer? Of course you do! The North Pole in Manitou Springs is a Christmas-themed amusement park that operates from May to December.  It's just one of the treasures El Paso County has to offer and has been in operation since the 1950's.

North Pole

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Fargo's Pizza in Colorado Springs has an ambiance like no other! The old fashioned decor, the employees' Victorian uniforms, and the magic piano always playing old timey music adds to the 1800's feel of this restaurant. On the upper level you will see mannequins of Fargo and his wife, Sophia, enjoying a dinner!  This is a great family restaurant with great food.  You simply don't live in Colorado Springs without having been to Fargo's!

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Gold Camp Road in Colorado Springs is beautiful during the day, but haunted at night. Although the view of the city lights is quite beautiful as well, you can't help but feel a ghostly presence around you. How is it haunted you ask? Here's the story of the school bus crash:

There are several legends — or myths — concerning the ghosts of Gold Camp Road, but the one that seems to get the most attention centers around a bus crash in 1987 in which dozens of school children were killed. According to stories, the children were returning to Colorado Springs from Cripple Creek after a field trip. While the bus was traveling through tunnel No. 3, the tunnel collapsed, killing them all. Tunnel No. 3 is about a mile hike from the trailhead above Helen Hunt Falls.

Many people seeking an adventure go to Gold Camp to ghost hunt. There are three tunnels total. What you're supposed to do is park your car under a tunnel and turn off all the lights and radio. After you drive out of the tunnel you just might find some hand prints of the dead children on your windows. Very creepy!

Ghostly Gold Camp Road

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If you travel through Manitou Springs, you might come across a sign that leads to Rainbow Falls.  If you travel further you might be surprised that you will actually see a rainbow....a rainbow of graffiti!  

Rainbow Falls (most commonly known as Graffiti Falls) is covered in graffiti. Some might say that this is a destruction of natural beauty, but in my opinion it's a really cool place with a lot of character and personality. Graffiti Falls is basically one giant canvas for everybody. It's neat to see the stories that other people have left.

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Week 9: Insider's Travel Secrets

It's the final week of our journey through El Paso County! This week I'll post some amazing places that only the locals would know of.

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This video summarizes the vibe of El Paso County!

"A Thousand Words" by Pauline Flores

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Success and happiness, of course.

El Paso County resident/Sand Creek High School senior when asked, "What do you strive for?"

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Going off to college means no longer relying on the parents for money, food, and shelter. Basically, it's the epitome of independence. Luckily, El Paso County has many different schools to offer to students. From public schools, like the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, to private ones, such as Colorado College, there's many options to choose from. If you're leaning towards the military route, then the Air Force Academy is right for you. Or if you're looking to save money, the Pikes Peak Community College would be a good choice. No matter what you choose, the schools in El Paso County will help guide you to the right career path.

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Colorado Springs Independent

Colorado Springs Independent weekly newspaper is the local authority for news, politics, food, arts, music, entertainment, film, movies, Fort Carson, Air Force Academy and USOC Olympic coverage throughout the Pikes Peak region

In addition to covering news stories, The Independent (aka The Indy) promotes local businesses, music, restaurants, and events. What says "independent spirit" more than a newspaper named The Independent?!

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The Pikes Peak International Hill Climb is an annual automobile and motorcycle race to the summit of Pikes Peak.  It's the second oldest motorsport event in America and has been taking place since 1916.  

The fact that this race is also known as "The Race to the Clouds" really speaks to me.  It embodies El Paso County's competitiveness and ambition to accomplish any goal, no matter how risky it is.

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Clearly the people of El Paso County aren't afraid to get weird!

Every October in Manitou Springs, the Emma Crawford Coffin Races & Parade are held.  Emma Crawford was a resident of Manitou Springs back in the late 19th century.  When she died of tuberculosis her coffin was buried on the side of a mountain. It should be noted that her coffin also was dislodged after a series of rainstorms and ended up sliding down the side of that mountain. 

It wasn't until 1994 that the idea of the Coffin Races was born in order to attract tourism in Manitou Springs. This quirky, fun, and unique race was just what the city needed!

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Colorado Springs is only applicant for Regional Tourism Act tax incentive this year

The Colorado Economic Development Commission offered a sales-tax rebate through the Regional Tourism Act to any city in Colorado, and this year they had no choice but to choose Colorado Springs as the winner! Armed with an 80 page application, Colorado Springs ended up being the only city that applied by the deadline of July 8th, 2013.

This means that Colorado Springs is seeking $201 million in tax rebates over a span of thirty years to pay for a United States Olympic Museum, a new baseball stadium downtown for the Colorado Springs Sky Sox, The University of Colorado-Colorado Springs Sports Medicine and Performance Center, and a new visitor center for the Air Force Academy.

This action taken by Colorado Springs is a great example of how El Paso County is always striving for bigger and better things!

Click the link above to see the drawings of these proposed ideas.

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Week 8: Independent Spirit

Innovation, ingenuity, and individuality is the name of the game for this theme! When Colorado was a part of America's frontier, pioneers would risk it all to explore the uncharted territory. This week we'll see how El Paso County still maintains this forward-thinking attitude.

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Memorial (top) and Penrose St. Francis (bottom) are two hospitals that are vital to the well-being of El Paso County residents. Almost everybody I know here were either born in Memorial or Penrose (I was born in Memorial). One thing that we're really passionate about here is taking care of one another. You can't spell hospitality without hospital! Without the work of doctors, nurses, paramedics, and other assistants who knows how life for El Paso County would be right now? Thanks to these two hospitals, locals have the ability to live both healthy and happy.