Having released the first issue of Abandonment, a magazine featuring the
best photographs I’ve taken of areas featuring abandoned buildings and
forgotten history, I wanted to focus on the first issue – Leadville, Colorado.
Why Leadville?
I first went to Leadville back in 2011 or so when
my Uncle brought me there. He ran the fifty-mile ultra-marathon and he brought
me along which was a blast! He did awesome in the race and we did a lot of
hiking, camping and sightseeing. Leadville is an old mining town founded in the
1860s in Colorado. The town sits at over 10,000 feet and is the highest town in
the United States. It takes a few days to become acclimated to the altitude
since the oxygen is much purer up there than anywhere else. Often times if
you overexert yourself hiking or working out, you’ll be out of breath quicker.
With the town being up so high, the summers are short. Lasting a mere few
months, the summer months are active in town and bustling with athletes and
outdoorsmen running, biking, hiking, fishing, and any other outdoor activity
since there is so much nature and sightseeing to do.
There are many fun aspects of Leadville
including the historic town itself. Walking down main street, there are
numerous old buildings including the oldest Saloon still operating in Colorado,
the Tabor Opera House which is an amazing architectural structure in itself, to
the Delaware Hotel. There are so many historic buildings to list as well as fun
museums. There are many delicious restaurants that, even though I’m not sure if
they’re still there, but a pizza restaurant with delicious pizza as well as
Quincy’s Steakhouse. Quincy’s had a limited menu but the steaks they offered on
nights, each night a different variation, were priced efficiently but the food
was great. Coffee and cookies in the morning were a great way to start the day
before adventuring out to hike and go to the many mining camps throughout and
see many abandoned and buildings in ruin. Sadly, the buildings are not taken
care of and as every day passes, they rot more and more. Most of the buildings
in Leadville are made of wood and the sun, rain, and snowy winter’s damage and
weaken the buildings each passing year. Going there, there were many buildings
and areas to photograph and preserve history. It’s fun to imagine what the
areas once looked like and looking at old pictures brings an astonishing thought
to the now quiet area.
Having been two additional times, I can’t
wait to return as it has been quite a few years. I look forward to the
beautiful campsite by the lake, the history, and heritage, as well as the clean
air and places to wander and get lost at. I remember after going a couple of
times, I wondered how it would be to live there and even applied to a couple of
job openings in town. Thankfully, I did not get the calls since I’m sure the
winters would be dreadful. Even though, Leadville is a great town to visit and
get some fresh air.
Interested in seeing the photos of such
abandoned buildings and areas in Leadville and the surrounding mining camps?
Please check out the first issue of Abandonment: Leadville, Colorado.
No comments:
Post a Comment