Weird attractions in Colorado’s hills

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Colorado’s mountain towns attract visitors from all over the world for their outdoor recreation and stunning scenery, but they also have some lesser-known quirky attractions to check out between ski days, hikes and other activities.

Here are some of Colorado’s weirdest mountain town attractions:

1. Wooden Troll — Breckenridge

This 15-foot tall wooden troll sculpture, “Isak Heartstone,” is located on Breckenridge’s Trollstigen Trail. Isak was created by Danish artist Thomas Dambo as part of the annual Breckenridge International Festival of Arts.

It’s an easy walk or bike ride to the sculpture; you can also use free public transportation to visit it. The trailhead is in the southeast corner of the Stephen C. West Ice Arena parking lot.

2. Key collection at Seven Keys Lodge — Estes Park

Formerly the Baldpate Inn, this lodge has been part of Estes Park since 1917 and is set above the scenic town and next to Rocky Mountain National Park. As well as the stunning mountain views and accommodations, this attraction has the largest public key collection in the world. Guests would donate interesting keys to the inn. According to Colorado.com, the lodge has collected 30,000 or so keys (and counting) from all over the world, including Mozart’s wine cellar, Westminster Abbey and the Pentagon.

3. Bishop Castle — Rye

One of Colorado’s most famous roadside attractions, this castle is a “monumental statue in stone and iron” located near Rye. The elaborate and intricate castle was created by Jim Bishop, starting in 1969, and has become a staple of Colorado’s history.

The castle is always open, and visitors can explore it independently for free. The surrounding area also offers great outdoor activities.

4. Herkimer, World’s Largest Beetle — Colorado Springs

Located at the entrance of Rock Creek Canyon along Highway 115, this statue is a male specimen replica of one of the world’s largest beetles, Dynastes Hercules. The statue is 10 feet high and 16 feet long, making Herkimer 48 times larger than a real-life Hercules beetle. Herkimer has been at the current location for more than 60 years.

5. Penny Arcade — Manitou Springs

Walk down Memory Lane at this arcade, found west of U.S. Highway 24 in Colorado Springs. The arcade includes hundreds of old arcade games like pinball, Asteroids, Skee-Ball and more inside century-old buildings. Some of the games date back to the 1930s — and even cost the same price as they did back then.