There is so much beauty to be seen in Colorado! While I was going to pick one of my favorite mountain places to highlight, I decided to choose Bishop Castle in Rye, Colorado. I honestly had no idea that this castle even existed and I didn’t believe my husband when he first told me.
Justin told me about this castle about six months ago and literally the weekend after he told me about it, we were checking it out! Bishop Castle is south of Colorado Springs in Rye, Colorado. It was about three hours away from our house.
History
Bishop Castle was essentially built by one man, Jim Bishop. He bought the land with his own money when he was 15 years old and him and his dad decided they wanted to build a family cabin on it. Since the land was at such a high elevation, the amount of time that they had to work on it was limited due to snow. Since rock was abundant on the land, they decided to build the cabin out of rock. Jim Bishop mainly worked on the cabin by himself since his family owned a business that needed attention as well.
Word spread about this cabin and how it looked like a castle because it was made from stone. People asked his so frequently if it was a castle that he decided to just build a castle instead. This castle was build entirely by Jim Bishop. He carried the rock, built the pullies, dug the foundation, welded the metal, and everything else on his own! The best part is that he opens this castle up to the public for free of charge!
What Is There To See
You can probably guess what there is to see here! It’s a castle! You can fully walk through and around this castle free of charge! There are a couple of grand rooms, towers leading to the top, spiral staircases, and a whole system of staircases and walkways to go through on the outside of the castle! There was a kitchen inside the castle but a fire has destroyed that part and it has not been rebuilt yet.
We went to the castle on a snowy cloudy day. This made for a really cool atmosphere but it also made it so we couldn’t go through all the staircases and walkways at the top. Many of them were iced over pretty good and so we didn’t try to go up. Some people did, but we just decided not to risk it with the kids.
I want to note that this castle was not built by a professional and it is to be explored at your own risk. I do not know how structurally sound it is and many of the walk ways we did go on, did not feel 100% safe. If we ever go back to visit, I would like to go all the way up to the top, but with the kids on this visit I didn’t want to risk it. I don’t want to scare people away from this castle but I do want them to be safe!
Along with the castle, there are a couple other structures to go see that have been build. You can see them on the grounds of the castle. There is also a gift shop sent up next to the castle. It has been moved to a small shed since the fire. The gift shop was closed when we went so I’m not quite sure what types of things are in it. If you visit Bishop Castle, I would suggest going to the gift shop (if it is open), and purchasing something. The castle survives on purchases and donations alone. Jim Bishop does not want to charge an entrance fee for this castle so everyone can see it, but donations or purchases do help them keep up with the castle maintenance.
If you are visiting Colorado or if you live here, checking out Bishop Castle is a must! This castle is gorgeous and it is so much fun to explore! This is a great family activity!