A Journey of Stones

Great place to stop in and have a beer. Highly recommend the IPA or the Colorado Wheat. Friendly wait staff, good food and yard games. Nice large TVs to watch games and space for the kids to run around. Bike, walk, run or drive in and have a beer. The first brewery established in southeastern Colorado.

201 Grant Avenue | La Junta, CO
(719) 363-1019
Opens 4 PM Thursday to Sunday - Tours Available

La Junta (Spanish for “the junction”) rests at the intersection of the Santa Fe Trail with the Arkansas River. The town developed near Bent’s Fort, a fur trading post of the 19th century.

27994 US-50 | La Junta, CO
(719) 384-2900

Time to get back on the road (Hwy 50) and travel just 22 minutes to Las Animas. Find the Las Animas Cemetery south of the town on County Road 10.75 by turning south off of Hwy 50 at the historic Bent County Courthouse.

The Las Animas Cemetery is one of the most interesting cemeteries on this tour. It contains a large number of well-known pioneers including the graves of cattle baron John Wesley Prowers, entrepreneur William Bent, and his well-known wife Amache Bent.

Carmen’s Restaurant serves authentic Mexican food, daily buffet, and desserts include Fried Ice Cream, a popular item on the menu.

After enjoying your authentic Mexican food lunch, it is time to leave Las Animas and continue east down Hwy 50 to Fort Lyon National Cemetery. Travel 3.5 miles and turn right (south) at Co Rd 13. Drive 0.2 miles and turn left onto Co Rd HH/Trail Rd. Travel 2.8 miles to the entrance of Fort Lyon National Cemetery.

Located at 625 Carson Avenue | Las Animas, CO
(719) 456-0577

A quaint historical cemetery just off the road directly beside John Martin State Park. Contains the family plats of the Hasty family.

10260 County Road 24 | Hasty, Bent, CO

There are two other cemeteries off of Hwy 50 that requires just a short jaunt off of Hwy 50. They include the McClave Home Cemetery located in McClave, Colorado; and the Wiley Cemetery located just north of Junction 50/US Hwy 287 in Wiley, Colorado. The Wiley Cemetery has a decendant of Sand Creek who died in the influenza epidemic of 1918-1919.

Travel east 24 minutes on Hwy 50 to Lamar, Colorado where you will spend the night.

Both cemeteries have historical markers including a number of veterans and pioneers. Stay until dark and enjoy the cool summer air in southeastern Colorado.

Fairmont Cemetery is located at 224 Sage Dr, Lamar, CO
Riverside Cemetery is located at 1009 E Maple St, Lamar, CO

Spacious Loft located in the center of Downtown Lamar. 4 bedrooms, large living area, office, 1.5 baths, huge walk-in shower, steeping tub with jets and many other amenities await you. Shopping, restaurants & bars are all right outside the door of this hidden gem. Great for large groups, entertaining or just relaxing.

101 North Main Street | Lamar, CO
(719) 336-7415
airbnb.com

Main page: Camp Amache

After a hearty breakfast get on the road and take Highway 50 to the east just over an hour to the quaint little town of Granada. The Amache Preservation Society (APS) maintains the physical site of Amache and is instrumental in its preservation. The society was established by Mr. John Hopper, a social studies teacher and now Principal of Granada High School and consists of volunteer students from that school. With the help of many other organizations, the APS has renovated the cemetery, established an Amache Museum and research center, restored key Amache landmarks, including the water tower, a guard tower, and barrack.

amache.org

Go into town and check out the Granada Amache Museum maintained and operated by the Granada Preservation Society. The museum is located in downtown Granada at 105 East Goff Avenue. It is usually open five days a week in the summer. During the school year, it is open on demand Mon-Sat. Contact the Granada School at 719-734-5492 to schedule a visit.

From Granada travel east on Hwy 50 for 10.7 miles and turn left (north) onto North 1st Avenue Drive 0.3 miles and turn right (east) on Co Rd FF/Cemetery Road going 0.6 miles more to the site.

The Holly Cemetery features some Civil War era graves including veterans from the Sand Creek Massacre. Make sure to take in the large memorial stones designating the 1931 school bus tragedy in which 5 children and their bus driver perished in a blizzard. All six are buried at the memorial area within the cemetery.

Main page: Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site

Traveling to the Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site is an easy drive north 30 miles on Highway 287. At the junction, follow the Sand Creek Massacre signs to the east down Highway 96 turn right (north) on Co Rd 58 that turns into Co Rd 57. Travel 3 miles and turn left on Co Rd W. The park entrance is 1.7 miles.

The Sand Creek Massacre - 8 Hours that changed the Great Plains forever. The Sand Creek Massacre: profound, symbolic, spiritual, controversial, a site unlike any other in America. As 675 cavalrymen came around a prairie bend, the camps of Chiefs Black Kettle, White Antelope, and Left Hand lay in the valley before them. Chaotic, horrific, tumultuous, and bloody, the events of November 29, 1864 changed the course of history.

Within the park there is a section that contains repatriated remains of a number of people who were killed at Sand Creek.

After your visit find your way back to Highway 96 at Chivington. Take the first dirt road to the south to find the abandoned Chivington Cemetery.

55411 County Road West | Eads, CO 81036
nps.gov

Serves a wide variety of American food. Popular items include the patty melt—crispy not greasy—homemade fries, and daily specials. The restaurant is old school but clean, features friendly waitresses. The food is filling and satisfying. Truck parking is even available. A short walk from the Cobblestone Inn & Suites.

505 East 15th Street | Eads, CO
(719) 438-2002

This is an abandoned, pioneer cemetery south of Eads, Colorado on south Wansted Street. There are only three graves that have headstones with names and there are several graves marked with crosses.

In a rest area off Highway 287, this low-key hotel backed by open countryside is 2 miles from the Kiowa County Fairgrounds and 21 miles from the Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site. The understated rooms come with complimentary Wi-Fi and flat-screen TVs, plus microwaves, minifridges and coffeemakers. A hot breakfast buffet is included. Other amenities consist of a bar, a gym, a 24-hour convenience store and guest laundry facilities. Pets are welcome for a fee.

501 East Lowell Street | Eads, CO
(719) 438-2021
staycobblestone.com

One of the best places around to catch a hearty breakfast. The space offers quaint decor and the food is hearty.

Continue west for 4 miles on Hwy 96 to Ordway. Turn right (north) at the Junction of Hwy 96 and Hwy 71 and travel 3 miles north on Hwy 71. The cemetery is on your left.

Another cemetery awaits you there.

190 Colorado Street | Sugar City, Colorado

This cemetery is a small unassuming place that contains an unusual number of veteran memorials with a focus on World War II veterans. There is also a veteran from the Sand Creek campaign, James Mock from the 3rd Regiment.