Bent's Old Fort (Part 1)

Yesterday Pat and I drove to the State Fairgrounds in Pueblo to go to a hot rod show, but we got there too late -- the show had ended! Since it was still early in the afternoon, we decided to go have an adventure. Bent's Old Fort National Historic Site is located outside of La Junta, about an hour or so east of Pueblo, and I've always wanted to go there, so off we went. Despite the word "fort" in its name, Bent's Old Fort was not a military outpost; it was built for and centered around the buffalo robe trade with American Indians, and it was a major stop on the historic Santa Fe Trail. It turned out to be a really cool place and a great history lesson to boot! I'm a sucker for any kind of local history, so this was right up my alley.

I took a lot of pictures, so I'll spread them out over three days here on the blog. If you live in the area and you're looking for a good day trip, I highly recommend visiting Bent's Old Fort. You'll enjoy it and you'll learn a lot!

These dried chili strings are called ristras.

The fort was built by William and Charles Bent and their business partner, Ceran St. Vrain, in 1833. The park's guides and docents dress in period garb and stay in character as much as possible.

I was a little startled to come across a peacock and peahen wandering around!

In fact there were lots of birds, actually.

There were also lots of authentic props and artifacts from the era. It's a very well restored site.

I'll post more pictures tomorrow!