Have you heard of Crestone, Colorado? As it is a small, 141-person Statutory Town, many Coloradans have never heard of it and couldn’t tell you where in the state it is located. That being said, why should you know about Crestone (or better yet, why should you visit)? It is because this small town in Colorado has some significant and surprising landmarks as well as an equally surprising nickname: the Bermuda Triangle of the West.

Welcome to the “Bermuda Triangle of the West,” AKA Crestone.

Jeffrey Beall/Wikimedia Commons

Incorporated in 1902, Crestone is a Saguache County community surrounded by the stunning San Luis Valley, making it the perfect place for… UFO sightings?

Flickr/James Havard

According to some, there are more UFO sightings in Crestone than there are in Roswell, New Mexico, thanks to the clear, wide-open skies with no light pollution.

Flickr/Simon Foot

Psst… While you can look for UFOs in town, we recommend venturing over to the world-famous UFO Watchtower, which is located just down the road from Crestone!

Plazak/Wikimedia Commons

In addition to being a so-called “Bermuda Triangle,” Crestone is also the “New Age Religious Capital of the World,” as the tiny community houses a surprising number of places for worship and healing.

Flickr/Joshua Lawton

From a Buddhist center and Mesopotamian-inspired Ziggurat (a shrine or dwelling place for the gods) to a Catholic retreat, Tibetan centers, and Academy of On, Crestone is genuinely one of the most diverse and surprising towns in the west.

Flickr/Simon Foot

The only funeral pyre (a pile of wood where corpses are burned in some traditional funeral ceremonies) in the country? Crestone has that, too!

YouTube/Rodney Volkmar

Have you been to Crestone? We would love to hear about your experiences in the comments!

Flickr/Larry Lamsa

To learn more about Crestone, check out Visit The Crestone Ziggurat In Colorado For A Unique Experience With Incredible Views.

Jeffrey Beall/Wikimedia Commons

Flickr/James Havard

Flickr/Simon Foot

Plazak/Wikimedia Commons

Flickr/Joshua Lawton

YouTube/Rodney Volkmar

Flickr/Larry Lamsa

OnlyInYourState may earn compensation through affiliate links in this article.

Address: Crestone, CO 81143, USA

The OIYS Visitor Center

Colorado Urban Legends January 04, 2023 Sarah M. What are some other urban legends about Colorado? In addition to Crestone being hailed as the Bermuda Triangle of the West, here are some other urban legends you might hear about Colorado:

Riverdale Road, AKA The Gates of Hell. Riverdale Road in Thornton is the alleged site of several manic instances, ranging from an insane man who murdered his wife and children by setting their mansion on fire, to the grizzly lynchings of former slaves, to the mysterious underground chicken coop that was home to conjured demons and spirits. Several visitors of Riverdale Road have reported hearing a distressed woman’s screams, the creaking sounds of swinging rope and the heavy breathing of supposed seized spirits. The Haunted Stanley Hotel. Quite possibly the most famous of Colorado urban legends (thanks to “The Shining”) the century-old Stanley Hotel has a reputation for paranormal activity, including the sightings of deceased former guests, the sounds of distressed children, and other unexplainable happenings (like linens being folded when no one is around). Hotel Colorado (another haunted Colorado hotel!). Guests turning in for the night and being rudely awakened by the lights unexplainably turning on? The sightings of a little girl in a Victorian-era dress roaming the halls? Miscellaneous items being tampered with? Shiver. The Chilling Legends of Gold Camp Road. Hiding away near Colorado Springs, Gold Camp Road looks about as normal as roads come but is, in fact, hiding a sinister secret. Following an old rail line that ran from Colorado Springs to Cripple Creek, Gold Camp Road runs through three of the railroad’s original tunnels, which is where this ghost story begins… As the legend goes, the tunnels were initially constructed in the 1800s and, during construction, collapsed on one of the workers, burying him alive and eventually killing him. While the worker’s death is tragic enough, the story gets even worse, as not only was he killed in an unthinkable way, but so was a school bus full of orphans who died instantly when part of the tunnel collapsed on top of the vehicle. After the children’s untimely death, the third tunnel was closed off, but those who have since visited claim to have heard the sound of screaming children. This is, hands down, one of Colorado’s most chilling urban legends!

The OIYS Visitor Center

Colorado Urban Legends

January 04, 2023

Sarah M.

What are some other urban legends about Colorado? In addition to Crestone being hailed as the Bermuda Triangle of the West, here are some other urban legends you might hear about Colorado:

Riverdale Road, AKA The Gates of Hell. Riverdale Road in Thornton is the alleged site of several manic instances, ranging from an insane man who murdered his wife and children by setting their mansion on fire, to the grizzly lynchings of former slaves, to the mysterious underground chicken coop that was home to conjured demons and spirits. Several visitors of Riverdale Road have reported hearing a distressed woman’s screams, the creaking sounds of swinging rope and the heavy breathing of supposed seized spirits. The Haunted Stanley Hotel. Quite possibly the most famous of Colorado urban legends (thanks to “The Shining”) the century-old Stanley Hotel has a reputation for paranormal activity, including the sightings of deceased former guests, the sounds of distressed children, and other unexplainable happenings (like linens being folded when no one is around). Hotel Colorado (another haunted Colorado hotel!). Guests turning in for the night and being rudely awakened by the lights unexplainably turning on? The sightings of a little girl in a Victorian-era dress roaming the halls? Miscellaneous items being tampered with? Shiver. The Chilling Legends of Gold Camp Road. Hiding away near Colorado Springs, Gold Camp Road looks about as normal as roads come but is, in fact, hiding a sinister secret. Following an old rail line that ran from Colorado Springs to Cripple Creek, Gold Camp Road runs through three of the railroad’s original tunnels, which is where this ghost story begins… As the legend goes, the tunnels were initially constructed in the 1800s and, during construction, collapsed on one of the workers, burying him alive and eventually killing him. While the worker’s death is tragic enough, the story gets even worse, as not only was he killed in an unthinkable way, but so was a school bus full of orphans who died instantly when part of the tunnel collapsed on top of the vehicle. After the children’s untimely death, the third tunnel was closed off, but those who have since visited claim to have heard the sound of screaming children. This is, hands down, one of Colorado’s most chilling urban legends!

The OIYS Visitor Center

The OIYS Visitor Center

In addition to Crestone being hailed as the Bermuda Triangle of the West, here are some other urban legends you might hear about Colorado:

  • Riverdale Road, AKA The Gates of Hell. Riverdale Road in Thornton is the alleged site of several manic instances, ranging from an insane man who murdered his wife and children by setting their mansion on fire, to the grizzly lynchings of former slaves, to the mysterious underground chicken coop that was home to conjured demons and spirits. Several visitors of Riverdale Road have reported hearing a distressed woman’s screams, the creaking sounds of swinging rope and the heavy breathing of supposed seized spirits.
  • The Haunted Stanley Hotel. Quite possibly the most famous of Colorado urban legends (thanks to “The Shining”) the century-old Stanley Hotel has a reputation for paranormal activity, including the sightings of deceased former guests, the sounds of distressed children, and other unexplainable happenings (like linens being folded when no one is around).
  • Hotel Colorado (another haunted Colorado hotel!). Guests turning in for the night and being rudely awakened by the lights unexplainably turning on? The sightings of a little girl in a Victorian-era dress roaming the halls? Miscellaneous items being tampered with? Shiver.
  • The Chilling Legends of Gold Camp Road. Hiding away near Colorado Springs, Gold Camp Road looks about as normal as roads come but is, in fact, hiding a sinister secret. Following an old rail line that ran from Colorado Springs to Cripple Creek, Gold Camp Road runs through three of the railroad’s original tunnels, which is where this ghost story begins… As the legend goes, the tunnels were initially constructed in the 1800s and, during construction, collapsed on one of the workers, burying him alive and eventually killing him. While the worker’s death is tragic enough, the story gets even worse, as not only was he killed in an unthinkable way, but so was a school bus full of orphans who died instantly when part of the tunnel collapsed on top of the vehicle. After the children’s untimely death, the third tunnel was closed off, but those who have since visited claim to have heard the sound of screaming children. This is, hands down, one of Colorado’s most chilling urban legends!