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Discover Leadville, Colorado, and Win a Weekend Mountain Getaway
Leadville is celebrating 150 years of gold mining in Colorado with a Gold Rush Weekend Getaway Contest and free visitor information kits. Explore this mountain town known for its rich history and abundant outdoor recreation, and enter to win one of six weekend getaways.

Leadville, Colo. (June 10, 2009) — Leadville and Twin Lakes are celebrating 150 years of gold mining in Colorado with a Gold Rush Getaway Weekend Contest. Visitors can enter by stopping by any seven Lake County businesses for signatures, including any two restaurants, any two retail stores, any lodging property and any two museums. There will be six grand prize weekends given away throughout the summer, ranging from a summer camping weekend with horseback riding, to a fall foliage trip with a scenic train ride, to a three-day ski weekend. Gold Rush Getaway kits, which include the entry form, maps and helpful information about the area, as well as a kids’ coloring page and activities, can be picked up at the Leadville/Lake County Visitors Center at 809 Harrison Avenue in Leadville, or Inn of the Black Wolf in Twin Lakes. Complete contest rules and information are available at http://www.visitleadvillecolorado.info/contest.

“Gold is what originally brought people to this area back in 1859,” said Gail Dunning, Lake County Marketing Action Committee. “150 years later, it’s a great reason for people to come up and learn about this important part of Colorado’s past. Along with our incredible history, which includes Baby Doe Tabor, Doc Holliday and the Unsinkable Molly Brown, Leadville and Twin Lakes offer some of the best values around, with a surprisingly long list of places of eat, stay, shop and play.”

The Gold Rush Getaway Contest runs through September 8, 2009. The grand prizes include:

Summer Getaways — Summer in Leadville is a breath of fresh air, with average high-temperatures in the 70s. Camping, fishing, hiking, mountain biking, horseback rides, train rides, golf…read more at www.visitleadvilleco.com/outdoor_activities. These prizes will be awarded at the end of June.
• Camping Getaway:  Two nights in a campsite at Sugar Loafin’ Campground, nestled in the woods near Lake Turquoise. Includes two daily bike rentals or tent rental from Bill’s Sports Shop; two two-and-a-half-hour horseback rides from Mega Mountain Magic; and two tickets for a scenic ride on the Leadville, Colorado and Southern Railroad.
• Couple’s Getaway: One-night stay at the McGinnis Cottage, located on Banker’s Row in Leadville. This getaway includes something special for each person: a one-day fly-fishing trip from Alpine Ski and Sports for one, and a massage, pedicure and gift basket from Blue Earth Well-Being Salon and Boutique for the other.

Fall Getaways — Fall arrives early in Leadville, where majestic mountains covered in patches of green, gold and fiery orange are crisscrossed by streams and patches of early snow. These prizes will be awarded at the end of July.
• October Getaway: Two nights in the Jesse McDonald suite at the Governor’s Mansion Guest Suites in Leadville. Includes a private guided tour of Lake County’s Evergreen Cemetery by Forget-Me-Not Genealogical and Historic Research, and lunch or dinner at Casa Blanca courtesy of Pueblo Bank and Trust.
• Fall Foliage Getaway: One-night stay in a King Room at the Historic Delaware Hotel in Leadville. Includes breakfast and lunch for two at Callaway’s Restaurant, a t-shirt/cap combo from the Delaware Mercantile, a $10 gift certificate for the Firehouse General Store, and two tickets for a scenic ride on the Leadville, Colorado and Southern Railroad.   

Winter Getaways — Lake County’s abundant snow provides for a vast number of popular winter activities, including snowshoeing, alpine and telemark skiing, cross country skiing, snowmobiling, snowboarding and dog sledding. These prizes will be awarded in September.
• Twin Lakes Ski Weekend: A three-night stay for two people at the historic Inn of the Black Wolf, located directly across from Twin Lakes. Includes free snowshoe usage, two passes to Cottonwood Hot Springs and two Ski Cooper lift tickets.
• Leadville Romance Weekend: Two nights at the romantic Ice Palace Inn in Leadville, including gourmet breakfast and afternoon treats. Getaway also includes snowshoe rentals from Bill’s Sports Shop and lunch or dinner at Tennessee Pass Café courtesy of Pueblo Bank and Trust.

In addition, all six prizes include a family membership to the National Mining Hall of Fame and Museum, which provides free admittance to the museum, 10% off in the Gift Gallery, a subscription to the newsletter, and free entry to the annual museum update; a souvenir mug from the Fire on the Mountain pottery studio; an “olde tyme” shopping spree from Hundley’s Olde Tyme Gifts and Fudge, including a ½ lb. of homemade fudge, a $20 gift card and a personal introduction to Leadville and its old West history during the shopping spree; a portrait sitting, contact sheet and 8x10” portrait from the Leadville Picture Co.

Leadville is one of the most historic towns in Colorado (www.visitleadvillecolorado.com/history) with six museums, a walking tour of the downtown district’s National Historic Landmark of Victorian Architecture, Route of the Silver Kings driving tour with 12 stops in 20-square miles of the area’s mining district, and the paved 12.5-mile Mineral Belt Trail. At an elevation of 10, 152’, Leadville is the highest incorporated city in North America and is located in the geographic center of Colorado, 103 miles west of Denver and 129 miles northwest of Colorado Springs, on US Highway 24. More information is available at www.visitleadvillecolorado.info.

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About Leadville and Twin Lakes
Leadville, the highest incorporated city in North America, is located in the geographic center of Colorado, 103 miles west of Denver and 129 miles northwest of Colorado Springs, on US Highway 24, part of the Top of the Rockies Scenic and Historic Byway. Once one of America’s richest, longest-lived and bawdiest mining boomtowns, 70 square blocks of the downtown area has been designated as a National Historic Landmark of Victorian architecture. Activities include skiing, fishing, camping, golfing, hiking, whitewater rafting, four-wheeling, biking, museums, historical tours and train rides. Nearby Twin Lakes, located 15 minutes from Leadville at the eastern entrance to Independence Pass, is also a National Historic District and a popular summer destination for camping, boating, hiking and fishing. Go to www.visitleadvillecolorado.info for more details.