Imagine, if you will, that you're a film-production scout searching for a location that best resembles the West as it was 125 years ago.
You happen upon the 100-mile-long expanse of the Wet Mountain Valley, an uninterrupted pastoral threshold to the equally long Sangre de Cristo Mountain Range. The Sangres slice through southern Colorado, separating the Wet Mountain Valley on the east from the San Luis Valley and its sand dunes on the west.
Smack in the middle of the Wet Mountain Valley are two towns that have changed little since 1880, Westcliffe and Silver Cliff, within walking distance of each other. The latter reveled in the silver-mining frenzy before that market went belly up. Westcliffe became the railway conduit for its sister city's cargo.
It's quite possible that the same number of people lived in the towns in the late 1880s as live there today. A scant thousand or so. Maybe it's because Westcliffe and Silver Cliff are off the beaten path, a fact clearly welcomed by residents.
Walking about the towns, certain buildings and scenes strike a familiar cord. As well they should. Yours will not be the first movie shot in the Westcliffe area.
Moviemakers have been enamored of the Wet Mountain Valley for more than 60 years. Some of the more popular productions filmed there include "Vengeance Valley," 1951; "The Outcast," 1954; "Saddle the Wind," 1956; "How The West Was Won," 1962; "Cat Ballou," 1965; "Then Came Bronson," 1969; "Barquero," 1970; "Comes a Horseman," 1978; "White Buffalo," 1977; and "Conagher," 1991.
Although many of Silver Cliff's original structures succumbed to fire, most of the buildings in West- cliffe were built of stone and brick, assuring their legacies on historic registers. To mention but a few:
The Westcliffe State Bank, at Second and Main, was built in 1899 and used as a set for "Comes a Horseman," starring Jane Fonda. The bank's vault can be seen as you enter the building. Today, the vault is used as a huge filing cabinet by the present owners.
In 1888, it cost all of $330 to construct the two-cell Calaboose, Westcliffe's original jail, made of native stone. When necessary, up to nine unruly cowboys spent a dry night here; the less-than comfortable conditions deterred repeat incarcerations. The Calaboose earned a place in the National Register and stands behind Jones Theater.
Westcliffe's first lodging establishment is the 1887 Hard Time Hotel on Second Street and the only remaining stone-front building in town. It has served the area as a hotel, boarding house, apartment, restaurant, saloon, billiard and gambling hall, garage, market and ice cream parlor. Today, it is privately owned and touts its place in the National Register.
The original Silver Cliff Town Hall and Fire Station has stood on the town's Main Street since 1879 and now houses the Silver Cliff Museum. Among displays are two firefighting-hose carts and a hook and ladder cart from the 19th century. It is listed in the State Register of Historic Places.
Possibly the most unusual site in the area is the Silver Cliff Cemetery, famous for its mysterious floating colored lights, first seen around 1890. Reportedly, they are best viewed on a dark, overcast night. In 1963, National Geographic magazine investigated this phenomenon and featured it in one of its issues. No explanation for the lights was offered in the article.
An active place in summer is the 1880s Jones Theater. Now the Westcliffe Center for the Performing Arts, the theater presents live theater and movies, seasonally.
But there's more than historical tours or scouting for movie locations.
Special events consume a West- cliffe summer, beginning with a Memorial Day celebration. The town's Fourth of July Flea Market attracts 70 vendors and hundreds of garage-sale devotees.
The High Mountain Hay Fever Bluegrass Festival July 8-11 and Jazz in the Sangres Aug. 13-15 bring memorable music performances to the valley.
Wet Mountain Western Days is a traditional hoe-down on Labor Day weekend.
Westcliffe obliges if you just want to relax and recreate. With nine lakes nearby, fish await your line; mountains wait for hikes or biking; horses are at the ready; and thespians wait for your applause.