While mankind has treasured the beautiful natural beauty of the South Park for over 10,000 years, it was the discovery of gold and silver that drew the rush of thousands of prospectors to the rivers and mountains near Fairplay. The Middle Fork of the South Platte River yielded gold, first by panning the river bottoms for nuggets and flakes, then by screening the sediment blasted through hydraulic hoses, and finally by scooping up the river gravel with large dredge boats that filtered out the gold and spit out the excess gravel as they moved along the waterway. The results of this placer mining are still visible today at the Fairplay Beach, where panning for gold is still allowed by purchasing a permit from the town of Fairplay at town hall.
Fairplay placer mine in the 1870s, courtesy of the Park County Local History Archives
Park on Platte River Drive. This is a popular spot in the summer so beware of muggles!