Colorado Chronicles : Headless Chickens and Other Stuff

Mike the Headless Chicken (pictured above) is a major celebrity in the town of Fruita, Colorado. It's an amazing story. Smack dab in the middle of the most mountainous state in the Union is a tropical bug museum. The largest silver nugget in the world was produced by the Smuggler II mine near Aspen in 1894. Its weight? Over a ton. From legendsofamerica.com: "Colorado has almost as many dead towns (about 500) as live ones (650). Mining booms and busts left the mountains littered with more than 300 ghost towns that fascinate locals and tourists. The eastern plains and western canyon lands are also haunted by more than 200 ghost towns". Does the name Katherine Lee Bates ring a bell ? It should. She wrote one of the most amazing songs ever and you know the words to it. Sitting atop Pikes Peak, Ms. Bates was duly inspired and wrote these words, "Oh beautiful, for spacious skies....". To find more offbeat stuff  about the 38th state, click here.