While I was driving to visit a friend in Denver, I saw this giant waterwheel off the side of the road on Interstate 70 in Idaho Springs, Colorado.  I was blazing through the freeway and just saw it out of the corner of my eye, but I marked the location on my GPS and came back the next day to take some pictures.

When I came back to Idaho Springs, I found a nice parking spot just inside of town.  It was a busy day with the parking lot full, but I managed to find a spot that allowed for 30 minute free parking.  The trail begins right next to the Harold A Anderson Park and goes directly south under I-70.  Just beyond the bridge that goes over Clear Creek, you will see some mining adits on the other side of the creek.  These looked interesting but probably don’t go in that far.

The paved path to the waterwheel is only about 750 ft and level the entire time.  This seemed to be a popular trail as I found about a dozen people on bikes and walkers checking out the waterwheel too.

The closest you can get to the waterwheel is just across from Clear Creek. There are a few information signs, but you can see the beautiful waterwheel in all its glory even though you are still about 60 feet away from it.  You can see Bridal Veil Falls just behind the wheel.

Here is what the information signs say:

The Charlie Tayler Waterwheel

Charlie Tayler used this waterhweel to power a stamp mill at his gold mining operations on Ute Creek.  Tayler, who attributed his good health to the fact that he never kissed women or took baths, built the waterwheel in 1893.  It was moved to its present site in 1946, a gift to the People of Idaho Springs by his estate.  It was restored during the spring and summer of 1988 by volunteers and private contributions.  It was dedicated during Gold Rush Days, July 16-17, 1988.

Here is what another sign says:

Charlie Tayler: A Local Legend

As the story goes, Charlie Tayler first visited the Clear Creek County area with his father in the early 1880’s.  Just outside of Blackhawk, he saw a large water wheel and vowed to one day build his own bigger and better water wheel.

Charlie later moved to the area to mine a gold claim about two miles up Ute Creek.  There he lived alone in a three room cabin.  He was a solitary man by nature who boasted that his good health was due to not shaving, bathing, or kissing women.

Around the turn of the 20th Century, Charlie reached out to Bert H. Wright, a local carpenter, to help him build his legendary water wheel.  The wheel itself was part of a larger apparatus used for processing ore found on Charlie’s claim on Ute Creek.  This original apparatus boasted a 30 foot diameter waterwheel that was used to power a five-stamp mill that could crush the mined ore in order to extract the precious gold and silver.

In late 1939, Charlie Tayler died at a rooming house in downtown Idaho Springs.  As one of the stalwart miners of a bygone era, his passing symbolized the end of the heyday for mining in Clear Creek County.  Local legends of Charlie and his water wheel continue to intrigue visitors and locals alike.

Today the water wheel stands proudly next to the falls as a symbol of the history of Idaho Springs and the people who made it exceptional.

While I visited, someone was doing some checkups on the wheel.  You can see him in some of my pictures.