Looking for Things to do in Idaho Springs?

Here is a Step-By-Step Guide to the Best Local Activity, Touring the Argo!

Thousands of travelers search for things to do in Idaho Springs and come across the Argo Mill and Tunnel’s unforgettable scale and wonder what could be goin’ on inside. Colorado locals know the Argo from state history books, and many toured the eccentric landmark as children.

To those who have yet to visit, haven’t been in a while or those searching for things to do in Idaho Springs, here is what you can look forward to from the Argo Mill and Tunnel!

Just Outside the Mill

The Argo’s historic brilliance is immediately apparent, you can almost hear the mining machinery and chugging of engines! You are greeted by a courtyard full of antique mining equipment that towers over the tallest of visitors. A group finishing up their tour gives you a hint as to what lies ahead as they pan for gold nearby!

Portal into a New World

The tour takes visitors from the Mercantile through the Mill and really kicks off in the Compressor room where you will see an antique air compressor from Ingersoll Rand–a company still in business today. For years, this very compressor pumped air in and water out of over 150 miles of interconnected tunnels so miners could breathe safely underground.

Once everyone dawns a hard hat, you walk to the tunnel portal. Discolored rocks, leaks forming puddles and the melding of new age technology with old looks closer to science fiction than reality. Your focus is immediately centered on the bulkhead, a sealed door densely packed with five feet of concrete.

While on tour, be sure to ask lots of questions, your guides know just about everything regarding the Argo and Colorado mining history. Plus, your questions signal to the guides what they should focus on during your tour, so they can personalize your time spent with them.

Stepping into History

The next stop on our tour is the Mill! Here, you are met with countless items of intrigue, including one of the world’s most extensive antique drilling collections.

As you step down through the mill, your guide provides context to the world you find yourself in. Men who worked grueling 12 plus hour days in unsafe conditions with the dream of staking a homestead for their families. The stories our guides tell can be chilling, amusing and astonishing, but all are intriguing and engaging!

Release your Inner Prospector

Your group will be given a panning lesson after touring the mill from a prospecting expert. What you find is what you keep! Sifting through enriched dirt for specs of gold connects you with the prospectors who built Colorado into what it is today.

After you fill your pockets with treasures and you learned all about the Argo, your tour is complete! Even though your time with the Argo is over, your memories will stay with you forever. Stop by the Mercantile gift shop for keepsakes!

There are many reasons to make a return trip, it is impossible to take it all in. With each tour you take you will learn something new and see something that you had not before. Every single one of our guides brings an original flair and unique perspective. You could visit 10 times and every tour would be a different experience!

Step-by-step, this is the Argo Mill and Tunnel. If you are looking for things to do in Idaho Springs, choose the number one attraction in town!