COLORADO'S CURIOSITIES -- FUNKY AND BIZARRE

by Pam North

Colorado abounds in scenic beauty, museums, sports activities and
various other amenities, all of which are well-known.  Less touted,
however, are the peculiar, one-of-a-kind tourist attractions that are
sprinkled throughout the state, each a claim-to-fame for the community
or area in which it's located.  Even if you think you know Colorado
pretty well, you might be surprised at some of the bizarre, funky and
often obscure "treasures" that belong uniquely to Colorado.

The world's largest rocking chair is located outside a fruit stand,
Doxey's Apple Shed, in Penrose.  Built in 1990 as a publicity gimmick,
it stands 21 feet high, is 14 feet wide, weighs 9,100 pounds, and is
pieced together from hand-hewn Douglas fir trunks.  A 10-ton
grandmother would fit nicely.

In Conifer, it's possible to eat a hot dog while inside another hot
dog.  The restaurant, Coney Island Dairy Land, fashioned exactly like
a giant frankfurter, is 42 feet long and weighs 42 tons.  It was
originally constructed by Marcus Shannon in 1966 on Denver's West
Colfax Avenue, near St. Anthony's Hospital, and was transported west
to the mountains in 1969, when it was threatened with demolition by
developers.  One can dine in this structure with relish.  Another
noted food structure is a 12-foot ice cream cone at the Sweden Creme
in Julesberg.  The south side is vanilla, and the north is chocolate.
The 30-foot gun-packing cowboy at the entrance of the Rustic Ranch
Mobile Home Park on Federal Boulevard in Denver might be able to
devour the afore-mentioned goodies, and perhaps he's the one meant to
be the recipient of the row of 30-foot arrows jabbed into the ground
beside a roadside tourist shop west of Mancos.  Fashioned from
telephone poles, they make one wonder about really big Indians as
well.

Fruita is the home of Mike, the legendary headless chicken.  Mike had
his head until September 10, 1945, when his owner whacked it off with
the intention of frying Mike up for supper.  Mike surprisingly
survived the loss of his skull, walking around trying to peck for corn
as if all were normal.  His owner continued to feed him, one kernel of
corn at a time, watered him with an eyedropper, and Mike survived for
an amazing 18 months, during which time he was even featured in Time
magazine.  After his demise (he choked on a kernel of corn), a local
welder was commissioned to craft a metal commemorative sculpture of
the deceased chicken -- at a "cut" rate due to the lack of need to
sculpt a head.  Not to be outdone, Palisade commissioned the same
welder to create a giant chicken sculpture (with a head), over twice a
man's height and out of assorted nuts, bolts, hardware pieces and
found objects, for that town.

A service station, built in 1932 along Route 50 in Lamar, was
constructed out of wood 175 million years old -- petrified wood.  The
two trunks forming the main door frame weigh 3,200 pounds each, and
numerous smaller pieces were cemented together to complete the facade.
Termites were never a problem for this wood structure.

Aspen boasts the ultimate taxi.  It quickly became a local legend
after being launched by Jon Barnes in 1990, and now must be booked in
advance for a hefty $125 for a 40-minute tour of the town.  Hardly
just a standard cab, it's a nightclub, laser light show, planetarium,
recording studio and toy store on wheels and has transported such
celebrities as Ringo Starr, Clint Eastwood, Melanie Griffith, George
Hamilton, Ivana Trump, Peter Frampton and even Kermit the Frog.

The world's crookedest highway twists its way up Cheyenne Mountain.
The road, 7 miles in length, is compacted into 1.5 miles of
mountainside, and leads to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo and the Will
Rogers Shrine of the Sun.

Creede's firehouse reflects the town's hard rock mining history; it's
blasted out of a cliff along Willow Creek Road.  Begun in1976 and
completed in 1982, it is the world's only underground firehouse.  The
individual fire truck stalls are burrowed at a 45-degree angle from
the central bore, which extends 139 feet into the cliff.

When contemplating Colorado's oddities, one must not be forgotten --
neighboring Nederland's own Tuff Shed resident, that famous frozen
dead guy, Bredo Morstoel.

Colorado has it all.