Explore Colorado's rich and colorful mining past. Find out what's happening in mining today at the Western Museum of Mining and Industry. The museum's 27-acre site includes four exhibit buildings, outdoor displays and a picnic area. This is a wonderful place to learn to pan for gold and to see how turn-of-the-century miners timbered, drilled, blasted, mucked and moved ore from the mine to the stamp mill, where ore was crushed and processed. If this is not enough, see the actual operation of its multi-ton steam engines, drills, hoists, locomotives, and other carefully restored mining machines. Daily tours, changing exhibits and monthly classes/activities for the whole family make this the “museum that works” and a place to visit often. The Western Museum of Mining and Industry is located at I-25 exit 156A, just east of the USAFA north gate.