A Strange Southern Colorado Road Trip

Bishop Castle in Rye, Great Sand Dunes National Park, and Cano’s Castle in Antonito form an unusual route across southern Colorado. A camper van suits it, provided you check the parking and access rules at each stop. The two castles ask for little preparation, while the dunes ask for more.

Bishop Castle in Rye

Bishop Castle stands on Colorado Highway 165 in the Wet Mountains, about three hours south of Denver. Jim Bishop, who passed away in 2024, constructed it by hand over roughly five decades, using rock from the surrounding national forest. The main tower rises about 160 feet above the pines.

From I-25, take exit 74 and drive 24 miles west. Highway 165 is the only road for the whole distance, and it winds across forested terrain. The gift shop on site opens seven days a week from May to October and on weekends from November to April. Four points apply to every visit:

• Admission is free, and visitors are welcome year-round from sunrise to sunset, subject to temporary closures.
• Visitors park along the shoulder of Highway 165, where a shorter van finds space more easily than a long motorhome.
• There are no guided tours, and you explore accessible areas on your own, following any posted restrictions.
• The castle is an active construction site with uneven ground and open stairways, which calls for sturdy shoes and extreme caution.

Great Sand Dunes National Park

Great Sand Dunes National Park is about 120 miles from Bishop Castle, a little over two hours by road. The park holds the tallest sand dunes in North America, and its entrance sits on Highway 150, 16 miles north of US 160. From Denver, the drive is roughly 240 miles.

Medano Pass Primitive Road crosses Medano Creek nine times. Beyond the Point of No Return, 1.1 miles from the start, the park requires a high-clearance 4WD vehicle with a low-range setting. AWD does not qualify. Length, clearance, and storage differ between camper vans, so these figures are worth comparing model by model at a luxury RV dealer.

Cano’s Castle in Antonito

Cano’s Castle is the last stop on the route. From the dunes, drive about 35 miles to Alamosa, the gateway town for accommodations and dining. Then continue 28 miles south on US 285.

The castle is at East 10th Avenue and State Street, two blocks off US 285, the town’s Main Street. Dominic “Cano” Espinoza has been constructing it since the early 1980s from hubcaps, beer cans, and scrap metal. The property is private, so visitors take photos from the sidewalk and cannot go inside. That makes it a short stop between longer drives.

For a closer look at this unusual creation, see our feature on Cano’s Castle and its recycled-metal architecture.

Where to Spend the Night at Great Sand Dunes

Overnight options inside the park and preserve include:

• Piñon Flats Campground is the main vehicle-based campground, with paved access roads. Individual sites need a reservation through Recreation.gov.
• Medano Pass Primitive Road also has 21 free, first-come, first-served sites in the national preserve.

The park prohibits sleeping in a vehicle or camping outside designated areas.

Best Time to Visit Great Sand Dunes

The park is open 24 hours a day all year, and each season brings different conditions:

• Medano Creek flows at the base of the dunes in spring and early summer, and it is mostly dry by July.
• Sand on the dunes can exceed 150°F on summer afternoons, which makes morning or evening better for longer walks.
• Piñon Flats Campground runs from April to October and is closed from November to March.
• Medano Pass Primitive Road typically opens fully in mid-to-late May and remains available until late November, weather permitting.

What Makes This Route Worth the Drive

Stone, scrap metal, and sand form an unlikely trio. Each shows a different side of southern Colorado. The scenery changes with every stop, from mountain forest to a small-town street to an open dune field. That variety gives each place its own story. Together, these places reward anyone willing to leave the main highway for sights that look improbable on a map.

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