bentsfort

Step back in time to the Old West and plan to spend a few hours at Bent’s Old Fort National
Historic Site near La Junta, Colorado. On the easy 1/4 mile walk from the parking lot to the gates
of the fort you will be following the original Santa Fe Trail. Step through the massive doors and
be transported back to the 1840s. Tour the fort and see rooms filled with period furnishings, the
working blacksmith shop, the trade room with buffalo robes, beads, trinkets, shot and other
period trade items, the carpenter's workshop, the game room, and much more. Living history
interpreters dressed in period clothing are never far away and provide guided tours and
demonstrations. You can take a self-guided tour any time and explore the rooms of the fort at
your own pace. Be sure to stop by the book store for reproduction souvenirs and a piece of
stick candy to enjoy while you view the 20 minute documentary film "Castle of the Plains" to
familiarize yourself with the history and reconstruction of the fort.