Las Animas County's Highway of Legends (SH‑12) named National Scenic Byway

The Scenic Highway of Legends was designated by the U.S. Secretary of Transportation as a National Scenic Byway in 2021, elevating Colorado State Highway 12’s 82‑mile corridor that links Walsenburg and Trinidad and making it one of 13 America’s Byways® in Colorado. "You may not find the answers on the Highway of Legends, but you will enjoy the dramatic settings that have inspired tall tales among Native American nomads, Spanish explorers, and Anglo and Hispanic settlers for hundreds of years. From the impenetrable heights of the Sangre de Cristos and Spanish Peaks to the ominous red rock abutments of the Dakota Wall and the Devil's Stairsteps, this land is truly larger than life," CDOT wrote in its byway materials.

The byway’s core route measures 82 miles with a suggested driving time of about 2 hours, according to Colorado Byways materials; the state and CDOT also describe a 35‑mile extension that follows Huerfano/Las Animas County Road No. 46 from the town of Aguilar on I‑25 west over Cordova Pass (11,248 feet) and reconnects to Colorado Highway 12 at Cuchara/Cucharas Pass. Trip Tips and other CDOT‑linked content list Cucharas/Cuchara Pass at about 9,994 feet and note the route rises to that summit on the shoulder of the Spanish Peaks.

Geology and folklore are part of the corridor’s identity. The Devil's Stairsteps legend appears in tourism copy: "Long ago, the Devil came out from hell to survey the world, choosing the Cuchara Valley as his entrance. He would climb the steps and sit on the twin mountains, plotting how to make it his. God learned of this, and noticing the beauty of the mountains and valley, took it as his own. He forbade the Devil to ever enter the area again, but the Devil's steps still stand." The byway traverses views of the Spanish Peaks and Sangre de Cristo Mountains and passes sandstone features such as the Dakota Wall and Stonewall sandstone walls.

Towns along SH‑12 and the extension contain both cultural assets and industrial history. Trinidad is described as an Official Colorado Main Street Community and a Corazón de Trinidad Creative District with Victorian architecture, the A.R. Mitchell Museum of Western Art, Main Street LIVE, and the Trinidad History Museum; Trinidad’s Welcome Center is at 309 Nevada Ave., Trinidad, CO 81082, phone 719‑846‑9512. Walsenburg hosts the Spanish Peaks Country Welcome Center at 400 Main St., Suite A, Walsenburg, CO 81089 (seasonal hours), phone 719‑738‑3000 Ext. 111. Trip Tips recommends a detour to Cuchara Mountain Park for disc golf and hiking and describes Cokedale as "a surreal sight of what looks like something from the Roman Empire" with "These arching alcoves [that] are actually the remnants of what used to be coke ovens for smelting coal from the nearby mine."

The corridor’s interpretive threads span centuries. Colorado Byways copy poses local legends and historical questions: "Did George Simpson really save Trinidad from marauding Utes by distracting them with taunts? Where is the lost gold vein that supposedly offered nuggets so rich a 19th‑century prospector could live off one for a full year? And what fate befell Juan Humana and his band of conquistadors, who disappeared near the Purgatoire River in 1594 and were never again seen alive?" Travelstorys audio material emphasizes industrial and labor history: "And you'll hear about the people who made it happen: coal miners, union laborers, and the mighty Mother Jones – the most dangerous grandmother in America."

Practical visitor resources and local planning intersect with community needs. Colorado Byways references the Highway of Legends Photo Tour, the byway map, and a Byways Corridor Management Plan; Travelstorys offers a narrated loop — "Este tour también está disponible en español" — and notes the audio tour is sponsored by the Huerfano County Tourism Board and "has been funded in part by a grant from the Colorado Tourism Office." Officials and organizers handling visitor flow and preservation include Lenore C. Bates, Colorado Byways Program Manager, 303‑757‑9786, lenore.bates@state.co.us.

Las Animas County leaders now face practical decisions tied to the 2021 designation: coordinating seasonal welcome‑center hours, clarifying signage and local spelling around Cuchara/Cucharas Pass, and balancing outdoor recreation at Trinidad Lake State Park, Monument Lake, and Cuchara Mountain Park with preservation of Native, labor and mining histories. The designation brings national recognition and tools — maps, photo tours, audio guides — that county agencies and community partners can use to direct visitors and protect the valley’s landscapes and stories.