The Mines Museum of Earth Science on the Colorado School of Mines campus is free to walk through every day from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The collection covers minerals, fossils, meteorites and Colorado mining history, and it pairs naturally with a Golden day: the farmers market, Clear Creek and the Colorado Railroad Museum are all minutes away.
Self-guided visits are always free. Guided 60-minute tours for groups of 4 to 15 cost $5 per child, $13 per adult and $7 per senior, and must be confirmed with staff at least a week ahead through museumevents@mines.edu. There is also a downloadable audio guide and printed brochure for the outdoor Bob Weimer Geology Trail. Closed Thanksgiving, Dec. 24-26, Dec. 31, Jan. 1 and July 4. Phone 303-273-3815.
Lesson hooks
- Earth science: rock types, crystal structures, how meteorites are identified.
- Colorado history: gold and silver mining and the towns it built.
- Outdoors: the geology trail turns the campus into a field lab.
More like this: Free Field Trips · STEM · Museums · Golden