Denver, the 'Mile High City' is located exactly at one mile in the shadow of the Rocky Mountains. Where we also started this tour and after 13 unforgettable routes and probably even more days. Enjoy a few more days in this city before you go home.

This last, fairly short route, departs from Estes Park and almost immediately you are back in the middle of the Rocky Mountain National Park, where you encounter one beautiful spot after another. Along the way you will pass a number of viewpoints where you can stop for a while to take photos and enjoy the view. After an hour's drive we arrive in the Netherlands!

That the Netherlands does not necessarily have to be low is proven by the village of the Netherlands in the state of Colorado. The Netherlands is one of the most beautiful villages in the American state of Colorado. This village is located at an altitude of 2508 meters above sea level. In the United States you can find more places that refer to the country of the Netherlands or places in the Netherlands.
For example, in the state of Texas there is also a town that bears the name of the Netherlands and there are several places in America called Holland. Many of those places were actually founded by Dutch people, but that is not the case in the Netherlands in Wyoming. The origins of the Netherlands lie in the mid-nineteenth century. The then small settlement then bore the name Dayton. This name changed to Browns Crossing and when the American post opened an office there in 1871, the name was changed to Middle Boulder.
After the Mining Company Netherlands took over the nearby Caribou mine, the name was changed in 1874 in the Netherlands. It became the home base for Dutch miners who were working in the mines nearby.
The year 1874 is officially mentioned as the foundation date of the Netherlands. That year can be found on the facade of the Town Hall. In this town hall you can see a blue border sign with the Netherlands on it. This plate was donated to the Netherlands by the Dutch consul in 2019. You will also have to look carefully for Dutch roots in the Netherlands. You may see them in the surnames of the approximately two thousand inhabitants. You will not find typical Dutch products, buildings and delicacies that easily in the Netherlands.
In the office of the tourist office there is a small map of the Netherlands where you as a Dutchman can pin a pin where you come from. According to an employee of the tourism office, about two to three Dutch people visit this village every day. That is in the busier summer months. During the rest of the year, the number of Dutch visitors is negligible. You can visit the Netherlands Mining Museum here.

After this stop you continue through the Golden Gate Canyon State Park and the Centennial Cone Park so you can enjoy all the beautiful things the Rocky Mountains has to offer.

In this 4-star route you drive on beautiful good roads, you should definitely make a stop in the Netherlands. The last part of the route goes through Denver, where you can refuel just in front of the hotel.

History:
Like other cities in western America, Denver was founded as a mining village. In the summer of 1858 a group of fortune seekers crossed the prairies of the then Rocky Colorado Territory. They found gold at the foot of the Rocky Mountains. A gold rush came and gold seekers from all over the country landed in the Denver area. A settlement was established on the grassy plains along the South Platte River consisting of tents, covered wagons and log cabins. Looking for gold was not the only way to accumulate wealth. The first gold diggers could claim their own land, design the city and then sell the land to those who arrived after them.

In the spring of 1859, two towns had emerged on both sides of the South Platte River. There was tension between the two cities, which even led to a bloodshed. Finally, they held a deliberation in the middle of the bridge over the Cherry Creek, negotiating the name for the city. For the price of a barrel of whiskey, a deal was reached: the two settlements would now be called Denver.

Later in the nineteenth century gold was discovered near the mountain village of Central City. Many left Denver in search of the new happiness. Most of them did not return much later; the harsh life in the mountains showed them that there were better ways to make money, for example by trading.

During the American Civil War the city was attacked by an army from Texas, hoping to seize the gold fields. The townspeople did not just let themselves be taken out of the field and organized a voluntary army. Despite the fact that they were not trained and their number fell short compared to the Texan army, they managed to expel the Texans. This saved Colorado for the Union. Not much later, in 1863, a large part of the trade center went up in flames. The following year a tidal wave took place that caused considerable damage. To complete the drama, the Indian war broke out, cutting off all trade lines to Denver. The inhabitants of the city were without food for six weeks.

All these hardships made the people of Denver more determined not only to survive, but also to be successful. When it turned out that Colorado was not on the new route to be built on the Union Pacific railroad, the people of Denver raised $ 300,000. This allowed them to build their own railroad in 1870 and connect it to the Union Pacific in Cheyenne, Wyoming. This ensured a constant flow of people to the city, causing tourism to flee.

Today, tourism is an important pillar in the Denver economy. This is not only because of the Rocky Mountains that are a short distance from the city, but also because of the wide prairie on the other side.