VanNice Travels: Bishop Castle

As we are driving through the San Isabel National Forest, we round a corner and see this tower! Wow, what is it? Wait, I think that's a person! Oh, we gotta stop!

Mail box!

Draw bridge to Bishop Castle. In 1959, when Jim Bishop was only 15 he bought the 2 1/2 acres of land for $1,250 to build a family cabin to use for hunting and fishing. Because he used stone to build the original cabin, passers-by said it resembled a castle.

Jim hopes to complete a moat around the castle - the entrance is through this drawbridge gate.

Homemade derrick used to move stones.

Beginning of a dungeon room.

Pheobe's Castle Keepsakes, souvenir shop

The castle...

Scott's going up! My feet will remain firmly planted on the ground!

Can you see the dragon? It's made from discarded metal hospital trays.

The dragon chimney belches smoke when there's a fire in the fireplace. It also has a hot air balloon burner so it can spit a 30 foot stream of fire!

Stained-glass window

More stained-glass...

Inside stairwell

I'm beside the giant's chair! Behind me is one of the many political rants on the property. Mr. Bishop is considered very eccentric when he gets going on the government with his anti-government stance. People that know him, respond with "Oh, that's just Jim, that's the way he is."

I like the floral theme of these windows.

Spiral staircase leading up to the open spinning dome. Jim Bishop works 7 months of the year in a family ironworks business in Pueblo which explains some of the amazing ironwork on the castle. He can only work on the castle during the summer months when there's no snow and it's warm enough to set the mortar.