Cripple Creek Webcam – Casinos on Historic Bennett Avenue

The Cripple Creek Webcam looks across an intersection on Bennett Avenue, the main street of the old gold mining town of Cripple Creek in Colorado. Triple Crown Casinos runs the camera and aims it at its own Brass Ass, Midnight Rose and JP McGill’s casinos, so the frame is mostly red brick: a three-story block with blue awnings across the street, an ornate front topped by a small clock cupola on the right, and the avenue running off to the left beside a long railing. Above the rooftops, an aspen-covered hillside climbs to a bare, pale ridge, and in early fall those aspens turn gold. Crosswalks, parked cars and people walking between casinos supply most of the movement.

About Cripple Creek

Cripple Creek sits at 2,882 meters (9,456 feet) and is the county seat of Teller County, about 32 kilometers (20 miles) southwest of Colorado Springs in a straight line. Its story starts on October 20, 1890, when Bob Womack found rich ore here and set off the last great Colorado gold rush. The town was incorporated on June 9, 1892, and by then about 5,000 people lived in it, with another 5,000 in Victor and the smaller camps nearby. The 1900 census counted 10,147 residents; the 2020 census counted 1,155.

The brick on camera dates from 1896. That April, two fires four days apart, the first starting on Myers Avenue and the second at the Portland Hotel, burned 47 acres (19 hectares) of town and destroyed more than 400 buildings. Cripple Creek rebuilt in brick within months, and most of its historic buildings come from that rebuild. The Cripple Creek Historic District became a National Historic Landmark in 1961.

Mining faded through the 20th century, and by 1970 only 425 people were left. Legalized gambling arrived in 1991 after a statewide vote, and the casinos you see on Bennett Avenue followed. Open pit mining has continued east of town, near Victor, since 1994.

Weather and Climate in Cripple Creek

This is a cold, high-country climate. The NOAA station just north-northwest of town, at 2,815 meters (9,235 feet), averages highs of 1°C (34°F) and lows of minus 10°C (14°F) in January and December, and its record low is minus 30°C (minus 22°F). Around 209 centimeters (82 inches) of snow falls in an average year. April is the snowiest month, at 37 centimeters (14.6 inches), so the sidewalks on camera can turn white again well after winter seems over.

Summers are short and mild. July averages 24°C (76°F) in the afternoon and 9°C (49°F) at night, and July and August are the wettest months, with 81 and 87 millimeters (3.2 and 3.4 inches) of rain. October brings highs near 13°C (55°F), lows just below freezing and about 22 centimeters (8.7 inches) of snow, which is when the gold aspens behind the casinos are at their best.

Things to Do Near Cripple Creek

The Cripple Creek District Museum has kept local history since 1953 in the former Midland Railroad terminal, built in 1895, alongside buildings such as the 1893 Colorado Trading and Transfer building. The Old Homestead House, built in 1896, was the most famous brothel in town and was run by Pearl DeVere. The Outlaws and Lawmen Jail Museum fills the original Teller County Jail, 1901 cells included, and Fire Station No. 3 went up in 1900 after the fires. The Butte Theater stages live shows, and the free Cripple Creek Heritage Center explains the gold rush with interactive exhibits.

The Cripple Creek and Victor Narrow Gauge Railroad has carried passengers since 1967. Its coal-fired steam locomotives run on two-foot track from the 1894 depot at the head of Bennett Avenue, a 45-minute, 6.4-kilometer (4-mile) round trip past old mines, from mid-May to the first weekend in October. Over the same months, the town’s free-roaming donkey herd, cared for by the volunteer Two Mile High Club, wanders the streets. Victor has the Lowell Thomas Museum, and farther out, Mueller State Park near Divide has 89 kilometers (55 miles) of trails, while Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument shows petrified redwood stumps up to 4.3 meters (14 feet) wide.

Similar Webcams You Might Like

For more historic main streets and the high country around Cripple Creek, try these:

• Breckenridge Webcam
• Deadwood Webcam
• Pikes Peak Webcam

Frequently Asked Questions

What can you see on the Cripple Creek Webcam?

The camera faces across Bennett Avenue toward the Brass Ass, Midnight Rose and JP McGill’s casinos. Red brick blocks line the intersection, a railing runs along the avenue as it heads off to the left, and an aspen hillside rises to a bare ridge behind the rooftops.

Is there a Chamonix Cripple Creek webcam?

Not as such. A round red Chamonix Casino Hotel sign hangs beside this camera and shows at the left edge of the frame, but the camera belongs to Triple Crown Casinos and looks across the avenue at its own casinos. The Chamonix’s hotel building is not in the view.

Where is Cripple Creek, Colorado?

Cripple Creek is the county seat of Teller County, about 32 kilometers (20 miles) southwest of Colorado Springs in a straight line, at 2,882 meters (9,456 feet). Victor is its neighbor in the same gold district.

Is there a Cripple Creek weather cam?

This camera works as one. A bar across the top of the stream shows the time, the current temperature and a seven-day forecast, and the street below shows at a glance whether there is snow on the sidewalks.

What is the weather like in Cripple Creek?

Cold for most of the year. Winter highs average about 1°C (34°F) with lows near minus 10°C (14°F), and July afternoons reach about 24°C (76°F). Snow is possible in every month except July.

What is Cripple Creek weather like in October?

Crisp and changeable. October averages highs of 13°C (55°F) and lows of minus 1°C (30°F), with about 22 centimeters (8.7 inches) of snow over the month. Early in the month the aspens around town are often gold.

What is on Bennett Avenue in Cripple Creek?

Bennett Avenue is the town’s main street, lined with brick buildings from the rebuild after the 1896 fires. Its casinos include the three in this camera’s view and the Chamonix, and the narrow gauge railroad leaves from its 1894 depot at the head of the avenue.

Can you watch the Cripple Creek webcam at night?

Yes, the stream runs around the clock. After dark the picture relies on street lamps and building lights, so the hillside behind town fades out until morning.

Source: Triple Crown Casinos