Delta County treasure trail - shopping for antiques in Delta County, CO - Brief Article

Shop for antique saddles and vintage farm tools in western Colorado's tiny towns

Rambling around Delta County on a brisk fall day, you'll feel the spirit of old-time western Colorado. The scenery along the area's byways has hardly changed at all. Great stands of electric yellow aspens still shimmer against sandstone mesas and cobalt skies. Vast meadows are dotted with freshly harvested rolls of hay, preening horses, and an occasional llama. And, in the small towns that populate the area - Hotchkiss, Eckert, and Cedaredge, for example - welcoming little shops sell farm tools and furnishings from a distant day, and old-time eateries serve up classics like corn dogs and cherry pie.

HOTCHKISS. In Hotchkiss, about 70 miles northwest of Gunnison, you'll find antiques shops from one end of Bridge Street to the other. Cowboy Collectibles will bowl you over with a formidable collection of antique bits, spurs, saddles, chaps, cowboy hats, and boots. Poke through the copper jewelry in the 50-drawer mercantile cabinet, and chat with owner Glenn Miles about his experiences auctioneering throughout the West.

Across the street a few blocks to the west, Hotchkiss Trading Co. has a classic collection of "antique and usable" tools (picks, lathes, calipers, and saws, for starters), as well as restored trunks, lanterns, cast-iron ware, and other finds from estate and antiques auctions. On your way out of town, stop for a limeade at the Coyote Drive-In, or a hunk of pumpkin-pie fudge at Fudge 'n Flowers.

ECKERT. It's an easy drive to Eckert from Hotchkiss. Take State 92 west to State 65, then head 20 minutes north to Eckert. Along the way, crank up the radio for some country-western tunes - the perfect sound track as you cross the Gunnison River, passing orchards heavy with fall fruit. Stop for farm-fresh apples at one of the many roadside fruit stands, then head on to Kitty & Papa's Antiques & Collectibles. It's set in a cute-as-a-button cottage that Katherine "Kitty" and Nelson "Papa" Bair have filled with "small stuff" - a spinning wheel, chests, rockers, even the occasional pair of ladies' bloomers.

CEDAREDGE. Five miles north of Eckert on State 65, Cedaredge is the kind of town you can stroll from end to end and make friends at every turn. At Lady Anne's Antiques, owners Arthur and Donna Raymer will tell you how they renovated their old house and turned it into a shop selling Fiesta ware, vintage linens and lace, and "malted," "swirl," and "speckle" graniteware.

At aptly named Unique Treasures, the colorful gasoline pumps and ornate lampposts outside attest to the store's former life as a body shop and garage. Inside, Garnet and "Swede" Johnson's eclectic goods are well worth considering. There are wood stoves, brasswork, a vintage toy train collection, and other knickknacks, as well as the "Executive White Out House," whose piece de resistance is a life-size Clinton mannequin.

Across the way at Red Barn Antiques & Collectibles, you'll find handblown art glass, linens, and vintage purses, plus an attic full of quirky cowboy memorabilia. Four years ago Ani and Ed Lenart shored up the barn, originally a carriage house built in 1912, and turned it into a shop. If you're in no rush, wander down to the Apple Orchard restaurant and contemplate your purchases over a slice of cherry pie.

Delta County travel planner

Begin your drive in Hotchkiss on State 92; continue north on State 65 toward Grand Mesa. Area code is 970.

Hotchkiss

Cowboy Collectibles, 448 E. Bridge St.; 872-3025. Hotchkiss Trading Co., 215 E. Bridge; 872-2121. Coyote Drive-In, 171 W. Bridge; 872-4600. Fudge 'n Flowers, 290 W. Bridge; 872-4647.

Eckert

Kitty & Papa's Antiques & Collectibles, 1421 State 65; 835-3001.

Cedaredge

Lady Anne's Antiques, 175 E. Main St.; 856-3436. Unique Treasures, 190 S.W. Second Ave.; 856-4676. Red Barn Antiques & Collectibles, 210 S.W. Third St.; 856-3691. Apple Orchard, 130 W. Main; 856-3431.

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