Entry No. 59 — the Colorado Springs file — filed under: giant-beetle
May Natural History Museum & Herkimer the Giant Beetle
A 16-foot bronze Hercules beetle guards a retro 1950s roadside museum holding one of the world's largest private collections of preserved tropical insects — 7,000+ beetles, spiders, and scorpions in a single-subject cabinet of curiosities.
The story
Driving south out of Colorado Springs on Highway 115 past Fort Carson, you might think you are just passing scrub oak and gravel pullouts until you hit the turnoff for Rock Creek Canyon Road. Standing right at the asphalt's edge is Herkimer: a 16-foot statuary Hercules beetle towering over passing traffic. He is both the museum's mascot and your actual turn sign. Pull off the highway onto the grounds of Golden Eagle Ranch campground and you enter a retro 1950s roadside monument built around a single obsessive pursuit: thousands upon thousands of dead, pinned tropical arthropods.
Inside, the building remains an unvarnished mid-century cabinet of curiosities housing one of the largest private insect collections on Earth. Row after row of wood-and-glass display cases hold anywhere from 7,000 to 8,000 preserved specimens gathered from jungles worldwide—armored beetles the size of human hands, neon-tinted moths, thick-bodied scorpions, and tarantulas preserved in stiff, silent detail. There are no interactive screens or ambient soundtracks here; just quiet, densely packed glass cases keeping decades of tropical fieldwork under lock and key.
What it's like
Pulling off Highway 115, you can't miss Herkimer standing watch at the campground entrance. Note that this is a seasonal operation—running roughly from May through early October—so if you show up in late autumn, you will be staring at a closed building and a giant beetle in the cold. Inside, the vibe is low-tech and unhurried; budget about an hour to methodically inspect the glass cases, check out the small secondary space-exploration display on-site, and grab a photo under Herkimer's pincers before hitting the nearby trail system.
The move: Pose for a photo under the giant beetle, then wander the oddly organized display cases and rank the most disturbing specimen you each find.
📍 Before you go It is a rural drive south of the city on Highway 115 past Fort Carson, and Herkimer himself is the signage — the giant beetle stands right at the Rock Creek Canyon turnoff, so when you see him, turn. The museum sits on the grounds of the Golden Eagle Ranch campground and runs seasonally, roughly May through early October; it is closed the rest of the year. The same property holds a small space-exploration collection and miles of hiking trails, so it pairs naturally into a half-day out of town.
- 📍 Rock Creek Canyon, Colorado Springs
- 💸 $
- ⚡ Up for anything
- 🌗 Indoors
Where: 710 Rock Creek Canyon Road, Colorado Springs, CO 80926
Hours: Added 2026-06-09 — confirm current hours before you go.
Pair it with
- Johnny Mine — Pair your bug museum run with a trip to this defunct, historic mining site tucked further into Rock Creek Canyon.
- Starr Kempf's Kinetic Sculptures — Trade Herkimer the giant beetle for 50-foot kinetic steel wind sculptures hiding in a nearby residential neighborhood.
- The Rabbit Hole — Follow up a afternoon of viewing thousands of pinned insects with underground drinks inside a former city morgue.
- Iscariot (Octo-Maid) — Continue your route of strange local public art by checking out the 12-foot metal octopus-maid hybrid mounted downtown.
Good to know
How do I spot the museum from the highway?
Watch for Herkimer, the 16-foot giant beetle sculpture standing directly at the Rock Creek Canyon Road turnoff south of Fort Carson.
Is the museum open during the winter?
No, it is a seasonal venue operating roughly from May through early October and closed the rest of the year.
How large is the insect collection?
The collection contains between 7,000 and 8,000 preserved tropical specimens, including beetles, scorpions, spiders, and butterflies.
What else can I do at this location?
The museum sits on the Golden Eagle Ranch property, which also features hiking trails and a small space-exploration collection.
Plan a visit & invite your people →
Further reading: Official site · Roadside America · Tripadvisor · pikes-peak.com · campingincoloradosprings.com
last checked: 2026-06-09