Entry No. 12 — the Grand Junction file — filed under: offbeat-museum
Museum of the Mountain West
“Fike, now in his eighties, often greets visitors himself.”
Retired BLM archaeologist Richard Fike spent decades filling thirty-plus storage lockers, then built a fake town to hold it all. Adobe Flats: 28 relocated historic buildings — saloon, jail, Chinese laundry, a 1913 German Lutheran church — packed with some 500,000 artifacts on six acres. Human skulls sit in the dentist's office, a playing card signed by Sitting Bull during his Buffalo Bill days hangs nearby, and the saloon ceiling still wears its bullet holes. Fike, now in his eighties, often greets visitors himself.
The story
Most historians collect books; Richard Fike collected whole storefronts. A retired Bureau of Land Management archaeologist, Fike spent decades stashing Western history inside more than thirty storage lockers before he finally conceded he needed a six-acre lot to hold it all. The result is Adobe Flats—a ghost town assembled on the eastern edge of Montrose to house roughly half a million artifacts he accumulated over a lifetime of digging.
Fike hauled 28 historic structures onto the dirt, including an 1880s saloon, a town jail, a Chinese laundry, a 1913 German Lutheran church, and an old-time dentist’s office. He didn't just relocate the shells; he stuffed them to the rafters with unvarnished relics. Walk into the dentist's cabin and you'll find actual human skulls sitting near the treadle drill. Head over to the saloon and you can count real bullet holes pocking the ceiling planks, or spot a playing card signed by Sitting Bull during his run with Buffalo Bill’s Wild West show.
This isn't a slick, velvet-roped open-air museum—it's the physical manifest of one man's relentless obsession with the working-class West from the 1880s through the 1940s. Fike, now in his eighties, still roams the grounds and frequently greets visitors at the gate himself. If you catch him in the right mood, you'll get the real story behind every rusty tooth extractor and poker chip on the property.
What it's like
Pulling up off US-50 feels like pulling onto a private high-desert compound. You'll park by the main entrance and navigate dirt paths and creaky wooden boardwalks between the 28 scattered buildings. Wear real walking shoes—you'll be stepping over unlevel thresholds and packed dirt floors. While you can grab a self-guided map at the entrance, calling ahead to secure a guided tour is the move; it opens up locked doors and unloads the best stories. Budget a full two hours, and remember that these century-old structures aren't climate-controlled, so dress for whatever the Montrose sky is doing.
The move: Take the guided tour, count the bullet holes in the saloon ceiling together, then drive twenty minutes east to stare into the Black Canyon of the Gunnison.
📍 Before you go It sits on Miami Road just off US-50 on the east edge of Montrose, about an hour south of Grand Junction, with parking on site at the gate. Adobe Flats is outdoors — boardwalks and dirt between 28 buildings on six acres — so wear real shoes and budget a couple of hours. Guided tours go deepest; call ahead to arrange one, or pick up the self-guided map inside. The Black Canyon of the Gunnison's south rim is a short drive farther east and makes an easy same-day pairing.
- 📍 Montrose
- 💸 $
- ⚡ Up for anything
- 🌗 Indoors
Where: 68169 E Miami Rd, Montrose, CO 81401
Hours: Added 2026-06-11 — confirm current hours before you go.
Pair it with
- Phelanies — Follow up a stroll through dusty 19th-century storefronts with a drink at this local Montrose speakeasy just three miles down the road.
- Star Drive-In Theatre — Swap 1880s saloon relics for mid-century cinema under the stars at a family-run drive-in less than three miles away.
- Shavano Valley Rock Art Site — Trade 19th-century Western artifacts for centuries-old Ute rock art panels hidden five miles west on the Uncompahgre Plateau.
- Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park - Night Sky Programs & AstroFest — Finish your day of frontier oddities by driving eight miles east to stare down into the sheer black chasm beneath certified dark skies.
Good to know
Where is the Museum of the Mountain West located?
It sits at 68169 E Miami Rd, just off US-50 on the east side of Montrose—about an hour's drive south of Grand Junction.
Do I need to book a guided tour in advance?
Self-guided maps are available at the entrance, but guided tours go much deeper into the buildings and artifact histories. Calling ahead to arrange a tour is recommended.
How long does a visit usually take?
Plan on budgeting roughly two hours to wander the six acres, tour the 28 historic buildings, and take in the collection.
What should I wear when visiting?
Wear sturdy, closed-toe walking shoes for the outdoor dirt pathways and boardwalks, and dress in layers since the historic buildings lack heating and air conditioning.
Plan a visit & invite your people →
Further reading: Official site · coloradosun.com · Atlas Obscura
last checked: 2026-06-11