Entry No. 28 — the Pueblo file — filed under: roadside-oddity
UFO Watchtower
“163 sightings logged, two invisible beings out back, and the skeleton of Snippy.”
Judy Messoline went bust running cattle in the San Luis Valley — “cows don't eat sand” — so in 2000 she put up a ten-foot steel viewing platform and a dome gift shop and started logging whatever flew over. The book stands at 163 sightings. Out back, visiting psychics certified two vortexes, openings to parallel universes guarded by a pair of invisible beings; visitors leave hubcaps, pens, and dog tags to keep them happy. She also paid $2,000 for the skeleton of Snippy, the horse found stripped to bone in 1967.
The story
Judy Messoline tried raising cattle on the arid floor of the San Luis Valley, only to run into a stubborn ecological truth: cows don't eat sand. Facing a financial bust, she pivoted in 2000. She welded together a ten-foot steel platform, put up a white stucco dome gift shop, and started logging whatever unexplainable craft cruised through the high-desert air space. The running tally in her logbook stands at 163 sightings and counting.
The sky is only half the draw. Out in the sagebrush behind the tower, visiting psychics certified two distinct energy vortexes—alleged portals to parallel universes guarded by a pair of invisible custodians. To keep the keepers happy (or just leave a permanent mark on the landscape), travelers have blanketed the dirt with a surreal debris field of hubcaps, ballpoint pens, dog tags, and pocket trinkets. Messoline doubled down on the valley's strange history by paying $2,000 for the actual skeleton of Snippy, the local horse found mysteriously stripped to the bone in 1967.
What it's like
You'll turn off Highway 17 onto a short dirt track about three and a half miles north of Hooper. You're standing on a completely flat, treeless basin at 7,600 feet elevation where intense daytime sun gives way to staggering cold as soon as the sun drops. Climb the steel staircase above the dome shop for an unobstructed 360-degree view of the valley ringed by distant peaks. The gift shop keeps loose seasonal hours, but primitive tent sites ring the watchtower if you want to stay through the dark hours. Pack serious cold-weather gear regardless of the month.
The move: Pitch a tent below the tower, split a thermos after midnight, and agree in advance on what counts as sighting number 164.
📍 Before you go The turnoff is on CO Highway 17 about 3.5 miles north of Hooper — a short dirt drive to parking beside the stucco dome gift shop, with the steel platform right above it. You are on open high desert at 7,600 feet: flat, treeless, hard sun by day and genuinely cold after dark, so bring layers even in summer. Primitive campsites ring the tower if you want the after-midnight sky, and the dome keeps looser seasonal habits than the grounds. Pair it with Great Sand Dunes National Park about half an hour east, or the alligator farm down Highway 17.
- 📍 Hooper
- 💸 Free
- ⚡ Up for anything
- 🌗 Outdoors
Where: 2502 County Road 61 (off CO-17, ~3.5 miles north of Hooper), Hooper, CO 81136
Hours: Added 2026-06-11 — confirm current hours before you go.
Pair it with
- The Greenhouse at Sand Dunes Recreation — Located less than two miles away in Hooper, this spot lets you soak away high-desert dust in 118-degree artesian spring water tapped by 1930s oil drillers.
- Colorado Gators Reptile Park — Just under six miles down Highway 17, where geothermal water turned a 1970s tilapia farm into a sanctuary for rescued alligators.
- Great Sand Dunes National Park Night Sky Programs — Drive half an hour east to contrast the watchtower's rogue sky-logging with official dark-sky astronomy against massive dunefields.
Good to know
Where is the UFO Watchtower located?
It sits at 2502 County Road 61, off Colorado Highway 17, roughly 3.5 miles north of Hooper in the San Luis Valley.
Can you camp overnight at the watchtower?
Yes, primitive campsites ring the base of the tower for skywatchers aiming for an after-midnight shift.
What is the garden of offerings out back?
Visiting psychics designated two spots behind the tower as cosmic vortexes. Visitors leave behind personal items like keys, pens, dog tags, and hubcaps as offerings to the invisible guardians said to protect them.
Who was Snippy?
Snippy was a San Luis Valley horse found dead and stripped to bone under unexplained circumstances in 1967, becoming an early landmark case in UFO lore. Her skeleton was purchased by the watchtower for $2,000.
Plan a visit & invite your people →
Further reading: Wikipedia · Roadside America · npr.org · Official site · alamosa.org · Tripadvisor
last checked: 2026-06-11