September 2000

Manitou’s best kept secret!  The sweetest and best of the mineral springs is tucked in a metal box between two shops on Ruxton Avenue and very easy to miss when you don’t know what you’re looking for (or have the Chamber of Commerce map which is wrong). 

The Twin Spring originally ran through two pipes from two separate water flows and although over the years the springs have merged, the name remains. The spring is sometimes known as the Lithia Spring (or the Soda Lithia) because it has a distinct concentration of lithium as well as being rich in calcium and potassium. The sweetness of the water makes it one of the most popular choices for lemonade.

(detail of the interior of the Twin Link Spring
with a carefully placed flower left by an
earlier visitor)
The plaque beside the spring reads: 

“This naturally sparkling mineral water, sacred to the Ute Indians for centuries, comes from deep within the Colorado Rocky Mountains.  For thousands of years, it has journeyed through a maze of underground streams, collecting a delicate balance of mineral and trace elements.  Eventually, the water surfaces here, originally as two springs, which accounts for the name Twin Spring, but has since merged into one greater flow. It is a natural diuretic, and with its sweet taste, is considered in Manitou as the connoisseur’s choice.”

The Twin Spring was drilled in 1920 by William Gamby Strong Crosby who came to Manitou from Prince Edward Island in 1889 seeking a cure for asthma. 

Update January 2001

The Twin Link, too, was turned off to prevent it creating ice
on the sidewalk (I'm slowly learning to speak American!).



 
Thank you to Anna Yager of the Pike's Peak Cog Railway
for telling us where to find the Twin Link and what to look for!

Seven Minute ~ Ute Chief  ~ Navajo ~ Wheeler ~  Stratton ~  Iron Geyser ~  Soda ~ Cheyenne & Shoshone

 

Return to Home Page or send me an email 

The Indian Waterpot & email icons are from Poison's Icons by Sonny del Castillo