At dusk in Empire, Colorado, the time the miners of old would pack their mules and head for home after work, if you sit quietly and listen, you may be lucky enough to hear the ghost of an unknown miner heading for home with his mule.

You will never see the ghost, but you can hear the clop of his trusty burros footfalls and the clank of his load of tools and pots and pans as he heads for home. The sound starts at the head of the road that leads to the old North Empire mining district, turns down the main road. Turning again to the road that leads out of town over the bridge over Clear Creek, the sound of the duo fades as they approach the bridge and the path to the cemetery.

Who the old timer and his mule are remains a mystery which is pondered at night around fireplaces and campfires by those who have heard them walk past during the approach of night on the mountainside.