Mr. Stanley's Hotel

The Stanley Hotel is a beautiful landmark in Estes Park, Colorado, sitting high on a hill overlooking town.  The hotel was built by F.O. Stanley, inventor of the Stanley Steamer Cars.  It first opened in 1909, and Mr. Stanley used his steam cars to bring tourists over the unpaved mountain roads to Estes Park.  In 1915, Rocky Mountain National Park was established and cemented the tourist industry for this area.  The hotel has long been rumored to be haunted.  The fictional Overlook Hotel in Stephen King's novel The Shining was based on the Stanley Hotel, and a 1997 television miniseries version of The Shining was filmed at the Stanley.   The vertical rock formations rising above the hotel in this photo are known as The Needles.