Blogs from Crested Butte, Colorado, United States, North America

After I drove a few miles on private land on Gunnison County 12, I entered a section of the Gunnison National Forest. I turned on FS 759 following Anthracite Creek through the Erickson picnic area then I turned around at the campground fee area. I had a nice short stay by the creek in the free picnic area. When I returned to Gunnison 12 I crossed the bridge over Anthracite Creek. I drove four miles on private land, and turned South on FS 709 that followed Coal Creek. I entered into the Gunnison NF and found a few very nice free camps by Coal Creek. The FS road was a narrow one lane road with few wide spots to pull over for the occasional oncoming traffic. The road got progressively worse with rare places to pull ... read more

I still had a long drive from Monarch Pass to my first back-country camp on the West side of Kebler Pass. It was downhill all the way to Gunnison (US Hwy 50) where I got food and other supplies, ice, and petrol for three days of camping in the beautiful aspen trees. From the center of Gunnison I took Colorado Hwy 135 North to Crested Butte. I used to take a simple first left (West) turn to get on Gunnison County hwy 12 to Kebler Pass. Now Crested Butte has grown 1000 percent and I could not see a sign where to turn West with all the extra streets. I asked a nice local and he showed me where to turn. Leaving Crested Butte city limits I saw the first sign to Kebler Pass. Now the ... read more

After lots of bagels for breakfast , we did a 6 mile 'Upper Loop' hike, over Mt Crested Butte and down into the town of Crested Butte. The hike was beautiful and took us through Aspen trees and meadows covered in wildflowers. Once at Crested Butte, we stopped at a bar for a few beers and a rest - and in Jon's case, (a huge creamy brownie Sundae) and then walked through town to go on a second hike, to Peanut Lake. Jon and I are so taken with this town. It is really quiet, but so pretty. The houses are all really quirky and different, which is refreshing, as everything is so 'cookie cutter' in the UK. I love that term, so glad I got a chance to use it. Even the dentist's practice is ... read more

For a state primarily known for its production of gold and silver, Colorado also was a coal producer. Crested Butte was the site. On January 24, 1884, a tremendous blast shook the town as if an earthquake of monumental proportions had happened. The residents, of course, knew exactly what had occurred. Rescuers brought to the surface 59 bodies after thirty-six hours of grueling effort. The town also had another problem. Avalanches. Located at the 9,000 foot level and on the side of the mountain, avalanches were a constant fear. In February of 1891, an avalanche wiped out almost the entire camp complex at the coal mine with the loss of a number of people including women and children. Crested Butte survived as a coal-mining town until train locomotives started using diesel fuel. The end of Crested ... read more

Geo: 38.8702, -106.986After a few days in Whoville, I have decided to hit the road and continue my trip.As I've written in my last couple entries, this place in fantastic! The area, the people, the town, the feel... something about it just resonates with me right now. (namaste).However, I am still in the middle of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity right now: no permanent residence or job, no responsibilities, no deadlines, living off of savings and decent contract work that I can do at any time from any place, my house in Denver rented to some great, reliable people... To stay here would mean to give that up, and there's a good chance things would never line up this perfectly again for me to be able to do this. Crested Butte isn't going anywhere. I can always come ... read more