To read previous parts:
Cottonwood Pass, Taylor Park Reservoir - part 1 of Independence Day trip 2015
Lake Irwin - part 2 of Independence Day trip 2015
Peanuts and Meridian lakes - part 3 of Independence Day trip 2015
We reached Crested Butte soon after we left Meridian Lake that afternoon. Unfortunately we had about an hour to walk along the streets before leaving the town.
Here is some information about the town I was able to find in the wiki:
The East River Valley where Crested Butte is located was once used as a summer residence by the Ute People. However, they were quickly displaced when European-Americans first entered the area. The first whites to explore the valley were beaver trappers, shortly followed by surveyors.
Captain John Gunnison, after whom Gunnison County is named, was one of the early explorers to enter the area.
In the 1860s and 1870s coal and silver mines began to open in the surrounding area, and many little mining towns formed. However, when silver mining began to decline, many of these towns failed. Crested Butte, however, was in a better position to survive because it served as a supply town to the surrounding area.
Another industry that served to support Crested Butte was ranching.
When the coal mines closed, the town began to shrink, and eventually the local high school was closed. Students had to travel to Gunnison to go to high school. The town did not revive until a ski area was built on Crested Butte Mountain in the 1960s. From the 1960s to 1990, the Crested Butte public school only facilitated K-5 students, while 6th grade and higher attended school in Gunnison. In 1990 Crested Butte offered middle school in the railroad depot building. In 1992 a new middle school was completed which allowed the public school to facilitate grades K through 8. Finally in 1997, a new facility for the Crested Butte Community School was completed. This included the addition of a public high school so that the school now serves students in grades K-12.
The East River Valley where Crested Butte is located was once used as a summer residence by the Ute People. However, they were quickly displaced when European-Americans first entered the area. The first whites to explore the valley were beaver trappers, shortly followed by surveyors.
Captain John Gunnison, after whom Gunnison County is named, was one of the early explorers to enter the area.
In the 1860s and 1870s coal and silver mines began to open in the surrounding area, and many little mining towns formed. However, when silver mining began to decline, many of these towns failed. Crested Butte, however, was in a better position to survive because it served as a supply town to the surrounding area.
Another industry that served to support Crested Butte was ranching.
When the coal mines closed, the town began to shrink, and eventually the local high school was closed. Students had to travel to Gunnison to go to high school. The town did not revive until a ski area was built on Crested Butte Mountain in the 1960s. From the 1960s to 1990, the Crested Butte public school only facilitated K-5 students, while 6th grade and higher attended school in Gunnison. In 1990 Crested Butte offered middle school in the railroad depot building. In 1992 a new middle school was completed which allowed the public school to facilitate grades K through 8. Finally in 1997, a new facility for the Crested Butte Community School was completed. This included the addition of a public high school so that the school now serves students in grades K-12.
Now
this is a nice looking and always busy town for everybody who would like
to do some activities... Skiing and snowboarding, snowmobiles,
snowshoeing.... everything you can imagine in Winter. Walking, hiking,
climbing, mountain biking, wildflower looking, kayaking and boating
attract people at Summer time. And you also can enjoy white, fresh and
crisp snow here in Winter and escape Summer heat in Summer.
And... perfect handmade ice
cream we found in one place. That was, probably, the best ice cream I
ever tried! And... the flowers everywhere. Looks like this is not a town
but a big botanic garden and we liked it!
There are two things about Crested Butte that make it even more interesting. First - there are no fast food restaurants in this town. This is city policy and McDonalds and Burger King are off the limit.
Second, there are very few holets in the town. You can do Airbnb or rent a room in someone's house, but if you are traveling and need to stay for one night, you might need to find something out of the town.
We loved
the town from the first glance and missed it in 30 minutes after we left. But we needed to drive to Gunnison where we had a hotel waiting...
Continue reading:
Pictures were taken on July 03, 2015.
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