Location
Where is Crested Butte?
Crested Butte is nestled in a high valley of the Colorado Rockies. More specifically, it’s in the southwest region of Colorado (western slope) and the western part of the Elk Mountain Range. The closest ‘large’ town is Gunnison, but it’s also really close to Aspen, especially in the summertime when mountain passes are open.
Part of the appeal of this remote location is its distance from the traffic and congestion of the I-70 resorts and Front Range cities. The air is pristine, the views are breathtaking and the water is pure. It’s pretty easy to get here, but much harder to leave. There are many methods of transportation to choose from: By air, car or even on foot, bike or skis.
Driving time from Denver is around 4 hours and just under that from Colorado Springs. If you’re flying into Gunnison, it’s about a 40 minute drive to Crested Butte. The drive through the scenic mountains of Colorado in the summertime is one worth taking from any of these locations.
How to get to Crested Butte by Air
Gunnison - 40 minute drive to Crested Butte. This is the #1 option and recommendation with the quickest drive. Book a rental car well in advance - Hertz, Avis, Budget service here but vehicles go quick during high seasons.
Montrose - 2 hour drive to Crested Butte. Note - There is road construction going on Highway 50 between Montrose and Gunnison during 2023-2024 which may take longer than 2 hours.
Denver or Colorado Springs - 4 to 5 hour drive to Crested Butte depending on traffic. Usually the cheapest flights but farthest drive.
Location of our Home
Once in Crested Butte, our home is located in Trappers at Wildcat on Gibson Ridge and is only 10 minutes from the bustle of downtown Crested Butte. Gibson Ridge is the 700 foot ridge that is directly south of downtown Crested Butte and our home is the ONLY house on this ridge line. In the wintertime you need a 4-wheel drive vehicle to manage the snow/ice but in the summertime a 2-wheel drive vehicle is fine. In the summertime you can walk to downtown Crested Butte via the Green Lake trail which is a 2 mile downhill walk and takes less than 1 hour.
Walk to Town from the House
2 mile downhill walk along the Green Lake Trail to downtown that takes a little less than a hour from the front door. With little kids we recommend walking to town for breakfast/lunch/park with the kids and then having someone drive to town and run shuttle. Load the kids up in a car after lunch/breakfast/park in town and then drive back to the house to eliminate the uphill hike back to the house. We do this hike to town with 3+ year olds all the time when there isn’t snow present on the Green Lake Trail. The red path on the image below is for the hike to downtown from the house on the Green Lake Trail.
Trappers at Wildcat Neighborhood Background
In November of 1989 Trappers Crossing Ltd. purchased 3,817 acres of land adjacent to the town of Crested Butte to the South and West across Kebler Pass Road and up and over Gibson’s Ridge. The purchase price was $2.6 million dollars. The developer created 68 home-sites in total with 36 of these being in our neighborhood, Trappers at Wildcat. As reported in the Chronical & Pilot in December of 1989: “The property was owned by Colorado Fuel and Iron Company (CF&I) for most of century and was mined extensively for coal. The big mine was located on the bench just above town and the Persching and Peanut Mines were two of the productive mines along the Peanut Mill Road. The mines were closed in the early 1950s and the railroad tracks were removed, the land lay unused except by hikers, skiers and other recreationalists.”
The original development plans for this Trappers housing development were challenged by many in town saying that it would scar the landscape forever – instead there was thoughtful development and great expense to build the roads through the trees with minimal impact to the natural setting. Trappers Crossing at Wildcat and its 36 lots make up the largest section. It follows the Wildcat Trail road high above Crested Butte up to the top of Gibson’s Ridge. The developer wanted to continue to allow hiking and Nordic skiing through the development – and a beautiful part of the Nordic Center’s groomed skiing meanders through Trappers Crossing as well there is an easement via the Green Lake Trail to the base of Axtell.
Green Lake Trail. Green Lake is a glacial beauty resting at the base of the glorious Mt. Axtell. The beginning of the trail in the heart of Crested Butte starts out at an elevation of 8,800 feet and then steeply rises to 10,700 feet at Green Lake. Mt. Axtell peaks at 12,055 feet. Green Lake Trail’s 1,900 foot rise gives any hiker, biker or runner a satisfying challenge and breathtaking scenery including gorgeous wildflowers. After all, Crested Butte is the wildflower capital of Colorado. You can hike this Green Lake trail directly from our front door at 2255 Wildcat and making it to the end of the trail will be well worth it when you finally reach a beautiful high alpine lake (Green Lake) at the base of Mt. Axtell. Kick back and take in the miraculous landscape while you rehydrate for the return trip back to the house. This is a 3 hour, 6 mile roundtrip hike from the front door.