Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Summit County's most atmospheric destination. Regardless of whether it's snow or shine,
the BreckConnect Gondola up to the base of Peak 8 is where the fun begins.
The vast, hulking mountains here (numbered, not named) rise and fall, merging seam-
lessly into one another to present a perfect alpine backdrop. Smooth and sculpted, they
lack the majesty of Aspen's granite knife edge - until you get to the top of Peak 8 and find
enormous uplifts on all sides.
Laced with ski runs and stitched together with pine groves, they blaze gold in the morn-
ing, pink at dusk and fade into a deep shadowy blue as the sky pales then darkens, reveal-
ing endless stars best viewed from a frothing hot tub next to the roaring Blue River.
History
Like other Central Rockies towns, Breckenridge was blessed twice with sought-after nat-
ural resources. The first time, the masses came searching for gold buried in the peaks sur-
rounding town. The second time it was for the snow-capped mountains themselves.
It all started with the discovery of gold along the South Platte River and in nearby
Idaho Springs in 1859. Later that same summer, gold was discovered along the Blue
River, which bisects present-day Breck. Now, where there's miners there will be whiskey,
and the first bar, the Gold Pan Saloon, opened on Main St in 1859. It still stands and is the
longest-tenured business in town. For the next several decades the town grew, acquired
the first post office between the Continental Divide and Salt Lake City, saw the Southern
Pacific Railroad arrive in town and nurtured its share of historic characters - folks like
Edwin Carter and Barney Ford, an escaped slave turned pioneer, turned entrepreneur,
turned politician.
In 1945, the Country Boy Mine, the last of its breed, closed down; without jobs or in-
dustry the population of Breckenridge crashed to just over 300 people in 1960. Then in
July 1961 a permit was granted to build and open a ski resort in the mountains behind
Breckenridge. The first lift opened on December 16, 1961, and more than 17,000 skiers
visited Peak 8 that first season. Peak 9 opened in 1971 and 10 years later the world's first
high-speed quad lift opened on Peak 9.
The resort innovated further in 1984 when it became the first ski resort open to snow-
boarders. (It even hosted the first Snowboarding World Cup on Peak 10 in 1985.) In 1997
Breckenridge and Keystone merged with Vail and Beaver Creek to form the present-day
conglomerate, Vail Resorts.
