The Basalt History Tour
Basalt Began with a “Boarding House, General Store and 7 Saloons”

Basalt, 1904. Note the width of the Roaring Fork and its braiding.
The first settlement, built in 1882, was a tent city called Fryingpan on the south side of the Frying Pan River. It was created to house the men working the charcoal kilns which remain today and which you will see later on this tour. By 1886 the little community of Aspen Junction on the site of present Basalt began to form with the requisite “boarding house, general store and 7 saloons.” The town was a railroad camp housing crews needed for the construction of the Colorado Midland Railroad.

Aspen Junction with original depot, circa 1889.
During its early history, Basalt was a thriving railroad center that later shrank with the closing of the railroad in 1919. From the 1920s to the 1960s, Basalt was a ranching community and a bedroom community, supporting the great growth of the ski areas up-valley. Today, Basalt is a community of its own with a strong base of fishing and tourism.
We hope you will enjoy the tour you are about to begin. The signs will provide history and photos of important elements of Basalt’s early years and take you through some of our hidden joys. Orient yourself by looking at the rivers and the mountains in the photos. The tour is an enjoyable, level walk and takes about 45 minutes. To take the tour, just follow the white footsteps. Enjoy!