Gunnison, CO: 6 things we Love about this Mountain College Town!

Gunnison – A Brief History

Exploration Era

In the early 1800s, the people moving into the Gunnison area were mainly fur trappers and mountain men, trying to make a living for themselves in the rocky mountain terrain. A drop in fur prices in the 1840s reduced the need for their trade.

Then in the late 1850s a new group of people started moving to the area in hunt for gold in Gunnison County. Miners were in search of placer gold (i.e. gold that has broken loose from the main lode due to weathering and erosion).

Mining and Railroad Era

With the mining boom, Gunnison began to see an increase of people around the 1870s. Along with arrival of miners, ranchers and farmers were also moving into the area. The mining camps in and around Gunnison and reportedly produced about 130,000 ounces of gold from the beginning of the gold rush through 1959. At the start this was mostly from placer deposits, but the largest amounts were from a by-product of silver-lead ore.

During this mining era, there was a great debate as to which railroad line would claim the town as their territory. The D&RG and DSP&P were both battling for control over the area, resulting in townspeople splitting into two sides. The “old” and “new” sides of town ended up agreeing to disagree and were ultimately happy to have any railroad come through town. In the 1880s, both lines ended up coming through town anyway! However the DSP&P shortly discontinued service to Gunnison, leaving the D&RG to reorganize as the D&RGW railroad and was a prominent line to Gunnison for about seventy years – it served as the primary means of transportation for the townspeople into the 1950s.

Ranching Era

Also in the early 1880s, the cattle industry in Gunnison was established. Realizing the poor conditions for farming (little rain, short alpine growing season, etc) the local farmers turned from farming to ranching and began breeding cattle. To do this effectively, they had to clear and level fields for grazing purposes. Irrigation ditches also had to be cut into the ground to properly irrigate the fields in order to grow hay for the horses and cattle. Many of these practices are still in use today, which can be seen while driving through and around the town to the various ranches that are still in operation.

A Ranching Pioneer Story: John and William Outcalt were among the earliest settlers of Gunnison. They started their own ranch just north of town along the southeast bank of the Gunnison river. The brothers hailed from New Jersey, but decided to make the trip west for the sake of adventure and the prospect of making money. The eldest brother, John, began growing hay and other various grains for cattle feed. When the railroad came through town, he convinced them to expand more and ended up paying for and building the rail that ran through his property. Naming this stop Hay Spur, they produced enough hay to ship out over 800 carloads each year, which mainly headed north to the settlers of which is now the town of Crested Butte, helping feed their mules. Along with the hay, carloads of potatoes and other vegetables from the Gunnison area were being sent to Crested Butte to supply the miners with food and also to support their animals. John Outcalt is known today for helping to build the Paragon School, which is still standing today in the Gunnison Pioneer Society museum on the east end of town. Originally a shipbuilder and carpenter in New Jersey, he incorporated his skills in the building of the school which is why it is still standing today.

Gunnison was incorporated as a city in 1880. It was named in honor of John W. Gunnison, a United States Army officer who surveyed for a transcontinental railroad in 1853 – and believed to be the first European-American explorer in the area. 

College Town Era

Gunnison is home to Western Colorado University which received its third renaming since its beginnings from an approval of Governor John Wright Hickenlooper on August 1, 2012. The college was founded as The Colorado State Normal School for Children by a bill signed on April 16, 1901, by Governor James B. Orman. In 1923, the college’s name was changed to Western State College of Colorado because its role expanded from a teaching institution to a liberal arts college.

Today

Today, Gunnison leans into its rich history of ranching, agriculture, mining with the addition of tourism and outdoor recreation opportunities that bring many more people through the community.

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#1.Walking / Hiking Trails – there are several conveniently located in town!

We enjoyed the Van Tuyl Trail which was flat, scenic, and a perfect way to start out our visit to Gunnision! I learned later that Gunnison features a wide assortment of parks, with some amazing amenities… check them out at this link!

• Van Tuyl Trail – Google Maps – “adjacent to the Van Tuyl Ranch and would be the highest quality trails with the easiest access from town.”
• West Tomichi River Park – Google Maps

#2. Historic downtown – fun brews, microbrews and other Fun Places!

After our hike, we drove downtown, to look for a place to eat and enjoy the high-energy vibe! We started with Coffee at Tributary Coffee Roasters and later we had lunch at the High Alpine Brewing company. Needing more caffein for the trip home, we also had coffee at the Double Shot Cyclery Coffee Shop before we left… what a fun afternoon!

• Double Shot Cyclery – Google Maps – Coffee and Cycle Shop hybrid! loved the vibe and the coffee 🙂
• Back Country Cafe – Google Maps – good google reviews and photos of a lovely patio; worth checking out!
• Tributary Coffee Roasters – Google Maps – good google review; we really liked this downtown place and its back patio!
• Cake Me Away LLC – Google Maps – Love a good local bakery!
• 1880 Tapas & Spirits – Google Maps – Cool looking place with shaded back patio; great google reviews!
• Blackstock Bistro – Google Maps – Cool looking covered patio; food looks amazing!
• High Alpine Brewing Company – Google Maps – We love a downtown microbrewery with great food! This is a good one 🙂
• Crested Bucha – Google Maps – good google reviews and photos; worth checking out!
• Alamo Saloon – Google Maps – reviews say this is a Gunnison Classic!
• I.O.O.F. Park – Google Maps – Love this little downtown park!

#3. Western State campus – beautiful walking campus with cool public art!

Once we finished lunch and exploring downtown Gunnison, we headed the couple blocks over to the Western State campus. We enjoyed the architecture of the buildings as well as the impressive examples of public art.

#4. Popular Gunnison Museum!

Although we did not tour the Gunnison Pioneer Muesum during this visit, we were impressed by our drive-by and the online information and google reviews. This museum has a lot going on! We will definitely stop by during our next visit.

#5. Lots of interesting local events

There was an event underway at the IOOF Park, which we learned was The Original Growler Endurance Mountain Bike Race – what a fantastic event! It includes a kids race, 20 miles, 32 miles and 40 mile races. This event is the primary fundraiser for the local Trail Building nonprofit. Clearly the crowd was having a good time! Later, when i looked for local events online, i was amazed to see that a variety of Gunnison based organizations host a wide variety of local events – see below for some examples.

#6. Gunnison as a hub – lots of area things to do and see!

We were in the area to discover and explore both Crested Butte and Gunnison, and thoroughly enjoyed our weekend!

• Crested Butte (pop 1,639*). – Gunnison’s neighbor to the North. See our Crested Butte blog article for photos and information from our visit.
• Black Canyon of the Gunnison – “Big enough to be overwhelming, still intimate enough to feel the pulse of time, Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park exposes you to some of the steepest cliffs, oldest rock, and craggiest spires in North America. With two million years to work, the Gunnison River, along with the forces of weathering, has sculpted this vertical wilderness of rock, water, and sky.”
• Trip Planning Website – Check at the Gunnison Crested Butte Tourism association website for an impressive array of things to do in the area, during any season!

Annual Events

• Every Friday – First Fridays Art Walk & Music celebration, sponsored by the Gunnison Creative District
• February – Winter Blast – “DINNER, LIBATIONS, SOCIALIZING & SILENT AUCTION” Gunnison Trail Building fundraiser with kids’ activities and a sitter on hand
• May – Summer Forecast – “Learn about the summer events and plans around the valley from the Experts as they host information tables” – includes kid’s games, a bounce house, live music, and auction!
• May – The Original Growler – “For 16 years, the Original Growler has not wavered from our guiding principle of asking you to trade your hard-earned dollars for three things: 1) An awesome day on the bike, 2) A killer party, 3) Top shelf trails, both existing and developing.” – see video below.
• June – Gunnison River Festival – “Get ready for a summer full of water-splashing fun! Join us for lots of rafting, kayaking, SUPing and river surfing throughout the Upper Gunnison watershed…!”
• July – Cattlemen Days – “124 Years Strong!  Each year Gunnison Cattlemen’s Days celebrates the rich history and traditions of the ranching culture.  Each July, this tradition puts on the “Granddaddy of Colorado Rodeos”, an event staged by our committee, volunteers, and the community for Professional Rodeo Cowboys and Cowgirls and the people who love to watch them.”
• August – Gunnison Car Show – “A weekend of Great Cars, Music, Awards & Food from our local partners”
• Fall – Ales for Trails – “Ales for Trails is our way of saying thanks to the brewery that supports our local trails.“
• December – Nights of Lights – “Night of Lights is the annual tree lighting celebration in Gunnison to kick off the Christmas season. Main Street closes to traffic, and local businesses and organizations set up tables to share information and hot cocoa. Downtown Gunnison is decked out in Christmas lights, and Santa lights the tree at the intersection of Highway 135 and Highway 50.“

Organizations supporting community in Gunnison

• Gunnison Pioneer Museum | Gunnison County Pioneer and Historical Society
  • “The Gunnison Pioneer Museum aims to preserve the history of those people that have come to Colorado and the Gunnison Country to make a life in the “middle of nowhere”. The Museum is not sustained by any County, State, or Federal monies. Memorials, generous donations, yearly dues, and the revenues from the summer months enable us to pay for insurance and upkeep.”
• Gunnison Creative District
  • “Gunnison became an official Creative District in 2022, a designation that comes from Colorado Creative Industries. The GCD manages the creative district designation as a 501(c)3 non-profit to support local creatives through public murals and sculpture, First Friday Artwalk, a valley-wide creative directory and public art maintenance.”
• Gunnison County Chamber of Commerce
  • Greenback Program – “Greenbacks are a form of local currency that can be used just about anywhere in Gunnison, this includes grocery stores, retail shops, restaurants, gas stations, and more. It is up to the discretion of the business to accept or not to accept.“
  • First Fridays Art Walk & Music – “The First Friday ArtWalk & Music of Gunnison is a popular destination for art, live music, food, and brew lovers alike. Each month features gallery openings, an array of artists and galleries, restaurants, and other fine venues.”
    • Community Paint Day – “Help us paint the new community mural celebrating the Hispanic immigrant community of Gunnison”, a paint by numbers community event 🙂
• Gunnison and Crested Butte Tourism Association – “The Gunnison Crested Butte Tourism and Prosperity Partnership, or TAPP, (known as the Gunnison-Crested Butte Tourism Association from 2002-2019) was born in 2002 by popular vote of the people in Gunnison County. The ballot issue created a Local Marketing District for the purpose of marketing the Gunnison Valley. The vote allowed the lodging tax to increase from 1.9% to 4%.”
  • ICELab – Gunnison’s Innovation Center – “The ICELab is Gunnison’s all-in-one business resource center. The facility includes open coworking space, private office space, a fully equipped conference room, free coffee and a great view. The ICELab is centrally located in Escalante Terrace on the Western Colorado University campus. It brings together the business community and the University. Whether you’re starting a new exporter business, are looking for office space or need a place to work on your Colorado trip, the ICELab can help.”
• Gunnison Trails non-profit – “Educating, Maintaining & Creating trails throughout Gunnison County”

Map of Gunnison