Location: Pitkin County, CO Map
Elevation: 11,212 ft (3,417 m)
Aspen is a small town in the US state of Colorado,
the administrative seat of Pitkin County and is located about 200 km
southwest of Denver on the Roaring Fork River. The US The Census
Bureau recorded a population of 7,004 as of the 2020 census.
The city was the center of a silver mining area in the 19th century.
Aspen is home to one of North America's most famous ski resorts. It
consists of four non-lift-connected parts: Aspen Mountain, Aspen
Highlands, Buttermilk, and Snowmass.
According to the Forbes
Institute, Aspen is the richest city in the United States and one of
the richest in the world. The average home price in Aspen is over
$1.5 million.
Aspen is home to three internationally
significant institutions: the Aspen Music Festival and School, the
Aspen Institute, and the Aspen Center for Physics. The Aspen Music
Festival has been held every summer since 1949.
By plane
Aspen-Pitkin County Airport (IATA: ASE) is
located approximately 5 kilometers northwest of downtown. It is only
served by domestic flights operated by the subsidiaries of three major
US airlines (United Express, American Eagle and Delta Connection). The
only year-round service is from Denver (which has a good connection from
international flights), seasonal flights are available from Chicago
O'Hare, Los Angeles, Houston, Dallas-Ft. Worth, San Francisco, Atlanta
and Salt Lake City.
By train
The nearest passenger train
station is at Glenwood Springs, 40 miles northwest, on Amtrak's
California Zephyr Line (Chicago-Denver-San Francisco). Glenwood Springs
is just over an hour's bus ride from Aspen.
By bus
Long-distance buses (e.g. Greyhound line Denver-Grand Junction-Las
Vegas) stop in Glenwood Springs, 40 miles away.
VelociRFTA buses
run from Glenwood Springs to Aspen every 15 minutes during the day and
hourly from 7pm in the evening. The ride takes just over an hour and
costs $7, seniors 65 and older ride free.
In the street
Aspen
is located on California State Highway 82, between Glenwood Springs (40
miles northwest, four lanes; drive time just under an hour) and Granite
(47 miles southwest via a winding pass road; drive time approximately 1
hour 15 minutes). However, Granite's route over Independence Pass is
closed from the first significant snowfall in late fall (no later than
November 7) through the weekend before Memorial Day (late May), leaving
Aspen accessible only from the northwest during the winter months.
Aspen is about 40 miles southeast of Glenwood Springs in a river valley between the Elk Mountains and the Sawatch Range, two sub-mountains of the Rocky Mountains. The Roaring Fork River, a tributary of the Colorado River, flows through the city. Within the Roaring Fork Valley, Aspen is surrounded by mountains on three sides: Red Mountain to the north, Smuggler Mountain to the east, and Aspen Mountain to the south.
Silver deposits were first discovered here in 1879
after a treaty with the Ute tribe made western Colorado accessible.
Because of the difficult access, mining developed slowly; only when the
railway line was extended to Aspen in 1887 did the population grow to
12,000 inhabitants. At the height of the silver boom in 1892, $9 million
worth of silver ore was mined, making Aspen the most productive silver
mining area in the United States. Today's City Hall was built in the
same year. In 1893 Aspen already had banks, a hospital, a police
station, two theatres, an opera house and electric lights. However, the
Panic of 1893 resulted in many silver mines closing and thousands losing
their jobs. By 1930, Aspen's population had declined to 705 residents.
However, the town still had commercial and residential buildings, which
is why investors were interested in building a ski resort. The Aspen
Skiing Company was founded in 1946 and hosted the Alpine World Ski
Championships in 1950.
Sports
Since the 6th annual Winter X
Games in 2002, the competitions have been held in Aspen. In addition,
two competitions of the Alpine Ski World Cup (mostly giant slalom and
slalom) for women take place in Aspen every year at the end of November.
infrastructure
Aspen is home to Aspen/Pitkin County Airport,
which has connections to Denver International Airport.
Known
Residents
Cher (b. 1946), Charlie Sheen (b. 1965), Kevin Costner (b.
1955), and Bill Joy (b. 1954) have homes in Aspen.
John Denver
(1943–1997) spent much of his life in Aspen.
Lance Reventlow
(1936–1972) spent much of his time at his Aspen home.
Mina Loy
(1882-1966), British writer and widow of Dada artist Arthur Cravan,
spent the last years of her life here.
The Austrian ski pioneer
Friedl Pfeifer (1911-1995) ran a ski school in Aspen and was
instrumental in promoting winter sports in the region.
Hunter S.
Thompson (1937-2005), founder of gonzo journalism, lived in Aspen (Woody
Creek) and even ran for sheriff's office in 1970.
Lance Armstrong (b.
1971) lives and trains in Aspen very often.
Aron Ralston (born 1975),
climber and author has lived in Aspen since 2002. He is known since he
was imprisoned for five days in Blue John Canyon (Utah) because of a
boulder and amputated his own arm.
Claudine Longet (born 1942),
French former singer and actress
Robert Wagner (* 1930) has lived in
Aspen with his wife Jill St. John (* 1940) since 2007.
sons and
daughters of the town
Harold Ross (1892–1951), journalist and founder
of The New Yorker newspaper
Andy Mill (born 1953), alpine skier
Alexi Grewal (born 1960), cyclist
Alex Wubbels (born 1976), skier
Jeremy Abbott (born 1985), figure skater
Wiley Maple (born 1990),
alpine skier
Alex Ferreira (born 1994), freestyle skier
trivia
A crater on Mars is named after Aspen.
The American comedy film Dumb
and Dumber was partly filmed in Aspen.