Mountains
Eagle County
27 Porch Notes tied to Eagle County — the local details that change from one part of Colorado to the next.
Places in this county
Money and taxes (1)
Home and property (1)
Water and land (3)
Water and land
An Eagle County well is a permit with limits, not an unlimited water supply
Water in Eagle County is administered by the state under Colorado's prior appropriation system, and a well permit comes with conditions on how much you can use and for what.
Read note ->Water and land
On the Eagle River, the fishing rules change from one stretch to the next
The Eagle River is a productive trout fishery on Colorado's Quality Waters list, but limits and rules differ by river segment, so anglers should read the regulations for the exact stretch they fish.
Read note ->Water and land
The Eagle River runs two very different rafting trips, so pick the one that fits your group
The Eagle River offers splashy, family-friendly water on the Lower Eagle and a short, steep stretch of harder rapids near Dowd Junction, so it pays to match the section to your crew before you launch.
Read note ->Outdoors and wildfire (10)
Outdoors and wildfire
Betty Ford Alpine Gardens: a free walk through alpine plants at 8,200 feet
Vail's Ford Park holds a high-elevation botanical garden of alpine plants that you can stroll for free, dawn to dusk, all year.
Read note ->Outdoors and wildfire
Dispersed camping on the White River forest is not camp-anywhere
Free dispersed camping on the White River National Forest around Eagle County follows real rules: use existing sites near open roads, stay setbacks from water, pack everything out, and watch the stay limit.
Read note ->Outdoors and wildfire
Eagle County backcountry days start with the CAIC avalanche forecast
Avalanche danger in Eagle County's mountains is forecast by the Colorado Avalanche Information Center; much of the county sits in its Vail and Summit County zone, and the forecast map shows the exact zone for your spot.
Read note ->Outdoors and wildfire
Holy Cross Wilderness has different rules than the forest around it
Many popular Eagle County trailheads lead into the Holy Cross Wilderness, where wilderness rules are stricter than on the rest of the White River National Forest.
Read note ->Outdoors and wildfire
In Eagle County, securing trash is the heart of living with black bears
Black bears are common in Eagle County's valleys, and most conflicts trace back to food and garbage, so securing trash and removing attractants is the main way residents and bears stay out of trouble.
Read note ->Outdoors and wildfire
Mount of the Holy Cross is reached up a rough road that opens late
Eagle County's 14er, Mount of the Holy Cross, is climbed from a trailhead at the end of Tigiwon Road near Minturn, a rough dirt road that stays gated into early summer.
Read note ->Outdoors and wildfire
Sweetwater Lake is reached the long way, up the Colorado River Road from Dotsero
Sweetwater Lake, a natural lake in the White River National Forest whose future management is still being decided, is reached up the Colorado River Road from Dotsero in Eagle County, with small electric motors only and no gas engines.
Read note ->Outdoors and wildfire
Sylvan Lake State Park is up Brush Creek Road, with limits on motors
Sylvan Lake State Park sits south of the town of Eagle up Brush Creek Road, with year-round trout fishing and a lake limited to non-motorized boats and small electric trolling motors.
Read note ->Outdoors and wildfire
The Eagle River SWA fishing leases are public access, not a park
The Eagle River State Wildlife Area is a set of leased fishing-access stretches with its own rules, including a license or SWA pass requirement and posted designated areas.
Read note ->Outdoors and wildfire
The Vail Pass Winter Recreation Area charges a fee and splits its trails
On Vail Pass, the Forest Service runs a winter recreation area where a daily or season fee applies and motorized and non-motorized users are kept to separate, marked zones.
Read note ->Cars and driving (2)
Cars and driving
Shrine Pass Road connects Vail Pass to Red Cliff over a dirt route
Shrine Pass Road is a Forest Service dirt road from Vail Pass down to the town of Red Cliff, a scenic drive in summer whose opening and closing shift with the seasons.
Read note ->Cars and driving
West of Dotsero, I-70 dives into spectacular Glenwood Canyon
At Eagle County's western edge near Dotsero, I-70 drops into Glenwood Canyon, a stunning steep-walled drive along the Colorado River that's worth timing right, since rockfall or storms can briefly close the interstate.
Read note ->Local rules (2)
Local rules
Eagle County's towns aren't all governed the same way
Colorado towns can be home-rule or statutory, and that legal difference shapes how much local control a home-rule town like Vail has over taxes and land use compared with a statutory town like Red Cliff.
Read note ->Local rules
Outside the towns, Eagle County's rules are the ones that apply
A lot of Eagle County land is unincorporated, which means county land use, building, and septic rules apply rather than a town's, and unincorporated does not mean unregulated.
Read note ->History and culture (8)
History and culture
Avon's name came from 'Avondale,' not an English river
A popular tale says Avon was named for England's Avon River, but the town's own history credits early settler George A. Townsend, who liked the name 'Avondale' — a reminder to check place-name legends against the documented record.
Read note ->History and culture
Camp Hale was where the 10th Mountain Division learned to fight in the snow
The Pando valley in southern Eagle County holds Camp Hale, the WWII training base for the Army's 10th Mountain Division and now part of a national monument.
Read note ->History and culture
Each summer, world orchestras play an open-air stage in Vail's Ford Park
The Bravo! Vail Music Festival brings acclaimed orchestras to the open-air Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater in Vail's Ford Park each summer.
Read note ->History and culture
Gilman, a ghost town clinging to a cliff above the Eagle River
The abandoned company town of Gilman clings to Battle Mountain above the Eagle River, a striking sight from US 24 with a rich mining and cleanup story.
Read note ->History and culture
Gypsum is one of Eagle County's older incorporated towns
Down the valley near the county's western edge, Gypsum was incorporated in the early 1900s and kept a working, western character distinct from the resort towns upriver.
Read note ->History and culture
Minturn grew up on the Tennessee Pass rail line
The Denver & Rio Grande's standard-gauge route over Tennessee Pass ran through Minturn and the Eagle River valley, and that railroad is why the town is shaped the way it is.
Read note ->History and culture
Tigiwon Community House recalls the Mount of the Holy Cross pilgrimages
Above Minturn, the log Tigiwon Community House was built during the Depression era and tied to religious pilgrimages to view the Mount of the Holy Cross.
Read note ->History and culture
Vail started with a seven-hour climb and a view of the treeless Back Bowls
Vail grew into one of the largest single ski mountains in North America, and the story starts with a 1957 climb to a ridge above a string of wide, treeless bowls.
Read note ->