Fowler Hilliard Hut | Colorado

Having traveled and experienced many incredible European mountain huts (rifugio/refuge/hütte) it is great that Colorado created the extensive 10th Mountain Division Hut System of ski/hike/bike alpine huts, all available on a reservation system.

The Fowler/Hilliard Hut, owned and operated by 10th Mountain, was originally constructed in the summer of 1988. It was named for Ann Fowler and Ed Hilliard, avid mountaineers tragically killed in a climbing accident on North Maroon Peak near Aspen. Hut construction was generously funded by the Fowler and Hilliard families, and family friends. The hut site was first scouted in April 1984 and the hut proposal was formally approved in a June 1988 decision by the US Forest Service. It was available to the public the following winter, and has proven to be one of the most popular huts in the 10th Mountain Division Hut System, averaging over 2,300 user nights (one person/one night) per year.

The Fowler-Hilliard Hut is located in a group of high mountains at 11,500' about 6 miles west of Vail Pass, in central Colorado.