Dawson Cabin

Dawson Cabin provides campers with a rustic, remote getaway in the beautiful Clear Creek Canyon. The Clear Creek Historical District offers visitors a taste of mining history from the mid-19th century, when people came far and wide looking for gold, silver and other precious minerals; by the 1890s about 50,000 residents lived in the valley in search of great fortune. Off-road vehicle trails and hiking trails are nearby. Some hiking trails lead into the Collegiate Peaks Wilderness, which is named for the numerous 14,000 ft. peaks named after colleges, such as Yale, Harvard and Princeton. Collegiate Peaks is the headwaters for the Arkansas, Gunnison and Roaring Fork Rivers, and its landscape is composed of alpine tundra, high lake basins and glacial river valleys. The cabin comfortably fits up to four guests, though two additional guests may fit, and camping outside is permitted as well. Furnishings include a wood burning stove and an indoor picnic table. Guests should bring cots to sleep on, or at least a pad to sleep on the floor. No water or electricity is available, so bring plenty of water; creek water may be boiled and treated for consumption. Other items to pack include bedding, food, lanterns, matches, cooking utensils, dish soap and a first aid kit. Dawson Cabin is nestled at the base of Ervin Peak in Clear Creek Canyon, at an elevation of about 9,600 feet, on the outskirts of the Collegiate Peaks Wilderness in the Sawatch Range of the Rocky Mountains. Clear Creek passes near the cabin. The cabin sits in the Leadville Ranger District, home to the Sawatch Range, the highest mountain range in Colorado; these rugged, glaciated mountains form the crest of the Continental Divide, and Mount Elbert, at 14,443 feet, is Colorado's highest peak and one of ten fourteeners in the district. The historic town of Winfield is about 5 miles farther up the valley, and the nearest place for pay phones and a grocery store is in Buena Vista, about a 45 minute drive. Visitors can head to Clear Creek Reservoir, about 5 miles east, for fishing and boating, where fish species include brook trout, brown trout, rainbow trout and tiger muskie. A few miles further is the Arkansas River, where whitewater rafting is a big hit.