My recent history column on the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s mentioned the dismantling of the Corps’ barracks west of Chautauqua Park and south of Baseline Road. This same location, a decade later, became part of the city-run Chautauqua Mesa Ski Area.
For many Boulder residents, the ski area was their introduction to skiing. In the 1940s, the city’s few experienced skiers included members of ski clubs and teams at Boulder High School and the University of Colorado.
For them, the closest established ski areas were Berthoud (on top of Berthoud Pass) and farther north at Winter Park. Boulder residents also drove to the entrance of Coal Creek Canyon, where they boarded the Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad trains that ran from Denver, through the Moffat Tunnel, to Winter Park…