Near Red Cliff in Eagle County, Colorado — The American Mountains (Southwest)
Your Path Here Intersects with 10th Mountain Soldiers
Camp Hale
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, July 27, 2025
1. Your Path Here Intersects with 10th Mountain Soldiers Marker
As World War II unfolded in Europe, no mountain and winter warfare military divisions existed in the United States. Charles Minot Dole, Chairman of the National Ski Patrol System convinced the U.S. War Department of the urgency of establishing a division of mountain soldiers, citing Germany has the finest trained and equipped specialized winter and mountain troops of any army in the world, which took over four years to organize.
Camp Hale emerged as the first U.S. training center exclusively for mountain and winter warfare. Military maneuvers in the Eagle River Valley, Sawatch, Elk, Gore, and Tenmile/Mosquito ranges tested the stamina of soldiers and suitability of their military-issue gear. Sleeping bags, tents, clothing, boots, climbing ropes, and vehicles not developed for high-altitude needed constant improvisation by soldiers for their own survival.
In 1945, orders to fight an entrenched German army in the Italian Apennine Mountains put to the test the 10th Mountain Division's men and gear in brutal combat. The 10th soldiers succeeded in defeating the Germans and ending the war in Italy. Their training at Camp
this page online
Erected by Forest Service, United States Department of Agriculture.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Parks & Recreational Areas • Sports • War, World II. A significant historical year for this entry is 1945.
Location. 39° 26.176′ N, 106° 19.517′ W. Marker is near Red Cliff, Colorado, in Eagle County. It can be reached from the intersection of 10th Mountain Division Memorial Highway (U.S. 24 at milepost 160) and Camp Hale Spur 1B. The marker is in the Camp Hale-Continental Divide National Monument interpretive wayside just east of US Highway 24. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Red Cliff CO 81649, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in the Colorado High Rockies. It is also in the American Mountain West. Globally, it is in North America, the Rocky Mountains, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere.
Other nearby markers. At least 8
2. Marker detail: Rope Climbing & Snowmobiles
[left] Rope climbing maneuvers with military packs and rifles above Camp Hale, 1943; present day Walking Mountains Science Center students ascend the same climbing wall. [right] Burdell S. "Bud" Winter, 85th Company, tests an early-model snowmobile; present day snowmobile.
Also see . . . 10th Mountain Division (Wikipedia).
Excerpt: In September 1940, Charles Minot "Minnie" Dole was able to present his case to General George C. Marshall, the Army Chief of Staff, who agreed with Dole's assessment, deciding to create a "Mountain" unit for fighting in harsh terrain. The Ski Patrol would assist in its training. On 8 December 1941, the day after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and the subsequent American entry into World War II, the army activated its first mountain unit, the(Submitted on December 19, 2025, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)87th Mountain Infantry Battalion. It was the first mountain warfare unit in U.S. military history. The 87th trained in harsh conditions, including Mount Rainier's 14,411-foot peak, throughout 1942 as more recruits were brought in to form the division. Initial training was conducted by Olympian Rolf Monsen. A new garrison was built for the division in central Colorado at Camp Hale, at an elevation of 9,200 feet above sea level.
3. Marker detail: Winter Sports[left] 85th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Battalion Medics breaking trail on seven-foot-long hickory skis, ca 1944. [right] snowboarder breaking trail on crampons in the Sawatch Mountain range.
4. Marker detail: Hiking
[left] 10th Mountain soldiers trained for mountain warfare with 90-pound rucksacks filled with military and survival gear. [right] Present day hikers follow in the 10th Mountain soldiers' footsteps on The Continental Divide National Scenic Trail and Colorado Trail.
5. Marker detail: Camping
[left] Training in winter survival skills, 10th Mountain soldiers tested tents made of cotton with reversible olive-drab or white sides for best camouflage. [right] Present day light-weight tent camping site.
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, July 27, 2025
6. Your Path Here Intersects with 10th Mountain Soldiers Marker
Looking northeast from the wayside near US Highway 24. This is the leftmost of two historical markers in this interpretive kiosk. Camp Hale-Continental Divide National Monument is in the background.
Credits. This page was last revised on December 19, 2025. It was originally submitted on December 17, 2025, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 139 times since then and 96 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on December 19, 2025, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.
