Category: History

(Photo: The original Red River Ski Area Chalet burned in the 1960s and was replaced by the current Chalet. Notice the Poma lift at left. Photo courtesy Snappy Smith at Red River Dreams.) If you are a fan of Red River and the beautiful mountains that cradle this historic mining town that has become the…

Red River’s history is filled with tales of living in the high country during the winter months. From the early days when the town was founded in 1895 to the first 20 years of the 21st century, the stories are colorful and sometimes humorous accounts of survival and perseverance, testimonies to the rigors of life…

Following the end of WW II, the Tony and Tillie Simion took over management of the Monte Vista Lodge, a two-story log building a half a block from Tony’s saloon. Big Tony died of Black Lung at the Monte Vista in 1952. Tillie sold the hotel in 1958. In her book Tillie: An American Life…

The first skiers in Red River were mail carriers around the late 1890s. In winter months, they traveled overland across the mountains from Raton to Red River City and other gold camp destinations. Using hand-made wooden skis that measured ten to twelve feet long, which were used to keep the wearer from falling into snow-covered…

Nordic skiing is the oldest form of snow skiing on record. In Scandinavian countries it dates back 6,000 years. The Sami people of that snowy part of the world may have been the first to use wooden “sticks” tied to their feet to travel the frozen county, looking for wild game for the community tables.…