History of High Lonesome Hut
Andrew Miller grew up in his family’s ski lodge, where ski vacations meant staying in pine paneled rooms and eating family style at long tables - meeting new ski buddies at Millers Idlewild Inn in Winter Park. As a teenager he visited European huts, similar to cabins being built in the Colorado mountains. He began a search for a site for a cabin, finding the Lonesome Hut property in 1995. Family and friends jumped into the foray, a mad summer of road building and remote construction - fed by an old Chevy one ton named Frankenstein - resulted in the cabin being opened (in a pretty rustic state) for Christmas. Only trouble was, the frenetic construction schedule had left the cabin without a winter supply of firewood. Numerous boot packed trails led to new stumps through a huge snow winter as Miller carried log after log to feed the hungry pot belly stove.

For the past 27 years, the cabin has hosted 23 blind skiers from England (and several other not-as-large groups from Winter Park’s National Center for the Disabled), several Middle Park High School science classes on overnight trips, a group of at risk teenage boys from the Lost and Found School in Denver who built a neat trail named after their school - while begging me to let them use the chain saw "just once!", a few marriage proposals and many other events I know, or should not know about. Lonesome Hut LLC is now a group effort, my partners in this enterprise lend their energy to a refuge we hope you will enjoy.

Access to HLH
The Hut is at the end of an easily traversed trail which may be traveled by any non-motorized method. Dogs are welcome. One group comes in yearly by dog sled. Others bring their horses, a corral is available. You will climb about 600 vertical feet on the way in while traveling well below the hazards of higher terrain. The Hut sits at 9,300 feet.

Surrounding terrain will entertain back country travelers of every ability. Many High Lonesome visitors are first time hut users. The Hut is accessible to anyone in good physical condition and is an excellent playground for children.

Hut Facilities
The High Lonesome Hut provides extremely comfortable lodging in the wild.

The three story hut has a wood stove, firewood, running water with an indoor flush toilet, a shower, hot and cold running water, solar electricity, games, mattresses and kitchen utensils (pots, pans and settings for twelve). You provide....sleeping bags and food!

The basement of the hut has a wood stove and plenty of firewood and a bunk bed. The main floor consists of a kitchen, dining area, bathroom, guitar, CD player and a small sleeping area. There are two bedrooms in the loft.

You'll find about 5 commercial tubes at the cabin and a nearby tubing hill. In summer there is a creek close to the cabin for wading.

Rates and Services
Rates and booking information can be found at the 10th Mountain Hut Association website, Huts.org
Gear Transport - If you want to "go light", we will provide baggage transport.
* $170 for a ONE WAY trip winter or summer
Weight limit per trip in the winter is 400 pounds, and must fit in the snowmobile box which measures 30 inches wide, 8 feet long and five feet tall. Summer loads must fit in a pickup bed, 4 feet by 8 feet stacked about five feet tall. Taking a second trip will double the fee. We'll light the fire and warm the hut for your arrival.


Location
The High Lonesome Hut is located east of US 40 between Fraser and Tabernash, near Meadow Creek Reservoir, about 65 miles west of Denver and 15 minutes west of Winter Park. From US Hwy 40, drive County Road 83 to CR 84 to the Trailhead Parking area (4 miles). The trail to the hut is 2.5 miles long. A detailed map is included in your reservation packet.

Photo Gallery
Visit the Photo Gallery for a collection of photos from experiences at the High Lonesome Hut.