Camp Hale was a

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

training facility in the

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, constructed in 1942 for what became the 10th Mountain Division. Located in central

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

between Red Cliff and

Leadville The City of Leadville is a statutory city that is the county seat, the most populous community, and the only incorporated municipality in Lake County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 2,602 at the 2010 census and an estimated ...

in the Eagle River valley, it was named for General Irving Hale and was at an

elevation The elevation of a geographic location is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface (see Geodetic datum § Vert ...

of above

sea level Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardised g ...

Onslow S. Rolfe Onslow S. Rolfe (January 16, 1895 – January 29, 1985) was a career officer in the United States Army. He attained the rank of brigadier general during World War II as commander of the Mountain Training Center at Camp Hale, Colorado, and the 7 ...

, who had developed mountain warfare techniques as commander of the 87th Mountain Infantry Regiment, was selected to command Camp Hale. Soldiers were trained in

mountain climbing Mountaineering or alpinism, is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending tall mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas. Indoor climbing, sport climbing, a ...

, Alpine and Nordic

skiing Skiing is the use of skis to glide on snow. Variations of purpose include basic transport, a recreational activity, or a competitive winter sport. Many types of competitive skiing events are recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IO ...

, cold-weather survival, as well as various weapons and ordnance. When it was in full operation, approximately 15,000 soldiers were housed there. The creation of an elite ski corps was a national effort, with assistance from the National Association of Ski Patrol, local ski clubs, and Hollywood. Enough men were recruited to create three army regiments, which were deployed after training. Camp Hale was decommissioned in November 1945. On October 12, 2022,

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Joe Biden designated Camp Hale and a noncontiguous nearby part of the

Tenmile Range The Tenmile Range is a mountain range in U.S. state of Colorado. The range is an extension of the Mosquito Range which is part of the Rocky Mountains. The two ranges are effectively the same range. They are split only by the Continental Divide a ...

as Camp Hale — Continental Divide National Monument. It comprises , which will be managed by the

White River National Forest White River National Forest is a United States National Forest, National Forest in northwest Colorado. It is named after the White River (Green River), White River that passes through its northern section. It is the most visited National Forest ...

unit of the

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. Conversion of the site to a monument will not affect any permits held by the neighboring ski resorts and the monument will continue to support a wide range of motorized and non-motorized recreation opportunities.

World War II

Construction

The armed ski corps in the U.S. was based on the

ski warfare Ski warfare is the use of ski-equipped troops in war. History Early Ski warfare is first recorded by the Danish historian Saxo Grammaticus in the 13th century. During the Battle of Oslo in 1161, Norwegian troops used skis for reconnoi ...

tactics of the

Finnish army The Finnish Army (Finnish: ''Maavoimat'', Swedish: ''Armén'') is the land forces branch of the Finnish Defence Forces. The Finnish Army is divided into six branches: the infantry (which includes armoured units), field artillery, anti-aircraft ...

during the

Winter War The Winter War,, sv, Vinterkriget, rus, Зи́мняя война́, r=Zimnyaya voyna. The names Soviet–Finnish War 1939–1940 (russian: link=no, Сове́тско-финская война́ 1939–1940) and Soviet–Finland War 1 ...

(1939–1940). Early in the effort, 8,000 skiers and outdoorsmen were recruited.Pennington, Bill
"The Legacy of Soldiers on Skis"
''The New York Times'', 10 March 2006. Retrieved 30 January 2010. The camp was built to accommodate the effort at a cost of $30 million. The

War Department War Department may refer to: * War Department (United Kingdom) * United States Department of War (1789–1947) See also * War Office, a former department of the British Government * Ministry of defence * Ministry of War * Ministry of Defence * D ...

chose the location at because the

Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad The Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad , often shortened to ''Rio Grande'', D&RG or D&RGW, formerly the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad, was an American Class I railroad company. The railroad started as a narrow-gauge line running south from De ...

stopped at Pando rail station and historically the snowfall in the Tennessee Pass area was plentiful. Construction of the camp began in the spring of 1942 and finished seven months later; during that period Highway 24 was moved, a sewage system installed to prevent pollution in the nearby town of Red Cliff, and the meadow drained. Additionally, the nearby town of

to the south, the only source of recreation for the trainees, was persuaded to change its moral character, perceived "to be on a rather low plane." The camp included mess halls, infirmaries, a ski shop, administrative offices, a movie theater, and stables for livestock."Camp Hale History"
. Metropolitan State College of Denver, 2004. Retrieved 30 January 2010. White painted barracks for 15,000 soldiers were built straight lines on the mountain meadow, but when the first trainees of the 87th Regiment of the 10th Light Division, quickly renamed the 10th Mountain Division, arrived in the winter of 1942 only a small portion of barracks were filled. The War Department needed to train more skiers in the elite fighting ski corps and asked the American Ski Patrol Association to contact ski racing clubs, ski schools, and local patrol units, nationwide—each applicant had to supply three letters of recommendation.Shelton, 45–46

Recruitment

After 1942 problems in communication caused by the war slowed the recruitment effort. However, that year,

Darryl Zanuck Darryl Francis Zanuck (September 5, 1902December 22, 1979) was an American film producer and studio executive; he earlier contributed stories for films starting in the silent era. He played a major part in the Hollywood studio system as one of ...

released ''

Sun Valley Serenade ''Sun Valley Serenade'' is a 1941 musical film directed by H. Bruce Humberstone and starring Sonja Henie, John Payne, Glenn Miller, Milton Berle, and Lynn Bari. It features the Glenn Miller Orchestra as well as dancing by the Nicholas Brothers. ...

'', starring

Sonja Henie Sonja Henie (8 April 1912 – 12 October 1969) was a Norway, Norwegian figure skating, figure skater and film star. She was a three-time List of Olympic medalists in figure skating, Olympic champion (Figure skating at the 1928 Winter Olympics, ...

and featuring the

Glenn Miller Orchestra Glenn Miller and His Orchestra was an American swing dance band formed by Glenn Miller in 1938. Arranged around a clarinet and tenor saxophone playing melody, and three other saxophones playing harmony, the band became the most popular and com ...

, and filmed on location in Sun Valley. The movie was a hit and the Hollywood effort helped to interest trainees in the ski corps. Two more wartime movies were made, each filmed at Camp Hale, featuring the white-clad elite troops—''Mountain Fighters'' in 1943 and ''I Love a Soldier'' in 1944. The ski corps was featured on national magazine covers and popular radio shows. Although the effort brought in recruits to add the 86th and 85th Regiments for a full division, recruiters realized not enough skiers existed to fill the new regiments; thereafter, efforts were made to bring in rugged outdoorsmen of all types with the slogan that the 10th Mountain Division was made up of "college boys to cowboys".Shelton, 54–55 In addition, 200 women from the

Women's Army Corps The Women's Army Corps (WAC) was the women's branch of the United States Army. It was created as an Auxiliaries, auxiliary unit, the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC) on 15 May 1942 and converted to an active duty status in the Army of the U ...

were brought in for administrative support.

Training

By 1943, Camp Hale had as many as 14,000 men in training. Conditions in the camp were harsh: the altitude required acclimation and the shallow valley created polluted inversion layers, as the primary energy source was

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed when dea ...

. Recreation (outside of skiing) was non-existent because of the camp's high mountain isolation, which prevented even the

USO The United Service Organizations Inc. (USO) is an American nonprofit-charitable corporation that provides live entertainment, such as comedians, actors and musicians, social facilities, and other programs to members of the United States Armed F ...

from visiting, and many of the non-skiing trainees hated skiing. Trainees were taught to ski at Cooper Hill by ski instructors, brought from the ski-areas such as Sun Valley and Waterville Valley. Located three miles (5 km) south of the camp, Cooper Hill had on-site barracks for the instructors and a newly built

T-bar lift A surface lift is a type of cable transport for snow sports in which skiers and snowboarders remain on the ground as they are pulled uphill. While they were once prevalent, they have been overtaken in popularity by higher-capacity and higher-co ...

for the trainees. Military use of Camp Hale included the 10th Mountain Division, commanded by Lloyd E. Jones, the 38th Regimental Combat Team, the Norwegian-American 99th Infantry Battalion (Separate), and soldiers from

Fort Carson Fort Carson is a United States Army post located directly south of Colorado Springs in El Paso, Pueblo, Fremont, and Huerfano counties, Colorado, United States. The developed portion of Fort Carson is located near the City of Colorado Springs ...

conducting mountain and winter warfare training exercises. Trainees were taught skiing, mountain climbing, snow survival skills (such as building

snow cave A snow cave is a shelter constructed from snow by certain animals in the wild, human mountain climbers, winter recreational enthusiasts, and winter survivalists. It has thermal properties similar to an igloo and is particularly effective at pro ...

s), and winter combat. Also present at Camp Hale was the 620th Engineer General Service Company, a unit composed of suspected unreliable German-Americans or soldiers with suspected pro-National Socialist beliefs. Camp Hale was active for just three years; it was deactivated in November 1945 and the 10th Mountain Division moved to

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

Prisoner of war camp

Camp Hale held "about 400 of the most incorrigible members of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel's

Afrika Corps The Afrika Korps or German Africa Corps (, }; DAK) was the German expeditionary force in Africa during the North African Campaign of World War II. First sent as a holding force to shore up the Italian defense of its African colonies, the f ...

". On 15 February 1944, guard Private Dale Maple of the 620th Engineer General Service Unit drove away with German Sergeants Heinrich Kikillus and Erhard Schwichtenberg. They made it to Mexico before being arrested and turned over to U.S. authorities. In an unrelated scandal, in March 1944, five WACs were charged with exchanging notes with the prisoners. Three received sentences of four to six months and were dishonorably discharged. The army used POWs to dismantle most of the structures in 1945.

Late 20th century

Tibetans were secretly trained at Camp Hale by the

CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian intelligence agency, foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gat ...

. "By February 1963, four groups totaling 135 Tibetans (ten more than originally planned) had arrived at Hale." This was "... the first wave of Tibetans." The site was chosen because of the similarities of the terrain with the

Himalayan Plateau The Tibetan Plateau (, also known as the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau or the Qing–Zang Plateau () or as the Himalayan Plateau in India, is a vast elevated plateau located at the intersection of Central Asia, Central, South Asia, South and East Asi ...

. The

Tibetans The Tibetan people (; ) are an East Asian ethnic group native to Tibet. Their current population is estimated to be around 6.7 million. In addition to the majority living in Tibet Autonomous Region of China, significant numbers of Tibetans liv ...

nicknamed the camp "Dhumra", meaning "The Garden". The CIA circulated a story in the local press that Camp Hale was to be the site of atomic tests and would be a high security zone. Until the camp was closed in 1964, the entire area was cordoned off and its perimeter patrolled by

military police Military police (MP) are law enforcement agencies connected with, or part of, the military of a state. In wartime operations, the military police may support the main fighting force with force protection, convoy security, screening, rear recon ...

. In all, around 259 Tibetans were trained at Camp Hale, and after it was dismantled, no Tibetans remained in Colorado. From 1958 to 1960,

Anthony Poshepny Anthony Alexander Poshepny (September 18, 1924 – June 27, 2003), known as Tony Poe, was a CIA Paramilitary Operations Officer in what became the Special Activities Division (renamed Special Activities Center in 2016). He was known for h ...

trained various special missions teams, including Tibetan

Kham Kham (; ) is one of the three traditional Tibetan regions, the others being Amdo in the northeast, and Ü-Tsang in central Tibet. The original residents of Kham are called Khampas (), and were governed locally by chieftains and monasteries. Kham ...

bas and

Hui The Hui people ( zh, c=, p=Huízú, w=Hui2-tsu2, Xiao'erjing: , dng, Хуэйзў, ) are an East Asian ethnoreligious group predominantly composed of Chinese-speaking adherents of Islam. They are distributed throughout China, mainly in the n ...

Muslims, for operations in China against the communist government. In 1965, Camp Hale was dismantled and the land was deeded to the

. Since 1974, the area has become a youth development training center. An Eagle County non-profit organization, SOS Outreach, has used the site to expose disadvantaged youth to many of the same outdoor challenges experienced by the 10th Mountain Division. In 1962,

Pete Seibert Peter Werner Seibert (August 7, 1924 – July 15, 2002) was an American skier and the founder of Vail Ski Resort in Colorado. He was inducted into the Colorado Ski (and Snowboard) Hall of Fame in 1980. A Massachusetts native, Seibert gra ...

, who was among the soldiers who trained at Camp Hale and then returned to the area after the war, founded the

Vail Ski Resort Vail Ski Resort is a ski resort in the western United States, located near the town of Vail in Eagle County, Colorado. At , it is the third-largest single-mountain ski resort in the U.S., behind Big Sky and Park City, featuring seven bowls and i ...

nearby. In July and August 1985 the valley was the site of the North American Pathfinder camporee with 16,129 attending.

Current status

In 2003, the

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers , colors = , anniversaries = 16 June (Organization Day) , battles = , battles_label = Wars , website = , commander1 = ...

began a cleanup effort to remove some of the unexploded ordnance at the site in conjunction with several other government agencies. This effort is still ongoing. Most of the remnants of Camp Hale are located in the

. There are camping grounds where overnight camping is permitted on this former army base. Several informational plaques are located throughout the area. These plaques contain historical information about camp construction, the 99th Infantry Battalion, ski training, rock climbing/alpine training, the motor pool area, CIA training, and camp entertainment.

National Monument

In 2019, the Camp Hale site was proposed to be the first National Historic Landscape, under the Colorado Outdoor Recreation & Economy (CORE) Act, which would designate 28,728 acres for preservation. Congressman

Joe Neguse Joseph D. Neguse ( ; born May 13, 1984) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the U.S. representative for Colorado's 2nd congressional district since 2019. The district is based in Boulder and includes many of Denver's northwestern s ...

hosted Agriculture Secretary

Tom Vilsack Thomas James Vilsack (; born December 13, 1950) is an American politician serving as the 32nd United States Secretary of Agriculture in the Biden administration. He previously served in the role from 2009 to 2017 during the Obama administration. ...

, Colorado Governor

Jared Polis Jared Schutz Polis (; born May 12, 1975) is an American politician, entrepreneur, businessman, and philanthropist, serving as the 43rd governor of Colorado since January 2019. He served one term on the Colorado State Board of Education from 20 ...

, and U.S. Senators Michael Bennet and

John Hickenlooper John Wright Hickenlooper Jr. (; born February 7, 1952) is an American politician serving as the junior United States senator from Colorado since 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 42nd governor of Colorado from 2011 to 20 ...

at Camp Hale on August 22, 2022, in support of the bill. With the bill stalled in Congress, on October 12, 2022, President Biden visited the site with the same five leaders and used the

Antiquities Act The Antiquities Act of 1906 (, , ), is an act that was passed by the United States Congress and signed into law by Theodore Roosevelt on June 8, 1906. This law gives the President of the United States the authority to, by presidential procla ...

to declare the site a

national monument A national monument is a monument constructed in order to commemorate something of importance to national heritage, such as a country's founding, independence, war, or the life and death of a historical figure. The term may also refer to a spec ...

, the 53,804-acre Camp Hale – Continental Divide National Monument. While the designation had support of area mayors and county commissioners and "drew a flurry of praise from political, social and conservation groups", various conservative politicians spoke out in opposition to the new national monument. A survey had found 86% of Coloradans supported national monument protections for Colorado recreation and conservation areas. The monument includes approximately 28,684 acres in the Camp Hale area and 25,210 acres in the Tenmile area. The Tenmile area was originally proposed in the CORE Act to be recreation management area and

wilderness area Wilderness or wildlands (usually in the plural), are natural environments on Earth that have not been significantly modified by human activity or any nonurbanized land not under extensive agricultural cultivation. The term has traditionally re ...

. The

Continental Divide Trail The Continental Divide National Scenic Trail (in short Continental Divide Trail (CDT)) is a United States National Scenic Trail with a length measured by the Continental Divide Trail Coalition of between the U.S. border with Chihuahua, Mexico a ...

passes through both sections for approximately 20 miles.

References

Sources

"Veterans Closer than Brothers"
''The Denver Post''. 29 July 2007. Retrieved 30 January 2010. * Cowan, Jay
Big Pete's Last Drive
''The Aspen Times''. 17 February 2007. Retrieved 30 January 2010. *Govan, Thomas B., Captain

The Army Ground Forces Study, No. 28. 1946. Retrieved 1 January 2011. *Govan, Thomas B., Captain

The Army Ground Forces Study, No. 23. 1946. Retrieved 1 January 2011. * Shelton, Peter. ''Climb to Conquer: The Untold Story of WWII's 10th Mountain Division''. Scribner, 2003. .

External links

* U.S. Forest Service
Camp Hale-Continental Divide National Monument information
*

Rocky Mountain PBS Rocky Mountain PBS is a network of PBS member television stations serving the U.S. state of Colorado. Headquartered in Denver, it is operated by Rocky Mountain Public Media, Inc., a non-profit organization which holds the licenses for most of the ...

Colorado Experience TV program (fall 2020): Camp Hale (YouTube video; closed captioning available)
*

Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) is the principal department of the Colorado state government responsible for public health and environment Environment most often refers to: __NOTOC__ * Natural environment, all liv ...

- background, studies
risk assessment/management of leftover WWII munitions
*

History Colorado History Colorado is a historical society that was established in 1879 as the State Historical Society of Colorado, also known as the Colorado Historical Society. History Colorado is a 501(c)(3) organization and an agency of the State of Colorado un ...

-
online collection of 10th Mountain Division / Camp Hale artifacts

Metropolitan State College of Denver
– website about Camp Hale

– CIA's involvement in the Tibetan resistance {{Authority control Buildings and structures in Eagle County, Colorado Closed training facilities of the United States Army Military history of Colorado Military facilities on the National Register of Historic Places in Colorado Mountain warfare training installations National Register of Historic Places in Eagle County, Colorado United States Forest Service National Monuments National Monuments in Colorado Protected areas of Eagle County, Colorado