Town dads claim that half of the 10 million vehicles traveling through the Eisenhower and Johnson tunnels each year stop in Silverthorne for gas, potty breaks, fast food and discount shopping. Efforts to fight a “quick stop” image are beginning to distinguish the little town of 3,500 from Dillon, Breckenridge and Frisco. Silverthorne, which celebrates its 39th birthday this month, was created as a “tent city” for workers building the Dillon Dam in the ’60s, tunnels in the ’70s, and, lately, the construction that supports Summit County’s ski industry. Today residents pay no property tax because sales taxes generate almost 60 percent of the town’s operating budget. The town now has a 45-mile bike system, free year-round bus service and a new elementary school. Anglers will add to the $1.7 million Great Outdoors Colorado grant to maintain and preserve the “Blue River Experience” next weekend, during the Blue River Festival. Teams will compete in fly casting (and golf scrambles) expected to raise more than $30,000 to enhance and maintain the river corridor. For information, contact events coordinator Maggie Butler at 970-262-7390.
Getting around: Silverthorne, Exit 205 on Interstate 70, lies 68 miles west of Denver and 8 miles downhill from the western exit of the Eisenhower Tunnel.
