Telemark Talk / Telemark Tips Forum

In 1943, the 10th Light Division was formed, renamed as the better known 10th Mountain Division the following year. It became known for training and operations involving winter snow and mountainous terrain, with training at Camp Hale just north of Tennessee Pass north of Leadville, CO. The camp sat around 9,200' with adjoining roads and trails to peaks over 11,700. Though since decommissioned and torn down, the grounds and some structures remain including memorials.

Some of the veterans went on to spur Colorado's ski resort industry, and a well-known hut system (among other things) is named after them. If you visit Ski Cooper, the sight is a short drive from there.

In addition to history and the hut system, there's also plenty of BC skiing to be had in the area.

Map
Camp Hale https://caltopo.com/m/QRH9



The site
https://unwritten-record.blogs.archives ... ld-war-ii/
has a nice write up, and a slider photo of the Camp Hale location then and now.

Uncover Colorado has a longer write up on them.
https://www.uncovercolorado.com/10th-mo ... -colorado/



As does Snowbrains.
https://snowbrains.com/10th-mountain-di ... -mountain/


Plans were made in 2015 to restore the river's original meandering course which was straitened for Camp Hale.
https://sitesed.cde.state.co.us/pluginf ... vision.pdf

An earlier mountain division

@TallGrass, Super Marando one-upped you whilst simultaneously diverging from the topic in just the first reply.

Do you want me to Operation Gunnerside? Cuz this thread is gonna make me Operation Gunnerside

Been in and out of Camp Hale many times, winter and summer. There is TMTA hut access thru there to the Jackal, FH and Vance's; and Camp Hale is a good ending trailhead for a tour starting at Vail Pass, or for heading south over Tennessee Pass, into the southern parts of the hut system west of Leadville, and over Hagerman Pass to the Aspen area huts. At the south end of the site is the old B slope training run, and Ski Cooper is just a few miles away by ski tour; the Colorado Trail also goes thru.
Crossing the river in the winter at the trailhead is sometimes very difficult if there's no snow bridge, and the long detour to the north to cross the old access bridge near the visitor center is quite tiring.
The empty cantonment area in the valley floor is perfectly flat, popular with dogsledders, and with good dispersed camping in the summer, albeit sometimes full of huge flocks of grazing sheep.

?

Royal Marine Karaoke in Norway. Britain has a new arctic commando base in Finnmark so they will have a permanent rotation there for at least the next ten years. Not far from the Norway-Russia border.

Again, not 10th specific but here's a look at what they were learning at Camp Hale. This is a page records the training of a member of the FSSF. I don't think the 10th had or has jump wings. The FSSF got their jump training on Montana. 2 jumps earned the wings. Later in the war it only took 1 jump.

The King of Norway visited the Norwegian ski troops on the Russian border this week-