Entry No. 188 — the Denver file — filed under: abandoned-resort
Interlaken Resort Ruins & Dexter Cabin
In 1883 a Leadville mining millionaire named James Dexter bought a luxury resort on the south shore of Twin Lakes, and when the dam ruined the waterline, everything just stayed. Walk the flat Colorado Trail 2.2 miles and the door to his cabin is unlocked: walnut woodwork, a wood-paneled soaking tub, a glass cupola you can climb for a 360 of the Sawatch. Out back stands the resort's pride, a hexagonal outhouse with a private door for each seat.
The story
In 1883, James V. Dexter—a Leadville mining millionaire born at sea who collected rare coins and Chinese porcelain—bought a modest lakeside hotel on the south shore of Twin Lakes and expanded it into Interlaken, a high-altitude getaway for Gilded Age elites. Guests arrived by train to Granite before taking a horse-drawn stage wagon to float on steam yachts, dance in a pavilion hung with Civil War oil paintings, and stay in log quarters backed by a 16-horse barn and a hexagonal outhouse featuring six private doors for six individual rooms. In 1895, Dexter built his own vacation home on the shore, styled after a New England ship captain's house and trimmed with eight hardwoods—including walnut and birdseye maple—complete with a glass-enclosed second-story cupola for 360-degree views of the Sawatch Range.
The resort's downfall wasn't a fire or a collapse in silver, but water engineering. Mid-20th-century dam projects enlarged Twin Lakes into a reservoir to supply water to the Front Range, raising the waterline and threatening to drown the complex. In the 1970s, federal agencies moved Dexter’s cabin and the hotel roughly 150 feet uphill to higher ground, leaving original shoreline artifacts submerged underwater. Instead of locking the site behind a velvet rope, caretakers stabilized the buildings, unlocked the cabin door, and left a Victorian ghost resort standing quietly in the pines.
What it's like
You reach the ruins via a flat, shaded 2.2-mile walk along the Colorado Trail from County Road 25, or by paddling a kayak across Twin Lakes from the north shore. The vibe is quiet and unpoliced: weathered grey timber structures scattered through pine trees with no gate, no ticket booth, and no ranger standing guard. You can turn the latch on Dexter’s unlocked front door, walk across raw wooden floorboards, admire the wood-paneled soaking tub, and climb the stairs into the glass cupola over the lake. Leave everything exactly as you found it, check local fire restrictions before visiting, and pair the walk with a stop at the Twin Lakes General Store on your way out.
The move: Hike the flat 2.2 miles (or paddle straight across the lake) to Dexter's cabin, climb into the cupola together, and split a thermos over the view the millionaires abandoned.
📍 Before you go The trailhead sits at the end of dirt CR 25 off CO-82 just south of the Twin Lakes dam; passenger cars handle it in good conditions. The route follows the Colorado Trail along the south shore, flat but gently rolling, about 4.7 miles round trip, or you can kayak or paddleboard straight across from the north shore. The cabin door is simply unlocked with no gate or booking, and the site is a Forest Service historic district, so leave everything in place. In winter the road and trail snow over and it becomes a snowshoe or ski tour; pair the walk with the Twin Lakes general store on the way out.
- 📍 Twin Lakes (Leadville)
- 💸 Free
- ⚡ Up for anything
- 🌗 Outdoors
Where: Interlaken Trailhead, County Rd 25 off CO-82 (south of Twin Lakes Dam), Twin Lakes, CO 81251
Hours: Added 2026-06-11 — confirm current hours before you go.
Pair it with
- The Legendary Silver Dollar Saloon — Drive 12 miles north to Leadville for a post-hike drink where 1880s silver barons and Doc Holliday drank at the very same bar counter.
- House With the Eye Museum — Stay in Leadville to compare Dexter’s luxury cabin with an 1879 Victorian home built around a strange stained-glass eye in its front gable.
- Comanche Drive-In Theatre — Head 18 miles south toward Buena Vista to trade 19th-century mountain ruins for night-sky movies at the nation's highest-elevation drive-in.
Good to know
Is there an admission fee or booking required to enter Dexter Cabin?
No. The site sits within a Forest Service historic district along the Colorado Trail and is free and open to the public year-round without tickets or reservations.
How long is the trail to Interlaken and is it difficult?
The round-trip hike is about 4.7 miles (2.2 miles each way) along the south shore of Twin Lakes. The route follows a flat, gently rolling section of the Colorado Trail with minimal elevation gain.
Can you visit the Interlaken ruins in the winter?
Yes, but County Road 25 and the trail snow over, turning the route into a cross-country ski or snowshoe tour.
Are you allowed to camp inside the historic resort grounds?
No. Camping is prohibited directly at the Interlaken Historic Resort to protect the structures, though established public campgrounds exist elsewhere around Twin Lakes.
Plan a visit & invite your people →
Further reading: hikingwalking.com · coloradoencyclopedia.org · leadvilletwinlakes.com · usbr.gov
last checked: 2026-06-11