Crested Butte lies at the north end of the Gunnison Valley in southwestern Colorado. It is 231 miles southwest of Denver and 28 miles from the Gunnison Crested Butte Airport. Surrounded by the Gunnison National Forest, Rocky Mountain Peaks and rolling ranchland, Crested Butte occupies a gentle valley at 8,885 feet. The town of Mt. Crested Butte is three miles north at the base of the ski resort and has an elevation of 9,350 feet.