Basalt, named for the basaltic rock formation on Basalt Mountain, began as a railroad town and was incorporated in 1901. Basalt is a Statutory Town in Eagle and Pitkin counties in Colorado. Surrounded by wilderness, Basalt sits at the gate of the Fryingpan Valley along the Gold Medal waters of the Roaring Fork and Fryingpan Rivers in the White River National Forest at an elevation of 6,611 feet.
Basalt is located at 39°22′6″N 107°2′18″W, along State Highway 82, and at the confluence of the Fryingpan and Roaring Fork Rivers.
In 2018, the median price of a single-family home was $1.6 million. The population within the town limits is 4,412; however, the Basalt and midvalley community is much larger due to several adjacent unincorporated areas in both Eagle and Pitkin counties, including El Jebel, Emma, Old Snowmass and the upper Fryingpan River Valley.
