In The NoCo

Breckenridge is the latest mountain town to become a ‘dark sky’ community. Will Colorado see a wave of astro-tourism?

By In The NoCo,

Rachel Cohen, Brad Turner, Ariel Lavery, Erin O'Toole

Published September 9, 2025 at 5:35 AM MDT

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A night sky shows the milky way and a falling star streaking toward the horizon. — The number of Colorado towns with 'dark sky' status is growing. Breckenridge just became the first ski resort town to attain dark sky status.

Visitors from around the globe head to Breckenridge for hiking in the summer, and skiing and snowboarding in the winter.

And soon, they might also visit to take in the town’s crystal-clear views of the night sky.

Breckenridge recently became the first ski resort town in Colorado to become a certified dark sky community. The designation comes from DarkSky International, which pushes to limit light pollution. Small towns like Paonia and Westcliffe, and remote national parks like Great Sand Dunes, already have the DarkSky seal of approval.

But how does a busy resort like Breckenridge cut down on light pollution? And are ski resorts the next frontier for the dark sky movement?

To find out, Erin O’Toole talked with Rachel Cohen of the Mountain West News Bureau, which KUNC is a part of. Rachel recently published a story about the growth of dark sky communities in Colorado.

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In The NoCo

KUNC's In The NoCo is a daily slice of stories, news, people and issues. It's a window to the communities along the Colorado Rocky Mountains. The show brings context and insight to the stories of the day, often elevating unheard voices in the process. And because life in Northern Colorado is a balance of work and play, we celebrate the lighter side of things here, too.

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Rachel Cohen

Rachel Cohen is the Mountain West News Bureau reporter for KUNC. She covers topics most important to the Western region. She spent five years at Boise State Public Radio, where she reported from Twin Falls and the Sun Valley area, and shared stories about the environment and public health.

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Brad Turner

Brad Turner is an executive producer in KUNC's newsroom. He manages the podcast team that makes In The NoCo, which also airs weekdays in Morning Edition and All Things Considered. His work as a podcaster and journalist has appeared on NPR's Weekend Edition, NPR Music, the PBS Newshour, Colorado Public Radio, MTV Online, the Denver Post, Boulder's Daily Camera, and the Longmont Times-Call.

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Ariel Lavery

Ariel Lavery grew up in Louisville, Colorado and has returned to the Front Range after spending over 25 years moving around the country. She co-created the podcast Middle of Everywhere for WKMS, Murray State University’s NPR member station, and won Public Media Journalism awards in every season she produced for Middle of Everywhere. Her most recent series project is "The Burn Scar", published with The Modern West podcast. In it, she chronicles two years of her family’s financial and emotional struggle following the loss of her childhood home in the Marshall Fire.

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Erin O'Toole

As the host of KUNC’s news program and podcast In The NoCo, I work closely with our producers and reporters to bring context and diverse perspectives to the important issues of the day. Northern Colorado is such a diverse and growing region, brimming with history, culture, music, education, civic engagement, and amazing outdoor recreation. I love finding the stories and voices that reflect what makes NoCo such an extraordinary place to live.

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