Writing on the Walls: Take a Mural Tour in Steamboat Springs

Downtown Steamboat Springs doesn’t just tell its story through historic storefronts or the curve of the Yampa River. It tells it on the walls. Once bare brick, cement underpasses and forgotten alleys, these surfaces have become canvases where the community gathers, paints and leaves behind pieces of itself.

The transformation began with ambitious projects like “Yampa River Flow,” a 130-foot mural by local artist Jeff Roth along Lincoln Avenue. While Jeff designed and executed the piece, the work quickly became larger than a single artist. Neighbors stopped to offer encouragement, families shared their own river stories and the mural evolved into something rooted in the community’s daily rhythms.

That spirit of collaboration reached another level with “The Yampa is Wild,” a mural on the side of the historic Ambulance Barn. Designed by artist and printmaker Jill Bergman, the project was intentionally built around participation. Volunteers of all ages helped fill in shapes of fish, wildlife and flowing water, tracing the Yampa’s path across the wall. By the time the mural was complete, it wasn’t simply a depiction of a river – it was a shared expression of what the river means to the town.

Other spaces were reclaimed in similar ways. The Fish Creek underpass, long dismissed as a graffiti-covered eyesore, became the site of “One Love Steamboat” in 2023. Students, teachers and local artists worked side by side to layer color and symbols of unity across the concrete. What had once been avoided as a neglected corner was reborn as a bright landmark that residents now seek out with pride.

Not every mural involved dozens of brushes, but even solo works grew from shared roots. When ARCY, an internationally known muralist, came to Steamboat to paint “The Cowgirl,” the imagery drew on local ranching history and community input. The result – a bold, 50-foot portrait – connected the town’s Western heritage to its present identity, anchoring a piece of Steamboat’s story in vibrant color.

Taken together, these projects show how murals in Steamboat Springs are not simply about art on walls. They are about process: neighbors painting side by side, students leaving their first brushstrokes on public space and artists weaving local history and natural landscapes into their designs. Each mural tells a story, but more importantly, each one carries the memory of how it came to life.

To find a walking tour of Steamboat’s murals (and a map), visit https://www.steamboatcreates.org/murals/.