A couple years ago, Colorado Governor Jared Polis took to social media to share a few fun facts about the marina lighthouse on Dillon Reservoir. According to Polis, not only is this the only lighthouse in Colorado, but it’s also the highest-elevation lighthouse in the United States – that said, it may also be the highest lighthouse in the world.

Sitting at 9,017 feet, the Frisco Bay lighthouse is found on the southwestern end of Dillon Reservoir, which is located in Summit County.

According to an article posted on ibiblio, the lighthouse reaches a height of 26 feet, with a lantern placed on top of an 18-foot-tall wooden tower. This article also notes that while the lighthouse was briefly removed during a construction project at the marina in 2019, it was returned after that project was completed.

By definition, a lighthouse is a lighted structure that serves as an aid for navigation on a body of water, typically serving as a reference point that can be used to help boaters determine their location in darkness and assist boaters in avoiding hazards. With Dillon Marina considered to be the world’s highest deep-water marina, it’s no surprise that there’s a lighthouse on site.

Tracking down when the Dillon Marina lighthouse was first constructed has proven tricky, but the reservoir itself was completed in 1963, with this reservoir used as part of the Denver water supply.

The debate of whether or not this lighthouse is actually the highest on the planet continues, too, with Guinness World Records claiming the highest-elevation lighthouse on Earth is Rheinquelle Lighthouse in Switzerland, found at an elevation of 6,713 feet above sea level – more than 2,000 feet lower that the Frisco Bay Lighthouse.

Next time you’re in Summit County and spot this large, white structure on the area’s biggest lake, know that it’s unique as Colorado’s only lighthouse and also as the highest-elevation lighthouse in the country – probably the highest-elevation in the world, too.