YAMPA HEADWATERS RANCH
Yampa, Routt County, Colorado
$7,200,000
610± Acres
INTRODUCTION
Yampa Headwaters Ranch, Routt County, Colorado, consists of 610± acres with two live creeks and multiple stocked ponds. Very unique for the ranch marketplace, highlighted by an Army Corps of Engineers-permitted wetland mitigation bank with over 200 wetland credits available to serve wetland impacts and growth in Northwest Colorado.
Perfectly located between Steamboat Springs and the Vail Valley, this ranch’s diverse landscape includes a 100+ acre irrigated hay meadow, over 200 acres of wetland and riparian bordering Brinker and Chimney Creeks, and upland acreage of rolling sagebrush topography. A fly fisherman’s dream, Brinker and Chimney Creeks, headwaters of the Yampa River, meander through the ranch for over 2.5 miles and provide opportunities for rainbow and brown trout species. Two of the largest stocked ponds, Big Pond and Acord Pond, are fed by live water and stocked with rainbow, and the occasional brown trout has migrated in. Due to the live water and extensive riparian acreage, Yampa Headwaters Ranch is a year-round destination for waterfowl, including mallards, teal, wood duck, and geese, and in recent years, two pairs of sandhill cranes have nested and raised their young on the ranch. The ranch is home to mule deer, antelope, and the occasional elk herd migrating through.
Ranch headquarters with views of the Flattops Wilderness includes a custom barn with a two-bedroom, 1.5-bath apartment, 3’ x 14’ bay doors, and a walk-in cooler with a game-cleaning area ready for your big game pursuits. Multiple postcard locations exist for future building sites, including a secluded cabin at Look Pond.
Yampa Headwaters Ranch’s wetland mitigation bank was permitted in 2003 and has transferred wetland credits throughout Northwest Colorado for unavoidable wetland impacts from Vail and Beaver Creek to Steamboat Springs and west to Craig and Meeker. Yampa Headwaters Ranch benefits from the traditional ag economics of cattle grazing and hay production. However, the wetland mitigation bank future credit sales brands this ranch impossible to reproduce in today’s ranch market and worth your consideration.
In today’s ranch market, it would be a tall order to find comparable acreage with equivalent assets, recreational attributes, trout habitat, investment grade, waters rights portfolio, improvements, and proximity to world-class resort areas. 1
Yampa Headwaters Ranch | Yampa, Colorado
QUICK FACTS
• Ideally located between Steamboat Springs and Vail
• Headwaters to the Yampa River
• Brinker and Chimney Creek and multiple stocked ponds
• Approved Army Corps Engineers and EPA
Wetland Mitigation Bank
• Custom barn with two-bedroom apartment
• Strong portfolio of senior water rights
• Additional offsite reservoir water rights and onsite storage rights
• Borders BLM public lands
• Adjacent to Flattops Wilderness Area
• Year-round access to State Highway 131
• Great long term investment potential
• Never before on the market, 610± acres that includes two live water creeks
Yampa Headwaters Ranch | Yampa, Colorado
• 610± deeded acres
• Borders 300± acres of BLM
The very diverse 610± acres includes a 255± acre permited wetland mitigation bank riparian area, 100+ acre irrigated hay meadow, and upland acreage.
Yampa Headwaters Ranch | Yampa, Colorado
SCENIC VISTAS
Ideally located between the resort markets of Steamboat Springs and Vail, Yampa Headwaters Ranch is centrally positioned in the recreational center of the universe. It offers tremendous on-site recreational attributes and the ability to drive your ATV to the Flattops Wilderness area, which has significant big game and outdoor pursuits.
Yampa Headwaters Ranch | Yampa, Colorado
IMPROVEMENTS
The custom heated barn features three expansive 14-foot bay doors, concrete floors with drains, and a turnkey apartment with two bedrooms and 1.5 bathrooms. The furnished apartment includes a wood-burning fireplace and french doors opening to the covered porch and fire pit area. The barn has a large built-in workbench and a big game cleaning area complete with a walk-in cooler, game lift, and laundry facility. The barn is the perfect home base to enjoy all the recreational elements of the ranch and surrounding Flattops Wilderness Area.
Yampa Headwaters Ranch | Yampa, Colorado
RECREATION
It is hard to improve the central location of Yampa Headwaters Ranch, which is close to the world-class ski resorts of Steamboat Springs, Vail, and Beaver Creek. Fishing, hunting, and all outdoor pursuits are right out your front door. It will be a daily challenge to decide whether to remain on the ranch or venture into the surrounding millions of acres of public lands.
HUNTING | WILDLIFE
The ranch lies in Colorado Game Management Unit 26 and is eligible for landowner preference (LOP) tags. The site includes reliable waterfowl hunting in the Pacific Flyway, and the ranch is a haven for ducks since Brinker Creek remains open water and free of ice throughout the winter season. Mule deer and antelope live on the ranch, and the occasional elk travel through the acreage. The ranch is the perfect base camp with a full cleaning station, mechanical game lift, and walk-in cooler for big game pursuits in the adjacent world, renowned 200,000plus acre Flattops Wilderness area, and nearby USFS lands.
FISHING
Yampa Headwaters Ranch includes Brinker and Chimney Creeks, headwaters of the Yampa River. Brinker Creek is over 1.5± miles on the deeded acres, and Chimney Creek is 1.15± miles. The ranch borders the State of Colorado Fish Hatchery on the western boundary, and Brinker Creek is the recipient of and benefits from escaped rainbow trout from the hatchery. Chimney Creek has multiple beaver dams and a lower gradient stream flow habitat, primarily consisting of large brown trout. The ranch includes three stocked ponds: Big Pond, Acord Pond, and Look Pond. Overall, the ranch presents a unique and diverse fishing opportunity for live and flatwater fishing. Nearby fishing opportunities exist within the Flattops Wilderness area for mountain creek brook trout, additional large public reservoirs, and the upper Colorado River is only a 30-minute drive from the ranch with multiple public launches perfect for drift boats or rafts.
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Yampa Headwaters Ranch | Yampa, Colorado
INCOME OPPORTUNITY
In addition to traditional hay and cattle revenue, Yampa Headwaters Ranch is an Army Corps of Engineers and EPA-permitted wetland mitigation bank on 255± acres of the 610± acres. The wetland mitigation bank was permitted in 2003 and annually sells wetland credits within the Yampa, Colorado, and Eagle Rivers watersheds.
For more information about the wetland mitigation bank, please see www.frpwetlandbank.com.
• City of Steamboat Springs • City of Craig
• Colorado Department of Transportation • Colorado Parks and Wildlife • ColoWyo Coal Company
Eagle County
Eagle County Regional Airport
• Eagle Valley Clean Energy
• King Soopers
• Lafarge North America
• Mount Werner Water District
• Northwest Colorado Visiting Nurses Association
• Peabody Energy
• Pioneer Medical Center
• Rio Blanco County
• Routt County
• Steamboat Ski and Resort
• Steamboat Springs School District
• Town of Eagle
• Town of Gypsum
• Town of Hayden
• Traer Creek Metro District
• Tri State Generation and Transmission
• Yampa Valley Housing Authority
• UC Health-Yampa Valley Medical Center
• Union Pacific Railroad Co.
• Upper Yampa Water Conservancy District
• Vail Resorts
• Xcel Energy
• *Private Developers
Yampa Headwaters Ranch | Yampa, Colorado
CLIMATE
Yampa, Colorado, boasts a dry climate with over 300 sunny days annually, perfect for outdoor activities. Winters are cold with substantial snow, rarely dipping below zero, while summers remain pleasant in the 70s°F. The area receives about 17 inches of mainly snowfall annually, enhancing its charm for nature enthusiasts.
Climate charts courtesy of https://www.city-data.com/city/Yampa-Colorado.html
Yampa Headwaters Ranch | Yampa, Colorado
LOCATION
Yampa Headwaters Ranch sits approximately three miles south of Yampa, Colorado, on State Highway 131. Steamboat Springs is a 30-minute drive, and Vail/Beaver Creek is a 40-minute drive.
GETTING THERE
From Steamboat Springs, Colorado, drive south on State Highway 131 to Yampa, and 3 miles south of Yampa and west on Routt County Road 7C.
AIRPORT SERVICES
The ranch is serviced by Eagle County Airport EGE with a 9,000’ towered runway or Yampa Valley Regional Airport HDN with a 10,000’ runway. Both Airports are served by National Airlines. Denver International Airport is a 2.5± hour drive from the ranch.
www.fayranches.com | 800.238.8616 | info@fayranches.com
Yampa Headwaters Ranch | Yampa, Colorado
WATER RIGHTS
Yampa Headwaters Ranch includes a diverse portfolio of senior water rights consisting of 9.86 CFS (cubic feet per second) of late 1880s irrigation rights, 225 irrigation storage right shares in Yamcolo and Stillwater reservoirs (offsite), and over 20 acre/feet of decreed onsite storage rights.
MINERAL RIGHTS
All mineral rights appurtenant to the property and owned by the seller will convey to the buyer at closing. Mineral rights are not guaranteed. It is suggested that the buyer conduct a mineral search with a title company.
CONSERVATION | STEWARDSHIP
In 2011, the ranch partnered with The Nature Conservancy to protect the conservation values on the 610± acres, including 255± wetland mitigation bank acres. In addition to the existing improved barn with a two-bedroom apartment, the ranch has retained, and the conservation easement allows for the following additional development rights: unrestricted owner residence with detached caretaker home, additional barn with apartment, unimproved cabin, and private airstrip on the upper hay meadow.
Each of us at Fay loves the land and wants to see it remain a productive agricultural ground and a quality fish and wildlife habitat. Through promoting thoughtful land stewardship, Fay has guided owners toward a legacy of conserving wideopen spaces, enhancing and creating fisheries and wildlife habitats, and implementing sustainable agricultural operations. Fay is proud to say that since our company began in 1992, our clients’ conservation ethics and land-use practices have significantly enhanced our work landscape.
Yampa Headwaters Ranch | Yampa, Colorado
SUMMARY
In today’s ranch market, Yampa Headwaters Ranch presents a unique opportunity. It would be a challenge to find a comparable ranch with proximity to world-class ski resorts and tremendous recreational attributes, including onsite live water and investment grade. The ranch enjoys traditional agriculture economics but is significantly enhanced by the 255± acre permitted wetland mitigation bank. Since 2003, the ranch has been selling wetland credits, and the inventory of remaining credits and projected growth in northwest Colorado, this ranch benefits from enhanced revenue due to the demand for wetland credits and limited competition in the wetland market. In addition, the future market is further enhanced due to limited alternatives for wetland mitigation and projected costs of wetland credits in northwest Colorado. Yampa Headwaters Ranch is the perfect canvas for the next owner who wants to enjoy a private recreational retreat, build their family compound, and include an expanded environmental business venture.
Yampa Headwaters Ranch | Yampa, Colorado
Please contact Ren Martyn at (970) 846-3118 | rmartyn@fayranches.com to schedule a showing. This is an exclusive listing. An agent from Fay must be present at all showings, unless otherwise noted or other arrangements are made. To view other properties, fly fishing properties, and sporting ranches that we have listed, please visit our web page at www.fayranches.com.
$3,361
$7,200,000 Cash
Conventional Financing 1031 Exchange
Offer is subject to errors, omissions, prior sale, change or withdrawal without notice, and approval of purchase by owner. Information regarding land classification, carrying capacities, maps, etc., is intended only as a general guideline and has been provided by the owners and other sources deemed reliable, but the accuracy cannot be guaranteed. Prospective purchasers are encouraged to research the information to their own satisfaction.
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