One of Western Colorado’s Quiet Corners
There is a point east of Montrose where the high desert begins to morph into something unique. The irrigated ground of the Uncompahgre Valley falls behind, traffic gets lighter, and the road follows the Cimarron River toward increasingly rugged country. Here, the Cimarron Range rises sharply from the valley, forming one of Western Colorado’s more dramatic and less celebrated mountain landscapes.
There is no major town at the center of the Cimarron. No resort village announcing that you have arrived. Ranches, cabins and old homesteads sit along the river and beneath the mountains, while public land climbs up on either side. For a place relatively close to a city like Montrose with its wide range of food offerings and a fast growing commercial airport, the Cimarron Range can feel remarkably removed from modern life.
The Cimarron sits at a transitional habitat zone. Lower elevations carry sagebrush, pinyon juniper and pockets of agricultural ground. Cottonwoods and willows follow the river. But climbing from the valley floor and oak brush and aspen begin to take over, eventually giving way to spruce, fir and high alpine ridges.
The mountains rise thousands of feet above the working ranches below. That elevation creates very different conditions within relatively short distances, affecting growing seasons, snow, grazing and access. It also creates a landscape where private acreage can feel connected to a much larger piece of country.
Irrigated meadows, cattle, old barns, fences and ditches still give portions of the Cimarron an authentic agricultural character. Other properties lean more toward recreation, hunting and seasonal use, particularly as the country climbs toward the National Forest land. Elk and mule deer move through a landscape of private land and the higher timbered slopes of the US Forrest Service.
Water and elevation play a large role in how these properties function. A ranch along the lower Cimarron can be very different from one tucked into a higher side drainage only a few miles away. That variety is what makes the valley so charming and authentic feeling.
The Cimarron’s location may be one of its strongest attributes. Montrose provides an airport, supplies, services and the conveniences of a regional population center. Ridgway and Ouray are not far and offer their unique amenities like hot springs and summer concerts. Yet much of the valley retains the feeling of being well outside of civilization.
There are plenty of remote places in the West. There are plenty of beautiful places near growing communities. Finding both in the same landscape is becoming more difficult.
The Cimarron still manages it somehow. There is no single overlook that explains the valley and no town square at its center. You understand it gradually and only with closer inspection like following the river upstream, passing a few hay meadows beneath the peaks and watching the country unfold in front of you around turn.
For a valley sitting so close to some of Western Colorado’s better-known places, the Cimarron has managed to remain one of its quieter corners.