Bear Ranch sweetens land exchange deal for trail users across Kebler Pass

Latest land trade proposal would throw in access to Jumbo Mountain near Paonia

After watching hopes fade last year of a land trade that would have consolidated two halves of an expansive property between Kebler Pass Road and Paonia Reservoir, Bear Ranch representatives came to the Gunnison Board of County Commissioners looking for an endorsement of a new, much sweeter deal on Tuesday, September 6.

The new offer, presented by former Crested Butte mayor Tom Glass, now of the Western Land Group, puts coveted public access to Jumbo Mountain, just outside the town of Paonia, on the table. That is in addition to the 911-acre Sapinero parcel near Blue Mesa and 80 acres in the middle of Dinosaur National Monument that were part of the proposed land legislation last year.
In exchange, Bear Ranch owner and billionaire Bill Koch still wants more than 1,800 acres of public land that bisects his exclusive mountain property bordering the Ragged Mountains all to himself.
The first round of legislation aimed at consolidating the ranch died last year after its congressional sponsor, John Salazar, failed to win reelection. But the legislation’s death may not have been as dramatic had it not been for former High Country News publisher Ed Marston, who has characterized the land exchange as Koch’s taking of public land without offering enough to the public in return.
That perception was addressed late in the meeting Tuesday, when Trails Commissioner Joellen Fonken pointed out that the land trade is contingent upon the removal of all existing public access along Deep Creek—once the improvements laid out in the agreement are completed—and the precedent that would set.
“The Trails Commission has not voted on this…you’re setting a precedent if the Trails Commission recommends that a trail easement go away that has been public domain forever. I want that on the table,” Fonken said. “Are we going to start setting ourselves up for other people coming? — because I can think of some other places.”
County manager Matthew Birnie suggested that loss of public access was why Bear Ranch and Koch had come back with such a strong proposal the second time around, “because [the public] is giving up public access. It’s not one that has been used a lot and there isn’t a trailhead there, per se. But it is a beautiful trail.
“I would say that it’s not just the fundamental question but it’s the big picture of access and only if you think Bear Ranch has gone far enough on the other side with access and the work they’ve done, should you consider it,” continued Birnie.
Glass offered some of the responsibility for the new proposal to Marston, who wasn’t at the meeting, saying he “deserves credit for raising the issues about the North Fork Valley and I’ll say with all honesty that we didn’t have enough in it for the North Fork Valley before.” By addressing those concerns, he said, the trade would make for an “incredible travel management opportunity for everyone.”
Glass also made it clear that Bear Ranch would be willing to give whatever it would take to get the support of the commissioners, as long as public access to the Raggeds Wilderness from Deep Creek goes away.
Already, Bear Ranch has put a purchase option on the $3.2 million, 20-acre Buck Creek Ranch, which borders Bureau of Land Management lands on Jumbo Mountain. The proposal says “This parcel could be transferred to the BLM or Town of Paonia and provide permanent public access, including a trailhead and new trails to connect to the existing trail system.”
According to information provided by Glass, Jumbo Mountain already has about “125 miles of existing roads and trails,” and is a popular place for locals and tourists to hike, bike, run and ride horses, ATVs and motorcycles just east of town.
Glass told the commissioners, who wondered who would foot the bill for all of the improvements, “We will pay for it all if that is what it comes down to and we’ll put that in any agreement.”
But he suggested that by leaving the funding details open in the wording of the proposal, either the Forest Service or a local government would be able to apply for grant money, which Bear Ranch would match, to make the improvements.
“If the county didn’t apply for it then we’d just do it ourselves,” Glass said. “But you could get a really nice trailhead.”
Assistant county manager Marlene Crosby said it sounded a lot like the circumstances surrounding Hartman Rocks 20 years ago, with a high-quality recreational destination so close to town.
Trails commissioner Kay Peterson pointed out that, after the proposal’s predecessor got so much pressure, “In order to make this deal successful it has to have a broad range of benefits to people. If it doesn’t have a great benefit, why would people want to have it? So that’s what we’ve done: looked at what’s best for the broadest range of people [who will use the public access].”
Glass added, “There is no comparison between the quality of access that would be provided at Buck Creek Ranch and the quality of access that is being provided by the existing [trail along Deep Creek].”
So county staff will get working on an agreement to support the proposal, assuming all the beneficial contingencies were included. Meanwhile, Glass said he would start trying to get an audience with members of Colorado’s congressional delegation, so the proposal might find its way into law.