In its own valley the Blue River is tamed, trapped between Dillon Reservoir upstream and Green Mountain Reservoir downstream. Wildlife biologists and streamflow experts with the State worked to improve streamflows in the 1970s and 1980s, but there just wasn’t a lot of water to work with. Instead, a local ranching family found the solution in their backyard.
Slate Creek Ranch sits in the Blue River Valley in Summit County, Colorado. Still a working ranch, its qualities are postcard Colorado: the Blue River cuts through the property and it abuts Eagles Nest Wilderness Area. Jeannette and Howard Moser have owned the ranch since 1981, when they inherited the property from a long-time friend. They still live there, and their river has more water because of them.
In the mid-2000s, the Mosers were cutting back on their operations. An upper field where they used to run cattle was becoming impracticable to work, so they sold a portion of that land to the United States Forest Service (later included in the wilderness area). Understanding the Colorado water law principle of “use it or lose it”, the Mosers knew they needed to find a new use for the water that had traditionally irrigated that meadow, otherwise the rights would extinguish. But having seen water development in their area, Dillon Reservoir to the south, and Green Mountain Reservoir to the north, they saw the value in keeping their water local and in streams they knew.
Through their Water Commissioner, Scott Hummer, they got in touch with water lawyers and water engineers, and finally, the Colorado Water Trust. CWT did what it was formed to do: It raised money from a variety sources to purchase the Mosers’ upper field irrigation right and donated the water right to the State for environmental purposes.
With that, the Mosers bolstered flows on fourteen miles of Boulder Creek and the Blue River.
