Private Water Menu
Telluride Outside’s Private Water Menu offers elevated fishing opportunities for anglers who wish to pursue trophy trout in solitude. Among the finest fishing properties in Colorado, our exclusive leases are guided only by Telluride Outside, rested between fishing days to ensure a high quality angling opportunity for our clients. Each ranch offers unique water, from the rambling runs of Lightenburger to the tumbling pocketwater of Roaring Fork and the small stream magic of Gurley Creek. Enjoy your special day on the river. Solitude is priceless.
Lightenburger Ranch
Among the most naturally gifted stretches of the entire Dolores, the Lightenburger Ranch offers a combination of quality fishing and picturebook ambience that makes for pleasant mid-winter dreams. Fish grow to great size on Lightenburger Ranch. Boulder-studded pools, low-gradient runs and luxurious riffles provide superb trout habitat. Pale morning dun mayflies headline a season-long parade of aquatic insect hatches. Hoppers and crawdads are so abundant, however, that many of our guides favor large foam-bodied dry flies and streamers over match-the-hatch imitations.
Additional rod fee: $120
Akin Ranch
Akin Ranch features almost 1.5 miles of enticing natural pools, generous riffles and long dry fly slicks. Notable for variety, Akin is home to resident rainbows, brown trout and cutthroats in addition to heavy cuttbows and browns that migrate seasonally from McPhee reservoir through the property. This is an excellent destination for anglers of any ability. Beginners enjoy sizable pools for practicing techniques with the chance to hook multiple fish. Experienced fishers have the opportunity to walk upriver all day without seeing another angler or running out of room.
Additional rod fee: $120
Roundtree Ranch
Roundtree is the largest private ranch on the Upper Dolores, divided into two sections each nearly one mile in length and split around the confluence of the West Fork and Main Fork Dolores, one hour SW from Telluride. Exceptional in character and beauty, Roundtree's wild trout population is frequently intersected by lake-run fish that investigate the river from nearby McPhee Reservoir. Gentle runs and riffles are punctuated by rock pockets and root balls throughout the ranch. Ancient cottonwoods cast long shadows against the rolling banks. From the terrestrial fishing of mid-summer to streamer action in the fall, Roundtree offers enticing opportunities for potentially large trout throughout the season.
Additional rod fee: $120
Rico River Ranch
Located just one mile downstream from the town of Rico, Rico River Ranch offers a terrific private water destination that is reachable on both half and full day guided trips from Telluride. A half mile of the Upper Dolores River passes through Rico River Ranch, bordered by a remote section on Forest Service property downstream. This is classic Upper Dolores pocketwater with a handful of long, glassy runs in the mix. The fish population includes rainbows, browns, brook trout and the occasional native cutthroat offering colorful variety.
Additional rod fee: $120
Cascabel
Crown jewel of the San Miguel, Cascabel offers 3 contiguous miles of private water in Norwood Canyon. This is the best water on the San Miguel, notable for its structure, habitat variety, fish size and profusion of aquatic insects. No longer operated as a fishing club, our lease at Cascabel offers anglers the opportunity to fish a section of the San Miguel that has been protected for more than 30 years.
Additional Rod fee: $150
Gurley Creek
The western cornerstone of the San Juan Mountains is a spectacular pyramid called Lone Cone, rising above Wright's Mesa and casting long shadows from Beaver Park to Norwood. At its foot lies a 300-acre reservoir called Gurley, into which flows a single tributary carrying water from the surrounding foothills. Our Gurley Creek lease offers more than 1/2 mile of highly structured small stream water with the potential for catching many large fish. Dry flies, nymphs and streamers are all effective. When the fish are in, we enjoy a high success rate for large fish under almost any water conditions. This is a "right place, right time" fishing opportunity for late spring and early summer.
Additional Rod fee: $120
Sawmill
Perhaps the finest natural trout habitat on the Dolores, the lovely West Fork winds through this enchanted valley in a series of mule shoes, cobbled runs and braided channels structured with boulders and root balls. This is small water of the highest quality, a great place to fish a fiberglass 3-weight with an attractor fly for large trout. Mid-summer is the apex season at Sawmill when water levels are ideal and profuse hatches put the fish in high gear.
Additional rod fee: $120
Cowley Ranch
Cowley offers a great opportunity to fish highly structured water on the San Miguel just 20 minutes by car from Telluride, ideal for half day trips. Long considered one of the best fishing sections on the river, Cowley Ranch boasts an impressive aquatic insect population with abundant summer hatches including caddis, PMDs, yellow sally stoneflies, blue winged olives and even a few green drakes. A great classroom for anglers of every ability, Cowley Ranch is a favorite among our guides.
Additional rod fee: $120