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Crystal Meadows Ranch Colorado by watercolour artist Linda Young
Crystal Meadows Ranch circa 1970
Sometimes we travel to magical places that leave a deep impression in our very being; such was a place I lived in the 1970's called Crystal Meadows Ranch. I wanted to create a painting from those thoughts and experiences of a day gone by when life's pace was slower. Done totally from memory with no photo references, the following are my recollections for my recent work titled, "Crystal Meadows Ranch circa 1970".
"Located at the base of the McClure Pass and the Paonia Dam, the “ranch” had several cabins, a small grocery store and gas pump, a large meadow and a stream called the North Fork of the Gunnison River. It was also along the dirt road that led to the Kebler Pass which if traveled in the summer would take you to Crested Butte; in the winter, it was totally closed.
It was a great place to go fishing for native browns and see beaver actively working their dams. I learned to fly fish here and loved to sneak upon an inviting ripple or an overhanging branch to challenge a cutthroat or brown. Deer and elk were daily visitors and brought their babies with them to feed in the tender grass of the meadows. There coyote could be heard at night howling and calling to each other feasting on the scent of a fresh kill. On the rocky hill above the ranch herds of elk could be seen bedding down and at night, if you took a spot light and shined it there, their numerous golden eyes glowed in the dark.
Crystal Meadows was adjacent to the Medicine Bow National Forest. There were several narrow rickety wooden bridges used to get from one place to another on the single lane dirt road. I rode my horse across the bridges and were sometimes a challenge but with persistence and patience with the horse I'd get across quickly. If anyone has ever traveled into the back country of the wilderness areas in Colorado, you know how treacherous those mountain roads can be.
I don't know if this place is still open; it was sold several times and I haven't found any recent information on it. If you ever get a chance, visit this part of Colorado; it's absolutelyl God's Country."
"Located at the base of the McClure Pass and the Paonia Dam, the “ranch” had several cabins, a small grocery store and gas pump, a large meadow and a stream called the North Fork of the Gunnison River. It was also along the dirt road that led to the Kebler Pass which if traveled in the summer would take you to Crested Butte; in the winter, it was totally closed.
It was a great place to go fishing for native browns and see beaver actively working their dams. I learned to fly fish here and loved to sneak upon an inviting ripple or an overhanging branch to challenge a cutthroat or brown. Deer and elk were daily visitors and brought their babies with them to feed in the tender grass of the meadows. There coyote could be heard at night howling and calling to each other feasting on the scent of a fresh kill. On the rocky hill above the ranch herds of elk could be seen bedding down and at night, if you took a spot light and shined it there, their numerous golden eyes glowed in the dark.
Crystal Meadows was adjacent to the Medicine Bow National Forest. There were several narrow rickety wooden bridges used to get from one place to another on the single lane dirt road. I rode my horse across the bridges and were sometimes a challenge but with persistence and patience with the horse I'd get across quickly. If anyone has ever traveled into the back country of the wilderness areas in Colorado, you know how treacherous those mountain roads can be.
I don't know if this place is still open; it was sold several times and I haven't found any recent information on it. If you ever get a chance, visit this part of Colorado; it's absolutelyl God's Country."
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