YOUR AD HERE »

Ranch parcel in northwest Routt County protected by conservation easement

A section of the Smith Ranch in the Slater Park area of northwestern Routt County that is surrounded by U.S. Forest Service land entered into a conservation easement in late 2024 through the Colorado Cattlemen’s Agricultural Land Trust.
Amy Smith/Courtesy photo

A section of a family ranch property in the Slater Park area in northwest Routt County that is surrounded by U.S. Forest Service land is the latest county parcel to enter a conservation easement through nonprofit Colorado Cattlemen’s Agricultural Land Trust.

The nonprofit organization worked with the Smith family to conserve 760 acres on the Slater Park parcel of the Smith Ranch. The easement continues a commitment to conservation with funding provided by the county’s Purchase of Development Rights program, said Karina Puikkonen, CCALT communications manager. The program uses revenue from property taxes to help purchase conservation easements from willing landowners to permanently conserve land from development.

“The property is unique in that it is surrounded by the Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest on all sides,” Puikkonen said. “It features open ranchland with montane meadows and mixed conifer and aspen woodlands with Slater Creek flowing northward directly through the property. Slater Park is a contiguous landscape of conserved private and public lands, and this piece was a very important addition.”



Puikkonen said the conservation easement purchase agreement finalized in late 2024 adds to 80,330 acres conserved through the organization in Routt County. Since the initiation of the PDR program in 1997, Routt County has helped fund the purchase of conservation easements on more than 68,000 acres at a cost of more than $32 million, Puikkonen said. The nonprofit organization has partnered with hundreds of ranching families in the protection of more than 800,000 acres statewide, she said.

“Conservation of the (Slater Park) property is a significant accomplishment, helping achieve the landowners’ long-term vision for the property and building on CCALT and PDR’s aligned goal to protect our Western heritage through the conservation of agricultural land,” said Courtney Bennett, CCALT senior conservation manager.



The Smith family began ranching in Routt County in 1924 and purchased the Slater Park property in 1935 with the land used for sheep and cattle operations. The Smiths irrigate the property for summer and fall pasture to graze sheep, cattle and horses, and the water rights on Slater and Adams creeks are now tied to the land through the conservation easement.

“Our primary interest in a conservation easement is to preserve the Western working landscape and forever conserve the open space, agricultural productivity and scenic qualities of Slater Park,” landowner Leland Smith said. “It is our desire to have it remain the same for generations to come, for our family and for the public. It is a treasure and a beautiful spot in Routt County.”

Funding for the PDR program is derived from a 1.5 mill levy in county property taxes approved by voters through 2035.

Landowner Sally Smith, center, with great-granddaughters Izzy and Ellie Dishman, pose in 2023 at the Smith Ranch property in Slater Park in northwest Routt County. The Smith family participated in the Purchase of Development Rights program to protect 760 acres of the ranchland in a conservation easement.
Ashley Dishman/Courtesy photo

Support Local Journalism

Support Local Journalism

Readers around Steamboat and Routt County make the Steamboat Pilot & Today’s work possible. Your financial contribution supports our efforts to deliver quality, locally relevant journalism.

Now more than ever, your support is critical to help us keep our community informed about the evolving coronavirus pandemic and the impact it is having locally. Every contribution, however large or small, will make a difference.

Each donation will be used exclusively for the development and creation of increased news coverage.