Lazy 3 Ranch consists of 912 acres situated at the confluence of a creek and a major highway intersection outside of the Town of Gunnison. Approximately seven and a half miles of Cochetopa Creek and one mile of Tomichi Creek run through the property. It is also bordered by US Highway 50 and State Highway 114. The property has significant senior water rights, irrigating over half of the ranch, and is integral to wildlife habitat and connectivity. In fact, Lazy 3 Ranch is located within five miles of twenty other conservation easements conserving 7,410 acres, and entirety of the property is located within critical occupied habitat for Gunnison sage-grouse.
The ranch is composed of two historic ranches, LeValley Ranch and Vader Ranch, which were acquired in the 1990s by the Esty Ranch and then in 2022 by the current landowner. Both ranches were established in the early 1880s and have been in productive agricultural operations for over 140 years. The property is currently leased to a local family for hay production and their cow-calf operation.
Project partners include Gunnison Ranchland Conservation Legacy, Natural Resources Conservation Service, and Gunnison Valley Land Preservation Board.