Granby Highlands-Trails

The Granby Highlands-Trails project involves a 743-acre conservation easement on the old Horn Ranch, also referred to as the former Shorefox Property, north of the intersection of US 40 and 34. The easement was donated in part by the Town of Granby, with significant funding by the Open Lands, Rivers, and Trails Fund (OLRT) of Grand County, Colorado Parks & Wildlife, Devil’s Thumb Ranch, Mountain Parks Electric, the Gates Family Foundation, the Hughes Charitable Trust, Country ACE Hardware, the Grand County Wilderness Group, and many other private donors.

The Town of Granby has owned the property since 2016, selling sections of it to Sun Communities and committing to conserving the remaining acreage. The property has seen many proposed uses over the years since it was a cattle ranch with the Horn Family. None of the proposed ideas panned out, until now. The conservation easement covers 743 acres of open space and two river miles of the Colorado River, which shapes the border of the Town’s property on the east with the Miller Ranch, and on the south with Sun Communities.

Of the 743 conserved acres, just under half will be restricted from public access, to help further protect local wildlife as well as the beautiful viewshed around Granby. The remaining area is allowed to have up to 10 miles of nonmotorized trails to provide the residents and visitors to Granby a place to get out and enjoy the landscape without having to go too far from town. The Granby Highlands-Trails Conservation Easement is home to a variety of species of wildlife that roam throughout Grand County, including big game, predators, and migratory birds. The property also borders Bureau of Land Management land, as well as other private holdings. Conserving the property guarantees more contiguous open space and migratory pathways for all the resident species.