Construction Started on Del Monte Ditch In-Stream Diversion and Headgate

With funding from the Colorado Water Conservation Board Water Plan Grant program, and matching funds from the Chaffee County Common Ground Fund and the Hutchinson Ranch LLC, construction has started on the UAWP project to improve the irrigation infrastructure on the Del Monte Ditch south of Poncha Springs, Colorado.

With an in-stream diversion in Poncha Creek, a tributary of the Arkansas River in Chaffee County, the Del Monte Ditch supplies the Hutchinson Ranch, an 800 acre working cattle ranch established in 1868 and located between the towns of Salida and Poncha Springs. The entire ranch is protected in perpetuity by conservation easements held by the Central Colorado Conservancy and the Colorado Cattlemen's Agricultural Land Trust.

Phase 1 of this project includes rebuilding the diversion to reduce needed maintenance, piping a section of the ditch to address sedimentation issues, replacing the damaged headgate, and rebuilding the wastewater chute. We have also installed a new flume to measure the irrigation water more accurately. Overall, the project will reduce the amount of time the rancher needs to spend maintaining this infrastructure, and most importantly, the improvements will help the Hutchinson Ranch access their full water right.

We anticipate finishing the project by the end of May 2026. You can also get married on the ranch, or buy grass fed beef from the Hutchinsons - https://www.hutchranchsalida.com

HydroGeo Designs has been contracted to complete the work. Photos Copyright Nathan Ward.