Markus Ranch
Palmer Land Trust and the Markus family have placed 755 acres of the Markus Ranch under conservation easement. 280 acres were placed under easement in 2009. An additional 300 acres were placed under easement in 2010 thanks to the support of Great Outdoors Colorado and the Mary K. Chapman Foundation. A third phase closed in 2011, protecting an additional 175 acres. The remainder of the ranch is slated to be protected in 2012.
The Markus Ranch (elevation 9,000’) rests at the foot of Pikes Peak, the inspiration for Katherine Lee Bates’ America the Beautiful. The ranch is the last unprotected property in the Pikes Peak Conservation Corridor (“PPCC”), an undeveloped block of public and private lands that frame the north slope of ‘America’s Mountain’ between Woodland Park and Divide, Colorado. After touring the PPCC in 2002, Colorado Attorney General Ken Salazar noted that the area is “one of the crown jewels” of open space preservation in the state.
The 1,027-acre property (755 acres of which have been protected to date) provides a pastoral setting for dramatic, sweeping views of Pikes Peak from US Highway 24 and Teller County Road 28. US Highway 24 is the major east-west transportation corridor serving metropolitan Colorado Springs.
Approximately 6,250 acres of the PPCC have been placed under conservation easement through the combined efforts of spirited ranchers, non-profit organizations, local and county officials, the Colorado Division of Wildlife, and the Palmer Land Trust. Many of the 6,250 acres that have already been protected were funded by Great Outdoors Colorado; they are especially important for the large, resident elk population in the area.
Once the final portion of the Markus Ranch is conserved, all large properties in the PPCC project area will be protected! More important, the PPCC is not an isolated block of protected lands. It is contiguous to the Pike National Forest and the 12,000-acre Mueller State Park and Dome Rock State Wildlife Area. The Mueller Ranch (now known as Mueller State Park and Dome Rock State Wildlife Area) was purchased by The Nature Conservancy in 1979 and remains one of Colorado’s signature conservation projects. Land protection efforts around Mueller State Park & Dome Rock have continued since that time, despite intense subdivision pressure in Teller County. The Markus Ranch is one of the larger ranches protected in this area.
