We’re not going too far outside Denver in this week’s Back 40, but that’s part of the appeal of Sedalia, Colorado, a small foothills community that serves as a gateway to everything the Front Range has to offer. From gold medal fly fishing on the South Platte to horseback riding through Pike National Forest, Haley and Willy discuss why this unique corridor between Sedalia and Deckers remains one of Colorado’s best-kept secrets. With sweeping views, abundant wildlife, authentic ranch country, and easy access to Denver, it’s a place that perfectly balances recreation, privacy, and mountain living.
Chapters
[0:00] This week’s town: Sedalia, CO
[0:53] Getting to know Sedalia, CO
[2:57] What Makes Sedalia Unique?
[4:39] Recreation in Sedalia
[8:00] Living in Sedalia
[9:40] Ranching in Sedalia
[11:22] Mirr Properties Near Sedalia
[16:29] Who Would Thrive in Sedalia?
[20:45] Sedalia’s Hidden Gems
[23:14] See You in Sedalia!
Haley (00:06):
Welcome back to the Land Bulletin Podcast, where every other week we bring you experts in the field to impart their knowledge when it comes to the ranch and sporting property market, buying and selling advice, the latest best stewardship practices, as well as topics that impact landowners every day. I’m your host, Haley Mirr. Let’s jump in.
Hey, welcome back to The Land Bulletin. We are doing our back 40 episodes where we look at a little bit more into rural communities, towns out west that you might not know a lot about and we bring experts who have been working in those areas or know them fondly to talk about them. So today we have Willy Straza. Thank you for coming on the show, Willy, to talk about Sedalia, Colorado, not to be confused with Salida, which we keep confusing. So Sedalia, Colorado, can you tell us a little bit, Will, about where Sedalia is located for those who are not as familiar with the town?
Willy Strazza (01:06):
It’s a quaint little town and honestly, the town of Sedalia itself, it kind of feels more like a gateway than a destination. So some people might not be as familiar with it, but it’s about 30 minutes to the south of downtown Denver, just south and west and it’s kind of in the Foothills area. So when I say Gateway, I just mentioned that because it’s really where you start stepping into that kind of Foothills mountainous timbery terrain and it’s still got that kind of old farm town history to it, but it’s a great gateway into the Rampart Range and Pike National Forest and then there’s some excellent fishing if you continue on the road through Salida into say Deckers and meet up with the South Clat there.
Haley (01:57):
Yeah. It’s always a nice, like you said, a gateway and without going up by 70 or trying to go up 93 to Boulder, it’s like this other opportunity to have access to some really nice recreation, just like you said, 30 minutes from Denver.
Willy Strazza (02:13):
It’s kind of shocking. I almost feel like it’s where Colorado begins. People think of Colorado and you don’t necessarily think of downtown Denver. You think of the mountains and animals and nature and water. And once you go right past the town of Sedalia, you start getting a sense of all those things.
Haley (02:36):
Yeah, it’s really special. And to your point, you go down I- 25 and it’s like neighborhood, neighborhood, neighborhood. And then once Santa Fe hits that part of Sedalia, it really opens up and you get these kind of bigger views, vistas of pikes, national forest, stuff like that. So it’s definitely special. What do you think stands out about this area kind of near Sedalia? How is it unique or different from some other areas that you have worked out west?
Willy Strazza (03:10):
I would say it’s the combination of proximity and also privacy and then authenticity, which it’s just getting harder to find anywhere out west. I mean, you could look, for instance, at places like Boulder or Evergreen, which are great places and I love them and they offer access to the outdoors, but they can oftentimes feel like they’re almost built around it. There’s busy trailheads, there’s traffic, feels like constant growth. I think because of all of the national forest that is surrounding Sedalia and the roadways in and out of Sedalia, it’s limited that kind of growth factor, which has allowed it to maintain its authenticity. There’s still a couple of large land holdings, but the majority of those have been conserved by different conservation groups. So it provides a lot of great habitat for animals and within minutes you’re basically on dirt roads heading into Pike National Forest or climbing towards Rampart Range.
(04:19):
And it’s oftentimes without seeing too many people. So it really delivers that sense of seclusion that typically would require a two to three hour drive from any major metro area, but you get to experience it within 45 minutes.
Haley (04:42):
You started to mention a little bit about the recreational component of this area. What is this part of the front range known for when it comes to outdoor recreation? Why might someone from Denver or Castle Rock or something like that find themselves in this neck of the woods?
Willy Strazza (05:01):
I’ll tell you how I found it. I mean, when I was growing up fishing and had my license, I heard about the South Platte and I heard about Cheeseman Canyon and I saw some of the big fish that were getting pulled out of there and it’s the closest place where you can have a gold medal fishery from where I live in Denver. So we used to go up there all the time as kids and we used to camp out and hike around there and explore. It’s technical fly fishing up there. So I spent a lot of years not catching anything, but that was part of the fun of it too. If you figure out the times when it’s less busy, it’s a tailwater fishery up there. It comes out of Cheeseman Reservoir so it flows year round and you just have these big boulders and lots of different pockets and riffles that you can explore and it holds some amazing fish in there.
(05:58):
So that’s how I became familiar with the town of Sedalia. Other friends of mine, it’s more on the hunting side of things. I’ve been amazed going up there over the years because of the relative proximity to Denver and then you could get to Woodland Park or to Colorado Springs, these different areas where you are seeing growth, but all of a sudden you’re on one of these properties and you see a moose walking in front of you or a bear or you’ve got 70 elk that are in a meadow, big herds of really good quality deer. There’s not a lot of people who live in the town of Sedalia. I think the population right now is close to like a hundred people. So it is more of kind of a drive-through town, but it’s such an incredible gateway to start accessing some of these amazing public access areas.
Haley (06:57):
Yeah. I’d say the use case for me, since I’m not a hunter and I am a bad fisherman, would be the hiking. There’s really good hiking up there. And if you’re one of those enthusiasts that likes to walk for days, there’s the Colorado Trail that goes miles across the state. And I know a lot of people that have grown up in Denver who have done the Colorado Trail and that’s where you see your family, people can stop by and say hi while you’re doing the trek or even just floating when you have one of those summers with enough water in the South Pot, just taking tubes down there is super fun. So to your point, it’s a gateway and we’ll talk a little bit about the mainstay kind of place to have a burger in town, but for the most part it just definitely is like the recreational component, the national forest up there, rampart range if you’re more of like a dirt biker, things like that.
(07:54):
So there’s a lot to kind of choose from, especially if you’re trying to get out of the heat of the front range. What are some features of the area that would make someone really fall in love with it, especially as a buyer or someone looking to purchase a ranch?
Willy Strazza (08:14):
I think some of the things that I highlighted on earlier like proximity, ease of access, but you feel secluded at the same time. You’re not hearing the hustle and bustle of roadways. You can still see the stars at night. You’re surrounded by incredible wildlife activity and it’s also in the town of Sedalia itself and kind of the surrounding area, your average elevation is going to be maybe closer to 5,800 to 6,800 feet. So you’re talking maybe 600 to 1,000 feet higher in elevation than Denver proper. So you’re not experiencing super hot summers. You get a little bit of relief from that. The foothills also provide a little relief from winds that go through there. At the same time, the winters may not be as extreme and so you will still see precipitation there. You’ll get a couple of big snowstorms, fun snowmobiling areas around there, but for the most part, you’ve got a longer growing season there.
(09:24):
So it’s advantageous for if you’ve got horses and open meadows with pastures, you’ve got deeper soils there, longer growing seasons in kind of a more temperate climate.
Haley (09:45):
What is the makeup of ranches or larger properties in that area, especially with what you’re talking about? What do ranches tend to look like in that area? Are there a lot of equestrian? Is it kind of combination of retreat section with the equestrian piece? What does it look like if you’re
Willy Strazza (10:04):
Looking for a ranch? Yeah, it’s a mix. Closer to the town of Sedalia itself, a lot of properties are starting to get subdivided into 35 acre tracks and some big houses are being put up there. As you continue further up the valley, I would say you still have a good mix of cattle ranches. You’ve got some great equestrian ranches, people who can tie into the national forest and different trailheads in there and retreat centers, retreat focused organizations, church groups who use it as a way for all of their members to experience the outdoors. So I would say it’s ideal for more lifestyle ranchers or boutique cattle programs. You’re not necessarily going to be running a thousand head operation out there, but properties that run smaller well-managed herds rather than large scale commercial operations.
Haley (11:06):
Yeah. And it seems like what’s nice is you could live there full-time and that could be your primary, but it could also be a secondary kind of spot for people that live in the front range and want to escape just from the proximity itself. Can you tell us a little bit about some of the Mer Ranch Crew properties that are listed in that area or something that you’ve been working on?
Willy Strazza (11:35):
Yeah, we’ve got one in particular that I think is really spectacular. It’s called Liberty Ranch and it’s about 15 minutes down the road from Deckers. So it’s kind of sandwiched at the halfway point in between town of Sedalia and the town of Deckers where you’ll find the South Platte and have all the fishing opportunities there. So it’s 111 acres. It’s got a 7,000 square foot custom log cabin, refurbished manager’s home. What’s unique about it is it has this huge hay meadow and the house is also set back about a half mile from the main roadway. So anyone who’s driving along that corridor from Sedalia up to Deckers, you’ll notice that a lot of the houses are kind of built right on the roadway just because there’s limited buildable area because you’ve got national forests surrounding you on all sides essentially. This is a really unique property because it’s got a spring that goes through it, feeds a pond.
(12:42):
It’s got this hay meadow, it’s got very functional facilities, but at the same time it’s not overbuilt. So I mean, when we were up there the other day, we showed up early. There must have been two dozen turkeys that were rolling around. There was probably 30 elk in the meadow. We did see the moose that came down and visited the pond. I talked with the managers, they said, “Oh yeah, we were out last night and we saw a black bear that wandered through the property.” And so you kind of get to see it all. And then the game camera has been fun to check out there as well because there’s a really strong resident herd of mule deer that like to hang out in that area and every evening and every morning they like to come down into these meadows or go and visit the pond.
(13:35):
So yeah, it’s pretty spectacular. I mean, I think to be able to get an experience like that within 30 minutes of Denver where you could have it as a full-time residence and you don’t have to think about packing a bag or loading up your car with a bunch of camping gear and equipment. You literally go right outside your back door and you can see where it rolls into National Forest and you’ve got direct access into some of the best trail systems that Colorado has to offer
Haley (14:09):
Yeah, it’s a really special spot. And to your point, being able to access something like that where you have the creature comforts of being able to go to town, you have this really comfortable home that’s built like a freaking shelter. It’s strong-
Willy Strazza (14:25):
It’s a beautiful home. Yeah.
Haley (14:26):
The house is really nice, but then to be able to be rugged and be out there and to hunt and to fish and to access miles and miles of trails is very unique. And I think that’s what makes that area of Colorado so special is you have maybe smaller pieces of land to manage and deeded ground to manage yourself, but then you have access to just miles and miles and acres upon acres of national forest, which is very cool. I think that Liberty Ranch is really neat.
Willy Strazza (14:58):
Yeah. And for me, it’s the perfect size of ranch. I mean, we work with a lot of buyers and a lot of sellers and a lot of the buyers we work with, they’ve got this, I need a thousand acres somewhere and that can be difficult to find, especially when it’s combined with, I need a thousand acres. I want it to be adjacent to public land. I want live water, all of these different features that everyone’s looking for. In my mind, with this, you’ve got one neighbor to the south, you can’t see their house, you’ve got one neighbor to the east, you can’t see their house. And then all other sides for over a mile and a half of the property’s boundary is just Pike National Forest. And for the general public to access some of the trails that are behind the house, it would be a five and a half, six mile hike or horseback to get back there.
(15:50):
So you really do feel remote and you’re benefiting from, it feels like a much larger property than it actually is. But from a management standpoint, you could have one guy going out there once a week with a brush hog in a couple of areas, but otherwise it’s been so meticulously maintained and the forest is in great shape that it’s really an easy plug and play opportunity.
Haley (16:14):
You’ve got the fire department just down the road. It’s like less than a mile. You have Sedalia right there if you need a burger and you need gas and then you have deckers and there’s all those really cool things and deckers that you can have access to. Before I get ahead of myself, I’d love to know if you were trying to sell this area of Colorado to a potential buyer, who is the kind of person that would be saying, “I could actually see myself living here someday?” Who is that kind of specific person that something like Liberty Ranch or one of the properties down in that neck of the woods would appeal to?
Willy Strazza (16:57):
It works for so many different types of buyers. You’ve got individuals who are just looking to raise a family that would still like to be able to have access to some of the school systems and some of these larger city hubs who also want people to just be able to experience the outdoors. You’ve got corporations who use these as recreational retreats. You got out- of-state people who it’s like, “Yeah, we can go in, but we need to be able to fly into a commercial hub.” And so yeah, flying to Colorado Springs or flying to DIA and you still get to experience everything that’s Colorado without having to hop in the car for six hours because the nearest airport is so far away from whatever remote ranch you bought that maybe would’ve checked all the boxes. So for me, I would love to have a property with a live water going right through it.
(17:57):
I’m okay with having to drive 15 minutes down the road to be able to have access to some of the best fly fishing in Colorado. I think that’s an easy trade off for me. And then otherwise a place like Liberty Ranch, it truly checks all the boxes.
Haley (18:17):
Yeah. And I would say we’ve actually worked on this property in the past and you mentioned both types of buyers. It’s the retreat, like you said, there’s some camps down there. There’s a lot of companies that buy these places as retreats similar to who we’re working with today, or you have multi-generational families that use it as a holiday place or something in the summer to get out of the heat as it keeps getting hotter in Denver. It’s very cool because it really does appeal to a lot of people and I think that accessibility is a big part of that.
Willy Strazza (18:49):
I think it’s hard for people to wrap their heads around it too, unless you go out there and really experience it because they just say it’s too close to Denver. I don’t want to go. It’s too close to Denver. It’s too close to Colorado Springs. But once you’re out there and you’re sitting on the back porch and all you can hear is the wind and the birds and you got a beer in your hand and maybe a couple of elk wander down into the meadow. You’re like, “Holy cow, where am I? I could be in the most remote place in Colorado and not even know it if you blindfolded me and brought me here.”
Haley (19:20):
Yeah, it’s so true. I think people just have these images of resort communities and things like that. But how awesome to leave work and be here within 30 minutes on a
Willy Strazza (19:32):
Friday. Oh yeah. Friday afternoon, just go up fish deckers or go on a horseback ride and be back at the house in time to cook dinner and host friends.
Haley (19:43):
Yeah, it’s awesome. Well, I love Sedalia and I know you do too. And Sedalia is beyond just kind of the scope of the town. It’s everything leading up to Deckers. It’s that whole area of the South Platte. It’s just a very special piece. And I think it’s kind of stayed a secret for a really long time because people are just kind of blinded by these other shiny objects, but it’s this diamond that I think if people knew more about it, I think they would want to invest.
Willy Strazza (20:11):
Yeah. I think also just with inventory where it is, like I mentioned earlier, there’s only a handful of these places that really stand out. You can’t find too many spots over a hundred acres, especially something without a conservation easement kind of in this corridor where you’ve got houses that are sitting off the road. Again, I think it’s something that should be on people’s radar because it checks so many boxes, but I understand why it’s not. These places don’t come up for sale very frequently.
Haley (20:50):
What are some of the things, like you’re buying a ranch down there, what are the local kind of gems that you’ve seen while you’ve either been showing Liberty Ranch or when you’ve been going down there and fishing at Deckers as a kid?
Willy Strazza (21:03):
There’s a spot where if you grew up in Colorado and you haven’t been, man, you’re missing out. And anyone who visits Colorado, I would invite them to go, especially if you’re traveling that way going up to Decker’s or anything like that. And it’s called Bud’s Bar and it’s a cash only place. It’s been around for over 70 years. I swear it’s got one of the best burgers I’ve ever had. Really friendly staff that really haven’t … It’s relatively unpolished, which I loved and no fries there. You can only get chips okay with cats. Don’t even think about it.
(21:42):
Cold beers and great burgers. I think I’ve probably put on 10 pounds since we got this listing just because every showing I’m going out and having a double at Bud’s.
Haley (21:55):
Oh yeah. Every time we go down to Castle Pines to visit Michael’s parents, we stop there. Even if it’s not lunchtime, we’re like, whatever.
Willy Strazza (22:03):
No, it’s so great. Who needs it? And everyone’s so nice there. Yeah. And it’s fun because you see a whole mixed bag of folks that are coming in there. You see guys showing up who are wearing their waiters. You got people who are coming in who are trailering buggies. You got guys wearing hunting outfits. And so it’s a fun place to spend the afternoon and sit at the bar and just hear the stories. Hey, what are you planning on doing today? Guys and gals doing a thousand different things. And it’s just a good representation of how many things you have access to through this kind of sleepy town.
Haley (22:42):
Yeah. It’s interesting. There’s a couple other restaurants there, but what’s so funny is all of us just go to Butts. I know. There could be other places, but that’s where we go. Have you ever been? There’s also that place in Deckers. I know it’s kind of seasonal. It’s like open in the summers only, the hangout. Have you ever been there?
Willy Strazza (23:00):
Oh yeah.
Haley (23:00):
That’s a good spot too, I feel like, if you get tossed that way on the South Platte.
Willy Strazza (23:07):
Yeah, absolutely.
Haley (23:08):
Yeah. I think they have margaritas that are huge. They do. That’s a good spot too. Thank you, Willie, for being on the podcast. I know you’ll be taking your son fishing there when he can and you’ll have the same experience down in Deckers and that part of Colorado, but it’s important for people to know about it and I’m glad that you took the time to kind of share your knowledge on the space.
Willy Strazza (23:35):
I appreciate you taking the time to talk with me, Haley. It’s a fun area for everyone to check out and feel free to reach out to me if you’ve got questions about where I should go or what I should do. I’m still exploring it every year and finding new things, which is part of the appeal. It’s kind of limitless what you can do there.
Haley (23:57):
And if you just want a burger at Buds with Will, he’s also open
Willy Strazza (24:01):
To that. I’ll do that too. Yep.
Haley (24:04):
Well, thanks so much. We’ll talk to you soon. Thanks, Will.
Willy Strazza (24:08):
Thanks, Haley. Bye-bye.
Haley (24:10):
Thanks for joining us today. To learn more about the Ranch Real Estate Market or our ranch marketing process, make sure to subscribe to our newsletter on our website at mirrrranchgroup.com or give us a call at 303-623-4545. See you next time.
Need professional help finding, buying or selling a legacy ranch, contact us:
Mirr Ranch Group
901 Acoma Street
Denver, CO 80204
