Rocky Mountain National Park -- Kawuneeche Valley

Kawuneeche Valley
Holzwarth Historic Site

Guest Cabin at the Holzwarth Historic Site.

Open Daily 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM

Heritage Days: July 28,29.

The enactment of prohibition in Colorado In 1916, forced John Holzwarth Sr., then a Denver saloonkeeper, to start over as a subsistence rancher. His new homestead, 8 north of Grand Lake was established in 1917. The ranch never materialized but with the completion of the Fall River Road over the Continental Divide in 1920, John joined other valley residents in serving the increasing numbers of mountain travelers. Thus the Holzwarth's Trout Lodge was born.

The Trout Lodge lasted for 10 years before the ranch was converted to a dude ranch that lasted for 4 decades. In 1973, John Holzwarth Jr sold and all modern buildings removed.

Restored to it 1920 status, you can now see what guest paid two dollars a day or eleven dollars a week for room and board on the American Plan (2 meals a day). Sophie (mama) Holzwarth added to the atmosphere by preparing scrumptious home-cooked meals, serving local trout, deer and grouse, and supplementing these with ranch-produced chickens, eggs and milk. All this was prepared in the kitchen of the first homestead cabin, the "Mama" Cabin. It was western dude ranching, as it originally existed: plain and primitive, but delightful.

DO NOT MISS THIS OPPORTUNITIY TO SEE FULLY RESTORED GUEST RANCH AS IT WAS IN THE 1920s.

[Web Note: For years this ranch was know as the Never Summer Ranch when in actuality the Never Summer Ranch was on the other side of the valley near the parking lot. There is one cabin remaining near the parking lot that was the Never Summers Ranch. The Holzwarth Historic Site is the location of the 1920's guest ranch on the west side of the valley. A few years ago it was decided to be politically correct and call it by it proper name. Thus what we have always called the Never Summers Ranch is not correctly the Holzwarth Historic Site.]

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