History
Deer Valley Ranch was started by Parker and Clara Woolmington in 1955 as a Christian Guest Ranch, and while the accommodations and activities have changed, we are still here to care for guests from all over the world in our Colorado Mountains. It is now being served by the second generation (Harold and Sue DeWalt and John Woolmington) and third (Brock and Brenda DeWalt and Jay Woolmington), and soon the fourth (the five DeWalt kids - Levi, Halley, Cora, Daniel and Jordan - who all love the ranch fun.) Parker recently passed away on Christmas Day, 2011 at the age of 94. We rejoice that he is now not only with his beloved wife Clara but also with his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Deer Valley Ranch sits in the beautiful Chalk Creek Valley. The Ute Indians lived here in the 1800s when the first Spanish explorers came up from Santa Fe. Explorers and mountain men like Zebulon Pike and Kit Carson were in the valley in the early years and were followed by the cowboys and settlers who began to move in by 1870. When gold and silver were discovered the prospectors hiked all over our mountains and small mining communities like St. Elmo, Hancock, and Romley were developed. By 1882 there was a stagecoach line and a narrow gauge railroad in the valley. Chalk Creek is still a place to hike and ride the old miner’s trails, visit the ghost towns, and sense the history of the Old West.
