Red
Feather Lakes Community
Contents
Red Feather Lakes is an unincorporated mountain community in the Northern
Colorado Rockies in Larimer County, 54 miles northwest of the City of Fort
Collins, surrounded by 600,000 acres of Roosevelt National Forest, at an
altitude between 8,000-8,600 feet, in a roughly sixteen square mile basin with
many lakes – totaling 326 acres – 14 named and others, smaller in size
(ponds), which are unnamed.
The history of modern settlement dates from 1870
(Watrous) when John Harden homesteaded or settled across the road from what is now
Parvin Lake, an area designated as a wetlands by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service.
The
township was surveyed in 1879 and the
first of 12 subdivisions – Ramona Heights and South Nokomis Lake – were
platted in 1924 when local landowners
envisioned a large resort community. Hiawatha
Heights was platted the next year, followed by West Hiawatha (1927);
Letitia Lake, Owassa Lake, and East Owassa in 1928; McCarthy in 1947;
Indian Prayer Park in 1965; Piney Knolls in 1971; Fox Acres
Country Club and High Country Estates in 1979.
The basic outlines of the community were established in a one hundred
year period.
The
Lakes
The
fourteen named lakes in the Red Feather Lakes area are (listed east to west,
south to north): Parvin, West, Dowdy, Snake, Red Feather, Ramona, Hiawatha,
Shagwa, Letitia, Fox, Papoose, Apache, Nokomis, Pocahontas, and Erie.
Only Parvin is visible from 74E.
Map
of Red Feather Lakes Community
Several miles south of 74E just outside the District
are Bellaire, Molly and Lady Moon Lakes. Several
miles north of the District, in a completely different watershed are the three
Creedmore Lakes, named after an early trapper and hunter, Bill Creedmore. The Beaver Meadows Resort, about five miles northwest on the Panhandle
Creek has a large lake constructed in the center of the valley.
The four lakes with public access for fishing and boating are Parvin,
West, Dowdy, and Bellaire. The
density of lakes in the six square mile Red Feather Village area – 2 lakes per
square mile – is evidence that the
area is relatively flat. The lakes
are man-made, or enhanced, by adding earthen dams to natural “swampy”
depressions.
Six lakes are supplied from the local ground
water Red Feather, Snake, Erie, Papoose, Apache and Letitia.
There are no outlets from the first four, while outflows from the last
two go to the North Lone Pine Creek (thus these latter two lakes are considered
part of the “reservoir” system, to be discussed later).
Six lakes receive water from diversion ditches
from the North and South Lone Pine and Elkhorn Creeks.
Jake Mitchell constructed the first ditch in 1888
which diverted water from the upper North Lone Pine approximately three miles
east to the present-day Lake Hiawatha. Later,
slightly west of Hiawatha, Shagwa was constructed with a headgate from the ditch
to supply it with water. Hiawatha
outflows to Ramona, which flows to Fox and then down to the North Lone Pine.
One year later Frank Gartman constructed a ditch from the Elkhorn
northeast one mile to the Bellaire Lake and then three more miles to West Lake,
which flows to Dowdy Lake, and in turn into the North Lone Pine.
Noah Gower in 1898 added a
second supply to West and Dowdy Lakes with a 1+ mile ditch from the South Lone
Pine.
Two
lakes were constructed on existing creeks: Nokomis on the North Lone Pine and
Parvin on the South Lone Pine (in 1926
by the State Game and Fish Division, which they did without acquiring water
rights).
Of the fourteen lakes, ten became part of the
reservoir system because their water flowed via the North and South Lone Pine
Creeks into the North Fork of the Poudre, then the Main Poudre and finally the
irrigation farmers in Larimer and Weld County.
The
area has many wetlands, the most significant being the area south of County Road
74E adjacent to South Lone Pine Creek. It begins at Indian Prayer Park
subdivision and drains into Parvin Lake, and is classified as seasonal-riparian.
Origins of the Red Feather Name
In 1923 a group of developers created the Red Feather Mountain Lakes Association to promote their vision of a recreational community. One of the members, Dr. D. O. Norton, is credited with selecting the name Red Feather inspired by a Princess Tsianina Redfeather who he had heard sing at a Charles Wakefield concert tour. She had a Cherokee father and Creek mother and had studied voice in Denver. Her touring included France entertaining soldiers in World War I. Red Feather added charm to the fledgling recreational community, as it does for today’s community.
R. J. Wiley did this painting of Princess Tsianina for a play about her which was performed on July 3rd, 1988 in the area where the RFL Community Library now stands. It hung at the High Country Hair Care Salon on main street for many years.
An alternative version of the origin of the community's name is it comes from a Cherokee Chief named Red Feather. Call it a legend. In my opinion it is pure public relations. The story is told in the promotional brochure reproduced below. The Cherokee's were not the native indigenous tribes, rather they were the Arapahoe, Utes, Cheyenne's and others mentioned in the brochure. The Cherokee land, their reservation, was in northeastern Oklahoma dating to 1838. There is the story of the Cherokee Trail which the Cherokees followed on their way to the Gold fields of California, which involved, on their return, a fight with the Utes, reportedly occurring at the location now called Cherokee Hill, along 80C. There is no evidence the Cherokees lived here, they passed through. The brochure is of poor quality so reproduction is not good. There is no date on the brochure.
Brochure Promoting Red Feather Lakes Property Sales
+
Community Boundaries and Land Use
Community boundaries were vague until the Spring of 2007 when they were established by a County-led planning process to
correspond with the Red Feather Lakes (RFL) Fire Protection District and the
surrounding private undeveloped landholdings as shown in the map later.
Much of the following information was obtained from the Larimer County
website (http://larimer.org/redfeather/)
discussion of the Red Feather Lakes Area Plan, May 2007.
The
planning process was citizen initiated in response to a business expansion
request by a restaurant, and sought to determine appropriate economic
development for the area and to perhaps resolve some historical problems.
-
One problem was land boundaries. Early developers relied on subdivision plats drawn by planners in Denver, who may have never visited the sites they were planning, thus the area’s terrain and natural features were not taken into account, and the roads and building lots shown on the plats often do not reflect existing development (Weixelman’s notes).
-
A second concern was sewer systems and quality of ground water since drinking water comes from wells. Many of the lots were platted prior to County adoption of zoning and subdivision standards, and are too small to accommodate wells and conventional septic systems. Continued pressure for more intense development in the “downtown” area, the conversion of many cabins to year-around dwellings, or a building boom on the remaining small lots would present significant challenges for maintaining safe water and sewer systems.
-
The third concern is domestic water systems and wells, their water quality and compliance with water law.
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Fourth is protection of the water in the lakes for fishing and recreational use.
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Fifth are road issues which arise because there is a mixture of county-maintained and private roads which were constructed according to varying standards, and whose locations do not always correspond with platted maps. Issues include dust control snow removal, width, traffic volume, and fire truck access.
-
Also of concern are economic growth and nonconforming uses of some structures which put constraints on building modification or change in type of business.
Red
Feather Lakes Plan Area and Land Use
|
Major Land Use Categories |
||
|
Land category |
Acres |
% |
|
Agriculture |
4315 |
62.5 |
|
Residential improved |
668 |
9.7 |
|
Residential unimproved |
533 |
7.7 |
|
Named lakes |
326 |
4.7 |
|
Private Open Space |
307 |
4.4 |
|
Total |
6905 |
|
The district is approximately 6905 acres, most of
which is privately owned (80%+), but it also includes public land owned by the
US Forest Service and the Colorado Division of Wildlife and the Poudre School
District (7.5%). There are
1627 residential lots, about half of which are developed (more than half in
terms of acreage). The regular summer population is estimated at 1,350, with
about 450 people residing in the area year-round.
Commercial activities involve 37 acres (0.5% of the land) and includes
restaurants, grocery and general merchandise, hardware and lumber, arts and
crafts, lodging, and real estate. Public
and non-profit facilities include the Post Office, Library, Elementary School,
Fire Station, Medical Clinic, Dental Clinic, Property Owners’ Association
Building, Historical Society Museum, three churches and the facilities of the
Red Feather Storage and Irrigation Company.
North of the Village is Fox Acres Country Club, a private golf course and
residential community, located, naturally, next to Fox Lake.
Most commercial activities are located in the Village, with a few
enterprises on the east end on Dowdy Lake Drive, which is the access to the
Dowdy Lake Campgrounds.
The
RFL Village provides services for a larger geographic area that includes
communities further west – Crystal Lakes, Beaver Meadows – and to the east
down to Glacier View Meadows (but not as far as Livermore) and to visitors to
area camps and retreats such as the Shambhala Mountain Center (a Buddhist
retreat), Girl Scout Camp and Boy Scout Ranch, and campers and day visitors on
the adjacent US Forest Service lands.
The
Red Feather Elementary School expanded from a two-room school house in Red
Feather Lakes Village to the present location on Creedmore Lakes Road in 1986. Enrollment for the 2004-05 school year was 60 students. The school has four
certified teachers, and includes preschool for 3-4 year-olds and grades 1-6. A
full-day kindergarten is provided at the Livermore Elementary School. Red
Feather is one of the three mountain schools in the Poudre School District, the
others being Livermore and Stove Prairie.
The
planning document concludes that “there is potential for substantial change in
the Red Feather Lakes Plan Area. Besides
the 815 existing undeveloped residential lots, more than 4,200 acres of
undeveloped private land surround the existing community.”
Photos
Red Feather
Lakes Valley from Deadman Road
Red Feather
Lakes Village
This section is an overview of the buildings in the village.
Map
of Red Feather Lakes Village
Main Street
Lake Ramona is in the background. The
first building on the right is the post office, the rest can be determined from
the map above. Photo is taken from
the area of Hill Top General Store.
General Store • Cabins • Antiques
Jack & Barbara Reynolds, Owners
•
Robinson Cabin
– Historical Society Museum
Robinson Cabin for more information.
Red
Feather Lakes Library
Mountain Crafts Galley
A
tour through Red Feather Lakes with Gene Barker
August
29, 2010
Location
of the old hotel from circa 1925, built on the crest of hill above the Mountain
Crafts Gallery across from Hilltop Store
We’re
heading toward the old hotel. Now
the old hotel had a well that’s just right down below this hill and that’s
where the water come up to furnish this hotel.
The well house is still there. There’s
been some road changes and all, but as I recall, it was right in the area, right
here. As I recall, this was built on
to the end of the old hotel. It was
a lay preacher that built that on.
That’s
where the well was. Back in the old
days, you just took a jack hammer and dug the well.
They didn’t have well drills. You
can see the chunks around here. Last
time I was through here that was in one piece.
The hotel had drives coming up from around here two or three ways, and pathways.
Now the businesses back here destroyed some of that stuff.
This is part of the property. As
I recall Jack and Jerry Dalton, who used to have a store up here, now called the
Trading Post, they bought the whole hotel property.
When Jack died, that was the end of my involvement.
You can see where that level spot is up there.
There’s bound to be little parts of foundations there somewhere.
This
cabin was built in the late 1940s by the lay preacher who was caretaker for the
hotel owners.
Around
the Village
That’s
Jimmy O’Rorke’s place there.
And
there is Lou Young’s old place over there across the road, the grey house, but
this is his old barn and stuff down in there.
And
there used to be a guy by the name of Sanky that had a sawmill and lived in the
wood house just right down there – I think my mother married him.
My mother had various relationships.
Around
Ramona heading east, turn north on Minnehaha.
Here’s Bonnie Drake’s old house.
And this was Oscar Drake’s place down there.
Bonnie
and Hugh Drake house
Oscar
and Miriam Drake cabin
Old
Westlake Schoolhouse
We’ll go in there and look at where the old Westlake Schoolhouse is now. Here is the old schoolhouse – this red one. Those are the original windows, those old-fashioned windows. I haven’t seen windows like that in years. In the back, there’s a little covered entry way. When I moved the school to its present site the entry way was behind, so that’s the way we left it. I sold it to a guy by the name of Phipps that I went to school with, and he used to call it the “little red schoolhouse.” He painted it red, it was white when it was a schoolhouse. Oh yeah, I went to that schoolhouse. I rode horseback to school every day. We used to have to go down to a spring everyday and collect water in cans. Then we put the full cans in the entryway out back to use during the day.
Back
and side of school
School’s
front entryway
Years
ago, when I was on the school board up here we built that new log school-house,
Red Feather Lakes School, that the doctor has now.
Then they sold the old Westlake schoolhouse.
Well, I bought it and hooked a bulldozer on it with some skids under it
and brought it up through Swanson’s pasture.
It was on the Hardin Ranch. My
first wife, Pat, wrote that deal about the Hardin Ranch, and the swans coming in
there – white swans. My wife, when
she was working on her master’s degree, wrote her whole dissertation on that
whole thing down there. I believe my
son Paul Barker has that dissertation.
Promotion
materials for Redfeather (sic) Mountain Lakes Resort
It
is interesting to see all the letters and sales brochures that they had here
many years ago for the Redfeather Mountain Lakes Resort.
Red
Feather Storage and Irrigation Raffle
I’m
trying to find the house that was in that raffle for the RFS&I in 1950.
I think I remember just where that cabin is that was raffled.
I’m having trouble picking that out – it’s one of these cabins up
here. This is it I think.
Just by Bud Thomas’s.
Let’s
ask Bud…. “It’s right in back
of me, but they’ve done a lot to it. They
added two bedrooms to the back and a garage.
They kept it all original but added on.
The old fireplace in the picture is still inside. ”
Gene;
“Do the same people still own it?” Bud;
“Morris’? Yes, it’s still in
the same family.”
Right
here on Ramona Drive is one of the old entrances to Red Feather, and the old
church is across the road from there.
Oh
I’ve built a jillion houses around here – I built that log schoolhouse and
that log house over there, and Chapel in the Pines.
Ramona
Lake house
Original
Chapel in the Pines
Red
Feather Lakes School from 1960s to 1984
We used to make house logs here. My dad and I … my dad really … for a short time he made the first milled house logs in the State of Colorado. I started in the house log business later and shipped them everywhere, out to New York, and other places. If you know where Fort Morgan is … where you go past on that superhighway out there and it says “Log Lane Village,” I milled all those logs right down here where Lucille has the Ponderosa Realty now, that used to be our house where Pat and I raised our family in Red Feather Lakes.
This
place right there – they rented that to ditch company, and this house here was
a ditch company house. So the
Fosters were in one of them. And I
built the one down there along the road (Bee Be Lane).
The family in the old (Jay) Worley house is Johnson who has a lot of …. I don’t know what his connections are, but his dad helped form that irrigation company, the one with the Grand Ditch in Rocky Mountain National Park (Water Supply & Storage Company) and he had a lot of stock in it, as I understand. We (Barker Construction) open the road up to Long Draw (Reservoir) every year and along the ditch. That road goes right up to the Continental Divide.
Red
Feather Storage and Irrigation Company has water rights in that general area
(near the Continental Divide) called Mountains and Plains.
RFS&I uses this water for transferring to Red Feather Lakes.
Dennis Frydendall and I figured out a way to get this water through
various legal transfers.
Old
Worley well on Hiawatha Highway
The
Gooch house was originally built on the east side of Ramona Lake for a couple
from Cheyenne, Wyoming. Very soon
after it was completed it was sold to Ralph Gooch and torn down board by board
by Ralph’s carpenter Bill Sievers and reconstructed on Hiawatha Highway.
Ralph Gooch was a candy salesmen from Denver.
He died in the 1950s. The
house was sold to Ray Higley lock, stock and barrel, and included many antiques.
