Our Luxury Colorado Resort includes Natural Hot Springs and a Geothermal Heated Pool.
Unwind in the soothing warmth of our natural hot springs pool, a signature experience at 4UR Ranch, a luxury Colorado resort. Fed by pure geothermal waters, this serene retreat offers the perfect way to relax after a day of outdoor adventure. Whether you’re soaking under the open sky or enjoying the peaceful ambiance of the surrounding mountains, our hot springs pool provides a rejuvenating escape in the heart of Colorado’s wilderness.
Little Medicine Spa at the 4UR Ranch
When the Ute tribe summer camped around the natural hot springs in the Goose Creek Valley, they referred to them as “the little medicine” and the larger hot springs of Pagosa as “the big medicine.” Today those natural hot springs have a home in our new pool and fitness area. Designed in tandem by Robert H. Clark & Associates Architecture of Dallas and Avery Augur of the Creede America Group of Colorado, this luxury Colorado resort facility was built to honor the vision of the original architecture of 1904 by using consistent historical lines and materials.
Our ranch guests are welcome to enjoy a geothermal heated outdoor pool, natural hot springs indoor pool, well equipped fitness room, massage area, yoga canopy, and outdoor fire pit, this new addition to history has become a favorite for our guests.
Natural Hot Springs History
Twenty-six million years ago, the planet’s largest volcanic eruption formed the 45-mile-wide Rio Grande Rift, along with the San Juan and LaGarita Mountains, rich mineral deposits, and the natural hot springs of Wagon Wheel Gap.
For centuries, the Ute Tribe camped near these sacred springs, guarding them closely. In the mid-1870s, after federal treaties, the Ute were relocated near Gunnison, opening the area to railroads, tourists, and the creation of a premier health resort: “The Hot Springs Hotel and Cottages.”
By the 1870s, a bathhouse was built over the springs, and by 1904, ownership passed to General William Jackson Palmer, a Civil War hero and founder of the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad. Palmer hired Thomas MacLaren to design a luxury health resort to rival Europe’s top spas. The resort debuted with a grand bathhouse, three Adirondack-style cabins, a new hotel, and a livery stable.