The Daily Sentinel, February 26, 2026- A 160-acre cattle ranch in the Plateau Valley will be permanently protected from development under a conservation easement involving the
Colorado West Land Trust.
The Lazy YH Ranch, on the foothills below the Grand Mesa, is owned by Joann Hall and her family. The easement protects agricultural land, critical wildlife habitat and scenic open space while honoring a vision shared by Joanne and her late husband, Doug Hall, the land trust said in a news release.
The two began planning the easement before his death in 2023, and Joann saw it through in his honor.
“This was something Doug and I wanted to do together,” Hall said in the release. “We didn’t want to see the land divided up or developed. We wanted it to stay a place for ranching, for wildlife, and for our family — our kids, grandkids, and great grandkids — to enjoy for generations.”
The project is the third conservation easement completed by the Hall family, reflecting a long-standing commitment to land stewardship in the Plateau Valley, the land trust said in the release.
The Lazy YH Ranch has long supported the family’s cattle operation and continues to be used for seasonal grazing, with Hall’s children gradually taking on more of the ranching responsibilities. Besides remaining dedicated to agriculture, it will continue providing habitat for animals such as deer, elk, moose and bears, with its location creating an important transition zone for wildlife moving seasonally between the Plateau Valley and higher elevations on the Grand Mesa and Battlement Mesa. The acreage is largely undeveloped and includes sagebrush uplands, mixed mountain shrub communities, riparian habitat along Middleton Creek, and a small aspen stand.
The conserved property adds to a growing block of protected lands in the area, connecting nearly 500 acres of adjacent conserved private lands with nearby Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest Service lands. The Colorado West Land Trust now has protected nearly 17,000 acres of land in the Plateau Valley through 22 easements.
“It has been such a pleasure to work with Joann and the Hall family over the past 15 years. Knowing they trust CWLT to steward their property for long-term conservation is an honor,” Ilana Moir, the land trust’s conservation director, said in the release. “Lazy YH Ranch strengthens landscape-scale protection efforts, maintains wildlife movement, and preserves the ranching heritage and open character of Plateau Valley.”
Hall said, “I wanted to finish what we started. This land meant so much to Doug, and it means so much to our family. Conservation gives me peace of mind knowing it will stay the way it is even after we’re gone.”
Altogether, the land trust has conserved more than 150,000 acres in Delta, Gunnison, Mesa, Montrose, Ouray and San Miguel counties.
FEB
2026