Claybaugh Cow Camp
Mesa County
Established on Forest Service land in ca. 1938, the Claybaugh Cow Camp served as seasonal housing for the ranching family of J.B. (Bruce) Claybaugh, owner of the Cross Bar Cross Ranch in the Grand Valley, and their cowpunchers as they grazed over 2,000 head of cattle on the Grand Mesa during the summer months.
Claybaugh Cow Camp
The camp was also the site of an annual dance and social gathering that marked the end of the Beef Rides, a four-day event during which several Grand Valley ranching families gathered their cattle and culled out cows to go to market. Several buildings at the camp feature Pioneer Log construction. Further research and fieldwork at the site could yield additional information concerning the daily life of the people living at the cow camp, such as the existence/location of other buildings or structures and the seasonal use of the site.