USA: Vermejo, A Ted Turner Reserve, Cimarron, New Mexico
Nine Hundred Square Miles and Twelve Hundred Bison
Vermejo is difficult to describe without the numbers doing the work. Roughly 550,000 acres, which is about 900 square miles, running from northeastern New Mexico's Sangre de Cristo Mountains up into southern Colorado. Two main lodges sit some 45 minutes apart. Twelve hundred bison range free across it. This is not a resort with a lot of land. It is a landscape with a small amount of resort in it.
Ted Turner bought it as a conservation project and it still reads that way, which is the point. Guests can join guided bison expeditions, wildlife tours, and riverbank restoration work alongside the more familiar pursuits, and the fishing alone justifies a week: 19 lakes and 30 miles of stream holding native Rio Grande cutthroat, brown, and rainbow trout. Accommodation runs from lodge rooms to Casa Grande, Turner's former 25,000-square-foot house, with seven bedrooms, a billiards room, and a conservatory.
Life at Vermejo
Roughly 550,000 acres spanning northern New Mexico and southern Colorado
1,200 free-ranging bison, plus elk, bear, and some of the best wildlife viewing in the Southwest
19 fishable lakes and 30 miles of stream with native Rio Grande cutthroat trout
Casa Grande, the former Turner residence, with seven rooms, billiards, and a conservatory
Guided bison expeditions, wildlife tours, and riverbank restoration programs
Hiking, birding, archery, mountain biking, photography, historic tours, and winter activities
Two lodges roughly 45 minutes apart, so the property genuinely takes time to cross
Why Vermejo, Why New Mexico
Scale that has no real equivalent in American hospitality
A working conservation reserve, with guest activity built around the mission rather than beside it
Trout fishing of a quality that draws anglers who could go anywhere
The Sangre de Cristos and high plains, a landscape most travelers never see
Genuine remoteness, which is increasingly the hardest thing to buy
Ideal For: Anglers, wildlife and conservation-minded travelers, photographers, and families or groups who want somewhere that feels genuinely wild rather than landscaped to look that way.
Gold Coast Travel Perks
Unlock Virtuoso amenities when you book with Gold Coast Travel:
Complimentary daily breakfast
$100 resort credit
Virtuoso Sundowner: includes choice of beer or wine at a scenic location following your afternoon activity.
Early check-in / late check-out, subject to availability
Upgrade at check-in, subject to availability
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