Visit Bayfield, Colorado
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Activities Other Communities Nearby; Attractions Nearby;
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Upcoming Events in Bayfield Bayfield Heritage day & Sheep Trailing - Saturday, October 6th Bayfield Olde Fashioned Christmas - Saturday, December 8th
The Weminuche Wilderness, the San Juan National Forest, and BLM lands that surround us on almost all sides provide hiking, backpacking, camping, snow shoeing, cross country skiing, and hunting opportunities during various times throughout the year. A quick access into the Weminuche wilderness is at the end of County Road 500 just past Lake Vallecito. Two ski resorts are within a one to one and a half hours drive. Wolf Creek ski area is one and a half hours to the east and Durango Mountain Resort is about one hour to the north of Durango on Highway 550. The San Juan National Forest also provides ample opportunity for cross country skiing within a few hours from Bayfield. Mountain biking, river rafting, rock climbing and many other activities have made this area popular with outdoors lovers for decades. Our sense of place instills a desire to keep it natural and beautiful for generations to come. The Town itself celebrates during the year with four main activities: Spring Celebration with an Easter egg hunt, Fourth of July parade and fireworks, Heritage Days and Sheep Trailing, and an Olde Fashioned Christmas. Most of these offer vendor booths and all day activities. These are celebrations where the town citizens gather for a day of relaxation, fun and many people from out of town join us for small-town friendly atmosphere.
Just 18 miles west is Durango with a large variety of cultural activities. Durango offers movies, plays, musicians, shows, restaurants, the Durango-Silverton Narrow Gauge Train, Durango Melodrama and Vaudeville, The Bar-D Chuck wagon, a river walk, an arts center and a few museums. If you are a history buff, this area is very rich in old western history and much Native American culture. Chimney Rock Archeological Area is forty miles to the east of Bayfield on Highway 160 and Mesa Verde National Park is about an hour away between Mancos and Cortez on Highway 160 West.
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Bayfield History Bayfield, a ranching community, was homesteaded by George Morrison and later sold to R.C. and Clarence Hensley. In 1894 it was sold to William A. and Laura E. Bay, from Missouri, who settled where Bayfield itself is situated. Their home still stands at 225 Pearl Street (the street being named after Mr. Bay's daughter). Feeling that the area needed a supply town, Mr. Bay donated eighty acres of land in April 1898 and the town was laid out and later incorporated in 1906 with George Wheeler as the first Mayor. The Schiller family also donated land in April of 1898 and a coin toss determined whether Mr. Bay or Mr. Schiller would get to name the new town. It would have been called "Schillerville" had Mr. Schiller won. After more than 100 years, Bayfield still has at its heart a traditional neighborhood with a strong sense of community. Today, Bayfield is a growing community with a current population of around 1,600 residents. Through our growth, our citizens and town officials are committed to maintaining the close-knit feel of a small town..
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