Growing up in Gloversville, N.Y., Bob Fanch was fond of the old, rustic camps and lodges of the Adirondacks and dreamed of someday building facilities reminiscent of his youth while preserving land for future
generations.
He has done just that at Devil’s Thumb Ranch near Winter Park, where in 2001
he and his wife, Suzanne, purchased the historic Devil’s Thumb Ranch along
the west side of the Diamond Bar-T Ranch. They’ve merged the two ranches
into a year-round ranch resort and spa on 4,000 acres at the foot of the
Continental Divide.
“This really is a labor of love,” said Fanch, who worked closely with
architects and a planning consultant to find green solutions to protect the
environment while bringing modern amenities to the ranch dating to 1940 on
land where buffalo once roamed free. “From the beginning, preservation of
the land was important to us. We want to keep most of the ranch’s 4,000
acres in their natural state.”
.
