What to Expect From a Well in Dolores County

How deep are wells around Dolores County?

How much water do wells make near Dolores County?

A 150 ft Baseline, With Room for Deeper Drilling

Among the 411 wells reporting depth, the median is 150 ft and the middle half run 82-245 ft. That spread matters more to a drilling bid than the median alone: ask for a scope that explains what happens if drilling passes the expected depth without finding adequate water.

Most recorded depths fall in the 100-300 ft range, accounting for 62%. The deepest recorded well is 1220 ft, an outlier rather than a sensible starting budget. Permits mostly identify an unnamed or fractured-bedrock aquifer. In fractured rock, water depends on the openings a borehole intersects, so a productive neighboring well is useful evidence, not a promise.

Reported Yield Is Usually Useful, but Low Producers Matter

Only 96 wells report a pump yield. Their median is 7.0 gpm, with a middle half of 3.2-11.0 gpm. That suggests workable household supplies are common among the reporting wells, but a reported drilling yield is not proof of sustained performance under daily use.

The 5% reporting less than 1 gpm deserve a buyer's attention. A low-producing well may need storage and careful demand management, and some supplies may not support the intended use. Another 27% report 1-5 gpm. Before buying, have the well's production and recovery evaluated, and confirm the permit allows your planned household, livestock or outdoor uses. Physical capacity and legal permission are separate questions.

Water at 60 ft Does Not Mean a 60 ft Well

The median static water level is 60 ft below ground, with the middle half at 30-103 ft. These measurements describe resting water levels, not total borehole depth or the level reached while pumping. A driller may need to go substantially below the resting level to intercept productive fractures and provide a workable well completion.

Only 35 wells report static water levels, so this is a limited countywide snapshot. It does not establish a falling or rising water table. For a property near Rico or Dove Creek, prioritize measurements from that well over time and a current pumping evaluation rather than treating the county median as a local groundwater forecast.

Dolores County's Permit History and Recorded Drillers

Permit issuance rose from 50 in the 1980s to 107 in the 1990s and 146 in the 2000s. Records show 73 in the 2010s and 49 in the 2020s, with the newest permit dated 2025. The latest decade is incomplete; its count should not be read as a finished comparison.

Mcpherson Drilling Co. appears on 138 records, Ucolo Drilling Llc on 59, and Kilby'S Water Well Service on 19. Those are historical record counts, not confirmation of current availability. Domestic/household uses account for 72% of the use mix and stock uses for 18%. Check the actual permit conditions rather than assuming a neighboring household well authorizes the same uses you need.

Budget Beyond the Drilled Hole in Dolores County

The supplied cost model assumes fractured mountain bedrock, described as granite or gneiss, at $65-$100 per foot. At the 150 ft median depth, that puts the drilled hole at about $9,800-$15,000. A finished well with pump, tank, trenching and electrical is estimated at $15,800-$27,000.

Treat those figures as planning allowances, not a parcel quote or confirmation of the rock beneath every lot. The 82-245 ft middle depth range leaves meaningful room for cost variation. Ask bidders to identify casing and grout, difficult-ground charges, pump selection, access requirements and the utility route. Get clear terms for deeper drilling or an unsuccessful borehole before equipment arrives.

Mine Features, Water Quality and Site Layout

Mapped environmental records within about 10 miles include 4 PFAS sampling/contamination sites, 8 historic mine features and 1 EPA Superfund/cleanup site. These are screening flags, not evidence that a particular well is contaminated. Review each site's status and location relative to the property, then choose laboratory testing with local health or water-quality guidance.

Yield records also cannot establish the likelihood of a dry hole: permitted wells and reported pump tests are not a complete log of unsuccessful drilling. Check casing, grout and surface drainage on an existing well. For new construction, coordinate the well location with septic siting, the building footprint and drill-rig access before finalizing the layout.

Before Closing on a Rico or Dove Creek Lot

Start with the parcel's DWR permit and completion records, then compare nearby wells in similar terrain. Rico and Dove Creek share countywide statistics, not necessarily drilling conditions. Records across the line in Montezuma County or San Miguel County may help provide context, but nearby geology matters more than a county boundary.

For an existing home, make satisfactory water-quality and production evaluations part of your purchase due diligence. For vacant land, confirm the available permit pathway and allowed uses with DWR before assuming household, stock or irrigation water is available. Have drilling access, septic feasibility and the house location reviewed together, and retain budget flexibility until the well is completed and tested.

Well permits by decade near Dolores County

What a new well costs in Dolores County

How this is built: the median permitted depth here times the per-foot range for this ground, plus the normal system costs. A lot at the 75th-percentile depth (245 ft) would run roughly $21,925–$36,500. See the full Colorado well cost guide.

Environmental sites mapped within about 10 miles

Counts come from EPA, USGS and state datasets layered on the Colorado Well Finder map. A count is not a verdict on any one well; it tells you what to test for.

Buying land near Dolores County? Know what it costs to build before you buy the dirt.

A listing photo can't tell you whether a lot is a dream or a money pit. Two parcels near Dolores County can carry the same asking price while one needs an $80,000 driveway and a $45,000 engineered septic the other doesn't. The well numbers on this page are the start of that answer. A Tri-Lakes Site Feasibility Report is the rest of it: a licensed general contractor, excavator and septic installer reads the parcel the way we would if we were about to build on it, and puts the real cost in writing before your money is committed.

Spend a little to know. Or gamble a lot to guess. Realtors sell the view and inspectors look at houses that already exist. We're the people who'd build it, so we catch what quietly turns a "great deal" into a budget disaster: bad access, buried rock, steep grade, soil that won't pass for a normal septic, water that's a fortune to reach. And if the lot is good, you've already got a builder ready to do the work, driveway to drywall.

• Instant Online Report, $99 — type the address and get a buildability read on the spot: parcel, terrain and slope, soil and septic outlook. Cheap enough to run on every lot you're shopping.
• Desktop Report, $500 — a contractor's from-the-desk feasibility read: Regulation 43 and county code, GIS parcel data, terrain, flood and drainage, soil and septic viability, setbacks and buildable envelope, nearby well depths from our 591,000-well database, the likely driveway route, and a preliminary site-development cost breakdown.
• On-Site Report, $2,000 — everything above, then boots and a drone on the actual ground: house pad and septic zone located, access and winter conditions checked, rock and soil observed in person, a 15 to 20 page written opinion you can hand a lender or seller. Credited toward your project if you build with us.

Under contract, comparing parcels, or a realtor with a rural listing whose buyers keep asking "what will it cost to build here?" This is the due-diligence step almost everyone skips, and the one that saves the most.

Common questions about wells in Dolores County

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