Fort Garland, Colorado Well Depths, Yields, and Costs

How deep are wells around Fort Garland?

How much water do wells make near Fort Garland?

Fort Garland well depths reflect mixed ground conditions

The median permitted well near Fort Garland is 130 feet deep. The middle half runs from 60 to 225 feet, so a driller bidding a typical residential well should not assume that every hole will resemble the median. About 36% of recorded wells are under 100 feet, while 51% fall between 100 and 300 feet.

The deeper tail matters for budgeting. About 12% are between 300 and 600 feet, and 1% reach beyond 600 feet. The deepest recorded well is 982 feet. Local ground is described as mixed sedimentary and alluvial material, with many permits naming an unnamed or fractured-bedrock aquifer. Fractured ground can make the exact depth less predictable from one parcel to the next.

Expected well yield around Fort Garland

Among wells with a reported pump yield, the median is 11.1 gallons per minute, and the middle half is 10.0 to 15.0 gallons per minute. That is a useful working range for a household well, but it is not a promise for an untested property. Only 152 wells report a pump yield, so the yield data is a subset of the permit record.

The distribution is generally favorable: 59% report 5 to 15 gallons per minute, and 36% report more than 15 gallons per minute. Another 5% fall between 1 and 5 gallons per minute, while none of the reported wells are under 1 gallon per minute. Ask for a pump test and learn the permitted use before relying on a neighboring well's output.

Water levels and what the Fort Garland record shows

Static water level means the depth from the ground surface down to standing water when the well is not being pumped. The local median is 50 feet, with the middle half between 30 and 96 feet. That information can help a contractor think about pump setting, trench work, and how much lift the system may need, but it does not replace a site-specific measurement.

The decade comparison does not show a simple dropping water table. The median measured level was 80 feet below surface in the 2010s and 45 feet below surface in the 2020s, meaning the later reported water was shallower. Measurements can come from different wells, locations, seasons, and conditions, so treat this as a record-level indication rather than a basin-wide conclusion.

Permit history and drillers serving the area

Fort Garland has a long permit record, with 740 wells in the Colorado DWR data and 533 recorded as constructed. Permits were issued in every listed decade, including 153 in the 2010s and 125 in the 2020s. The newest permit year is 2025. The use mix is mainly domestic or household at 55%, followed by monitoring at 22%, irrigation at 15%, and stock use at 9%.

The most active drillers in these records are Heersink Drilling with 71 permits, Mitchell Drilling Co. with 46, and Valley Pump Company with 21. These names show permit activity, not a recommendation. Confirm current licensing, insurance, availability, and references before hiring.

What a new Fort Garland well may cost

For the mixed sedimentary and alluvial ground reported around Fort Garland, the drilling rate model is $50 to $75 per foot. At the local median depth of 130 feet, that puts the drilled hole at about $6,500 to $9,800. This is the hole itself, not the complete water system.

A finished installation with pump, pressure tank, trenching, and electrical is modeled at about $12,500 to $21,800. A bid can move outside that range if the hole is deeper than expected, access is difficult, casing or grout requirements change, or the lot needs unusual trenching and power work. Get the contractor to separate drilling, casing, testing, pump equipment, electrical, and site restoration so you can compare bids accurately.

Risks to check before buying near Fort Garland

Low yield is not the main pattern in the reported data, but a record without a yield is not proof of a productive well. Of the 740 permits, only 152 report pump yield, and 538 report a total depth. A dry hole or weak fracture can still occur on a parcel that has a good well nearby. Check the well construction report, pump test, water level, casing, grout, and current equipment condition.

There are 3 PFAS sampling or contamination sites and 3 historic mine features mapped within about ten miles. No EPA Superfund or cleanup sites are mapped in that area. That does not make private water automatically safe. Test the proposed well for relevant contaminants, inspect nearby land uses, and keep septic setbacks, replacement-area needs, building placement, and access for drilling equipment in the site plan.

A practical lot review for Fort Garland buyers

Start with the exact parcel, then compare permits nearby in Fort Garland, Blanca, and the surrounding Costilla County area. Neighboring wells can help establish a realistic depth and yield range, but they are not a guarantee in fractured-bedrock ground. Confirm the permit's authorized use: domestic, stock, irrigation, and monitoring wells do not all support the same plans.

Before closing, have a Colorado well contractor review access for a rig, likely drilling depth, pump location, storage, electrical service, and septic layout. If you plan a home, confirm the well permit and any augmentation-plan requirements with the state and local authorities. For an existing well, obtain a current flow test and laboratory water test rather than relying on an old seller statement.

Well permits by decade near Fort Garland

What a new well costs in Fort Garland, CO

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 (225 ft) would run roughly $17,250–$28,875. 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 Fort Garland? 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 Fort Garland 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 Fort Garland

Keep researching

More in Costilla County

All wells in Costilla County — county-wide depth, yield and cost figures.

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