Monte Vista, Colorado Well Guide

How deep are wells around Monte Vista?

How much water do wells make near Monte Vista?

How deep are wells around Monte Vista?

The local median well depth is 98 feet. The middle half runs from 57 to 180 feet, so a driller bidding a typical site may be working in that range rather than assuming every well is close to the median. Half of the recorded wells are under 100 feet, while 41% fall between 100 and 300 feet.

There are exceptions. The 90th percentile is 260 feet, and the deepest record reaches 3,022 feet. That extreme should not be used as a normal estimate, but it does show why a nearby permit is more useful than a countywide guess. Aquifer conditions named in the records include unnamed or fractured-bedrock, Confined San Luis Valley, and Unconfined San Luis Valley aquifers.

What water yield can a Monte Vista well produce?

Reported yields are strong overall, with a median of 15.0 gallons per minute. The middle half of reported results runs from 15.0 to 50.0 gallons per minute. 81% of reporting wells produce more than 15 gallons per minute, while 18% fall between 5 and 15 gallons per minute.

No reporting wells in this dataset are listed below 5 gallons per minute. That is encouraging for household planning, but yield records are not the same as guaranteed long-term supply. Pump tests, storage, pressure equipment, and the well permit’s allowed use still matter. Exempt household-use wells are subject to Colorado rules, including the general 35 gallon-per-minute pumping limit.

Is Monte Vista’s water table getting deeper?

Recorded static water levels are relatively shallow. The median depth to water is 18 feet, with the middle half between 8 and 27 feet. That affects drilling decisions, pump setting, trench work, and the way a contractor plans casing and grout.

The decade comparison deserves attention: the median reported water level was 9 feet below the surface in the 2010s and 18 feet in the 2020s. This series suggests deeper measured water levels in the newer records, but only 69 wells report a static water level, so it is not a complete monitoring network. Ask for current neighboring measurements before treating the change as a property-wide trend.

Who has drilled near Monte Vista, and how active is the area?

Permit history is substantial and spans decades. The records show 105 permits from the 1950s, 93 from the 1960s, 336 from the 1970s, 133 from the 1980s, 276 from the 1990s, 376 from the 2000s, 168 from the 2010s, and 137 from the 2020s. The newest permit year is 2025.

The most active drillers named in these records are Valley Pump Company (Self, Clinton L.) with 216 wells, Spencer, D W with 112, and Burk Drilling Inc. (Burk, Ken C.) with 102. Treat those names as permit-history context, not a recommendation. Confirm current licensing, availability, scope, and references before hiring.

What does a new well cost near Monte Vista?

For the mixed sedimentary and alluvial ground around Monte Vista, the drilling model uses a typical rate of $50 to $75 per foot. At the local median depth of 98 feet, the drilled hole is estimated at about $4,900 to $7,400. That is the hole only, not the complete water system.

A finished well including the pump, tank, trenching, and electrical is modeled at about $10,900 to $19,400. A bid can move outside that range if the site needs greater depth, difficult access, extra casing or grout, unusual trenching, treatment, or a different pump arrangement. Get the drilling price, dry-hole terms, completion work, and testing requirements in writing rather than comparing per-foot prices alone.

What risks should a buyer check before drilling?

Low yield is not the main pattern in the reported results, but incomplete records still leave uncertainty. Only 475 wells report a pump yield, and only 69 report static water level. A dry hole or disappointing result remains possible, especially where fractured bedrock is involved. Ask a driller to review nearby permits and explain the proposed casing, grout, target aquifer, and pump test.

Water quality also needs separate testing. Mapping within about 10 miles shows 11 PFAS sampling or contamination sites and 2 historic mine features, with 0 EPA Superfund or cleanup sites. That does not prove contamination at a parcel. Test the existing well or new source, inspect septic setbacks and replacement-area options, and confirm that the lot can support the house, driveway, well, and septic system together.

Buying or building near Monte Vista

Before closing, pull the DWR permits for the parcel and nearby properties, then compare depth, reported yield, static water level, aquifer name, use, and completion details. The local use mix is 56% domestic or household, 21% stock, 25% irrigation, and 5% monitoring, so not every nearby well is a direct model for a residence.

Check properties in Center, Del Norte, Alamosa, Mosca, Alamosa East, and Hooper only as broader regional context; the closest neighboring wells remain more useful. For a building lot, confirm the permit pathway, access for a rig, electrical service, septic design, water-quality testing, and room for repairs. In an over-appropriated basin, an augmentation plan may be required for some uses. Have the driller and a water-rights professional review the site before you commit.

Well permits by decade near Monte Vista

What a new well costs in Monte Vista, 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 (180 ft) would run roughly $15,000–$25,500. 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 Monte Vista? 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 Monte Vista 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 Monte Vista

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More in Rio Grande County

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

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