About Timber Ridge Lodge Ouray
Timber Ridge Lodge has been welcoming travelers to Ouray, Colorado for generations - a true basecamp for jeeping, hiking, hot springs, and everything that makes the San Juans unforgettable.
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A Lodge with Deep Roots
How We Found Ouray - or Maybe It Found Us
In March of 2017, our lives changed forever when we became the owners of Timber Ridge Lodge.
We're Brian and Julie Duckles.
Brian grew up in LaPlace, Louisiana, and Julie in Beaver Dam, Wisconsin. We met in Houston and later built our life together in San Antonio, Texas, where Brian worked as a custom home builder and cabinet craftsman while Julie spent more than twenty years in the live entertainment and media industries with Live Nation and iHeartMedia.
After our son Nick left for college, we found ourselves reevaluating what we wanted life to look like. We dreamed of owning a Colorado mountain lodge somewhere surrounded by natural beauty, outdoor adventure, and a stronger connection to the people and experiences that matter most.
For more than a year and a half, we researched properties across the country, traveling whenever possible to visit potential locations. One by one, nothing felt right, and eventually we convinced ourselves that maybe this dream simply wasn't meant to happen.
Then one evening, almost on a whim, we decided to look online one more time.
That night, Timber Ridge Lodge had just been listed.
We flew into Montrose, toured the property, and instantly knew this place was different. We submitted an offer, and on Christmas Eve Day of 2017, it was accepted.
Within weeks, we resigned from our careers, sold our home and many of our belongings, loaded up a U-Haul, and headed for Ouray.
To many of our friends and family, the decision sounded completely crazy. We were leaving behind everything familiar to move to a mountain town of barely 1,000 people, with one paved road and no home mail delivery service. But to us, it felt like coming home to a life we had always hoped for.
From the moment we arrived, we poured ourselves into restoring and reimagining the lodge while learning every aspect of the hospitality business along the way. What began as a dream quickly became a true labor of love.
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Our Philosophy on Hospitality
Years later, our philosophy remains simple:
When someone chooses to spend their time, money, and energy on a vacation with us, they deserve the very best we have to give.
We never take that for granted.
Whether it's helping guests plan a scenic jeep adventure on Black Bear Pass or Engineer Pass, recommending a favorite hiking trail in the Uncompahgre Wilderness, pointing you toward Ouray's natural hot springs pool, or simply offering a warm welcome after a long drive through the mountains - our goal has always been to help create lifelong memories for the people who stay here.
One of the greatest joys of this journey has been meeting people from all over the world and sharing this incredible corner of the San Juan Mountains with them. Many guests arrive as strangers and leave feeling like old friends - and many return year after year.
Timber Ridge Lodge isn't just where we work.
It's our home, our dream, and our way of sharing the beauty of the mountains with others.
Come Stay With Us
We're honored you found us, and we look forward to welcoming you to Ouray.
Ready to experience one of Colorado's most breathtaking mountain destinations for yourself?