One of Cuchara’s best-kept secrets also happens to be one of its most practical assets, especially for cabin owners, whether full-time or seasonal. Many residents have heard the name Cuchara Association, yet its purpose, responsibilities, and range of services often remain unclear. Let’s talk about it.

In an unincorporated mountain community like Cuchara no town government exists beyond the county. Certain responsibilities don’t simply disappear,  but are quietly taken up by neighbors willing to steward shared spaces and services. The Cuchara Association is an organization rooted in the valley’s early history and still plays an important role in shaping everyday community life. 

Let’s take a closer look at who they are and the role they play in the community.

Why and When It Began

In 1912, George Mayes, the founder of Cuchara Camps, established the Cuchara Camps Outing Club, which was also known as the Cuchara Camps Outing Association. It’s purpose was to organize outdoor activities and manage the area’s shared recreational resources. (4, 5) Over the following decades the club gradually faded from activity and appears to have largely dissolved by the 1940s. It is likely that the formation of the Cuchara Association in 1952 represented a renewed effort to bring people together again to steward community-wide facilities, recreation, and shared responsibilities as Cuchara grew. The property now home to the Community Center and recreational courts, formerly owned by Cuchara Camps, was transferred to the Cuchara Association by a deed executed and notarized in 1960 and officially recorded in 1967. (6)  

The Association’s creation coincided with a pivotal moment in the valley’s history, as Cuchara began its transition from a resort destination into a community of returning families, seasonal cabin owners, and year-round residents. While recreational facilities and social programs already existed, it became increasingly clear that these shared assets, such as the recreation hall and tennis courts, would not endure without organized, cooperative stewardship. (7)  

Rather than incorporating as a town or establishing a regulatory authority, community members chose a voluntary association model, reflecting a long-standing local ethic: neighbors pooling resources to care for common property while preserving individual independence.

History and Evolution

As Cuchara’s character evolved over the second half of the twentieth century, so too did the Association. Its mission gradually expanded beyond camp-style recreation to embrace the long-term stewardship of shared facilities, services, and community infrastructure. The Cuchara Recreation Center was formally opened in 1960. (8)   

Assets such as the recreation center and tennis courts were preserved and maintained through member dues, insurance coverage, and volunteer labor as commercial resort activity in the valley steadily declined. (9)    

By the late twentieth century, the organization adopted the name Cuchara Association, a change that reflected its broader role as a community-wide institution rather than a seasonal camp operation. (10)  

It is important to note that the Association’s development did not transform it into a municipal government, homeowners association, or enforcement authority. Cuchara’s governance remains solely under the authority of Huerfano County. (11)  

The Association exists entirely through the voluntary financial support and volunteer efforts of its members. (12) It is best understood as a member-supported stewardship organization that provides essential services and maintains shared assets that would otherwise not exist in the community. (13)  

Present-Day Responsibilities and Services

Today, the Cuchara Association’s responsibilities extend well beyond simple facility ownership. Its work is best understood through four primary areas of stewardship, each addressing a need that would otherwise go unmet in an unincorporated community.

1. Stewardship of Community Facilities. The Association owns, insures, maintains, and manages shared recreational facilities. This includes the Cuchara Recreation Center, tennis and pickleball courts, and associated grounds, structures, and equipment. (14)  The Cuchara Community Center is a 38-by-69-foot building totaling just over 2,600 square feet and includes a full kitchen and restroom facilities. (15) This stewardship also encompasses routine maintenance, utilities, insurance coverage, safety oversight, scheduling, and long-term preservation planning. In an unincorporated setting like Cuchara, these responsibilities would otherwise fall to no entity at all.

2. Property Security and Monitoring Services. Recognizing that many cabins and homes in the Cuchara Valley are occupied seasonally, the Association offers optional property security and monitoring services to its members. These services include a Security Manager who ensures doors and windows are secure, inspects the property after storms or heavy snowfall, and alerts the owner if anything appears amiss. (16)  

3. Recreation and Community Programming. The Association also organizes and supports seasonal recreation programs along with community events, social gatherings, and volunteer work days focused on maintaining shared facilities and grounds. (17) This also involves helping to fund and support the Cuchara Summer Recreation Program, bringing families together through guided hikes, movie nights, stargazing, cookouts, and the much-loved weekly bingo nights. (18)  

4. Administrative and Organizational Stewardship. Less visible, but equally essential, the Association stewards membership administration and records, financial management, insurance and liability coverage, and ongoing communication with members regarding services, schedules, and community updates. (19)  

Governance and oversight of these responsibilities are entrusted to a volunteer Board of Directors, who serve on behalf of the membership. (20) The word steward best captures the Association’s role, while champions is the most fitting way to describe the members who actively uphold, protect, volunteer, and invest in the life of the community.

Membership, Dues, and Contact Information

Membership in the Cuchara Association is voluntary and open to residents and property owners throughout the Cuchara area. For many, it offers a simple way to invest in the shared spaces, services, and programs that help make life in the valley both functional and connected.

As of 2026 membership dues are $60. This contribution supports the maintenance of community facilities, utilities, insurance coverage, administrative operations, and recreation programs that benefit the broader community. (21) Members may also choose to participate in an optional property security and check service, available for an additional $120 per year, providing added peace of mind for those who are away from their cabins for extended periods. (22)  

Because dues and service fees are established by the Association and may change over time, residents are encouraged to consult the Association’s official website for the most current information regarding membership options, services, leadership, and activities.  

Joining the Cuchara Association is simple and convenient. The Association embraces simple, modern technology to make community connection easy and accessible. Becoming a member, exploring local events, or connecting with others can all be done in just a few minutes from your computer or phone through their straightforward online system. Check it out at this link. 

Value to Pinehaven Residents

In an unincorporated mountain community, shared amenities don’t maintain themselves; they endure only when someone is willing to step forward and care for them. The Cuchara Association is one way the broader community has chosen to do just that. While membership is voluntary, the benefits of maintained facilities and organized services ripple outward and strengthen Pinehaven and Cuchara alike. 

This valley is home to nine distinct yet interconnected cabin communities. This includes The Gap Area, Pinehaven, the Village, Eddie’s Acres, the Ski Area, Spanish Peaks, River Run, Acres of Diamonds, and Cuchara Pass Ranch. Each has its own character and story, but all are bound by a shared sense of place and purpose. The Cuchara Association serves as a reminder that we are not isolated pockets tucked into the mountains. We are part of a larger tapestry of neighbors woven together across the Cuchara Valley who share geography, history, and community.

A Quiet but Enduring Institution

The Cuchara Association’s strength is found in its ability to unite neighbors to care for what they share through voluntary cooperation. In a valley shaped by independence, that quiet willingness to show up may be one of its most enduring community traditions. (23)  

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Footnotes

Parenthetical numbers in the text (e.g., 5) correspond to the sequentially numbered citations listed below.

1.  Cuchara Association, “About Us,” Cuchara Association, https://cucharaassociation.clubexpress.com/content.aspx?club_id=852956&page_id=22

2.  World Journal, “This Week in History,” accessed January 5, 2026, https://worldjournalnewspaper.com/this-week-in-history-91/. The original officers of the new Cuchara Association were Frank Strange, Abilene, Tex., president; Kenneth Edminster, Wichita, vice president; Mrs. Cecil Johnson, Dalhart, Tex., secretary and Waller Taylor, Cuchara Camps, treasurer.

3.  Gene and Rhonda Roncone, “Part 3: Cuchara Camps—Catalyst for Growth,” Cabin in the Pines: Cuchara (blog), June 2025, https://cabininthepinescuchara.blogspot.com/2025/06/part-3-cuchara-camps-catalyst-for-growth.html.

4.  Gene and Rhonda Roncone, “Journal 63: Cuchara Camps Outing Club,” Cabin in the Pines: Cuchara (blog), September 2020, https://cabininthepinescuchara.blogspot.com/2020/09/journal-63-cuchara-camps-outing-club.html.

5.  La Veta, January 1912: The Cuchara Camps Outing Association was organized by G. A. Mayes, John W. Powell, and C. C. Whitney to conduct a pleasure resort for visitors. Huerfano County, Colorado News of the Day (online archive), 1912

6.  Three sources confirm County records documenting that Cuchara Association owns the land and buildings associated with the Community Center and playground area.

(1) Property spatialest.com (Account # 62016) with a total value of $201,514 as of January 5, 2026 (https://property.spatialest.com/co/huerfano#/property/62016).

(2) Huerfano County Warranty Deed (document identifier: GENERAL-304-164, Book Page: GENERAL-304-164, Recording Date-Time: 06-27-1967)

(3) Huerfano County Quick Claim Deed. document identifier: GENERAL-304-163, Book Page: GENERAL-304-163, Recording Date-Time: 06-27-1967)

The Warranty Deed is the legal instrument that transferred ownership of Lots 8 and 9, Block 6 in Cuchara Camps from Ivan M. and Harriet B. Denton to the trustees of the Cuchara Association, conveying full fee-simple title with warranties against encumbrances and a promise to defend the title. Executed and notarized in 1960 and recorded in 1967, the deed formally established the Cuchara Association as the rightful owner and provided public notice of the transfer and its accompanying protections. The seven-year gap between 1960 and 1097 almost certainly reflects an administrative delay, not a delayed transfer of ownership. The Cuchara Association likely held legal ownership from 1960 onward, with the 1967 recording serving to formally place that ownership into the public record.

7.  “Way Back When: Cuchara Camps,” World Journal, https://worldjournalnewspaper.com/way-back-when-in-cuchara-camps/.

8.  This Week in History – July 01, 2010,” World Journal (Huerfano County, CO), July 8, 2010, 1960 entry (noting the formal opening of the new Cuchara Recreation Center), https://worldjournalnewspaper.com/this-week-in-history-july-01-2010/

9. Cuchara Association, “Facilities and Programs,” Cuchara Association, https://cucharaassociation.clubexpress.com/content.aspx?club_id=852956&module_id=198657&page_id=22

10.  Cuchara Association, organizational history references, Cuchara Association, https://cucharaassociation.clubexpress.com/.

11.  Gene and Rhonda Roncone, “Journal 47: Understanding Cuchara’s …,” Cabin in the Pines: Cuchara (blog), January 2022, https://cabininthepinescuchara.blogspot.com/2022/01/journal-47-understanding-cucharas.html.

12.  Cuchara Association, “About Us,” Cuchara Association, https://cucharaassociation.clubexpress.com/content.aspx?club_id=852956&page_id=22.

13.  The Cuchara Association is registered with the Internal Revenue Service as a 501(c)(4) social welfare organization. Internal Revenue Service, Tax Exempt Organization Search, “Cuchara Association” (EIN 84-0479708), classified as a 501(c)(4) social welfare organization, registered in Atlanta, Georgia, United States, accessed January 2026, https://apps.irs.gov/app/eos/. 

14.  Cuchara Association, “Facilities and Programs,” Cuchara Association, https://cucharaassociation.clubexpress.com/content.aspx?club_id=852956&module_id=198657&page_id=22

15.  Cuchara Association, “Cuchara Community Center,” Cuchara Association website, accessed January 6, 2026, https://cucharaassociation.clubexpress.com/content.aspx?page_id=22&club_id=852956&module_id=198643.

16.  Cuchara Association, “Security Program,” Cuchara Association, https://cucharaassociation.clubexpress.com/content.aspx?club_id=852956&module_id=198646&page_id=22.

17.  Cuchara Association, “Facilities and Programs,” Cuchara Association, https://cucharaassociation.clubexpress.com/content.aspx?club_id=852956&module_id=198657&page_id=22

18.  Cuchara Association, “Cuchara Summer Recreation Program,” accessed January 5, 2026, https://cucharaassociation.clubexpress.com/content.aspx?page_id=22&club_id=852956&module_id=198658. 

19.  Cuchara Association, “About Us,” Cuchara Association, https://cucharaassociation.clubexpress.com/content.aspx?club_id=852956&page_id=22.

20.  Cuchara Association, “Board of Directors,” Cuchara Association, accessed January 3, 2026, https://cucharaassociation.clubexpress.com/content.aspx?club_id=852956&module_id=198647&page_id=22&utm_source=chatgpt.com.

21.  Cuchara Association, “Membership Information,” Cuchara Association, https://cucharaassociation.clubexpress.com/content.aspx?club_id=852956&module_id=198658&page_id=22.

22. Cuchara Association, “Security Program,” Cuchara Association, https://cucharaassociation.clubexpress.com/content.aspx?club_id=852956&module_id=198646&page_id=22.

23.  Author’s note: In preparing this article, the author used AI-assisted tools for research support, proofreading, fact-checking, and stylistic refinement. All narrative choices, analysis, and historical interpretations are the author’s own, and responsibility for accuracy rests solely with the author. The blog’s research methodology statement is available at: https://cabininthepinescuchara.blogspot.com/2019/03/methodology-sources-and-use-of-research.html