Gore Creek winds through Vail, shaping both the landscape and community identity. Listed as an impaired waterway, the creek has been the focus of the Restore the Gore initiative since 2016, led by the Town of Vail in partnership with local organizations. The goal is to restore the creek’s health so it can be removed from Colorado’s impaired waterways list by 2029.
“Gore Creek is inherently important to people in this community and it’s also central to Vail’s reputation as a destination,” says Peter Wadden, watershed specialist with the Town of Vail’s Environmental Sustainability Department. Community surveys conducted every two years consistently show that residents rank housing as their top concern, with protection and restoration of Gore Creek regularly appearing among the top three priorities.
Progress has been visible. “We’ve planted 26,000 native trees and shrubs along the banks since 2016,” Wadden says. “It’s a visible transformation, as restoring social trails into protected riparian areas and designating other areas as access points have meaningfully changed both what it looks like to walk along the creek and the health and resiliency of the ecosystem.” The planting isn’t just about science and stormwater — it’s about ensuring future generations inherit a creek as vibrant as the one we treasure today.
Kari Mohr, communications manager at Town of Vail, and her son enjoy a spring moment at the creekside.
MORE WORK AROUND THE BEND
Challenges remain — particularly the impact of landscaping chemicals. Fertilizers and herbicides have profound unintended creek consequences on aquatic macroinvertebrates and the overall health of bug populations. With the town already restoring nearly all of the 40% of the streamfront it owns, the remaining 60%, managed by private property owners, now holds the key to long-term recovery. The question is how to encourage buy-in from homeowners when punitive measures are often ineffective. Rather than wait for legislation to catch up to sustainable practices, a more impactful path may lie in encouraging voluntary behavioral change.
Leaders, businesses and residents can shift the culture by supporting organic landscaping practices. Aligning how we care for our yards with the health of the creek is about more than water quality — it’s about community values. When our choices support the creek, the result is a community that thrives in balance with its surroundings.
While impressive progress has been made, the work continues. The town remains committed to long-term success, with upcoming projects including stream restoration at the east end of Ford Park. That effort is partially funded by a Natural Resource Defense Fund settlement stemming from a 2021 snowmaking spill — an unfortunate incident now transformed into an opportunity to restore and renew.
Living streamside on Gore Creek in Vail’s Intermountain, I see the daily rhythm of this waterway — fly fishermen wading and kayaks cheerfully charging by as the water level shifts with each season. Yet you don’t have to live on its banks to notice it weaving through neighborhood mornings, winter strolls and walks across the Covered Bridge. The creek gives to each of us, and in return, it calls us to care together. This work is about coherence: how the way we live, build and love the land reflects back in the vitality of the creek. It is our through-line.
