Executive edge: Bob Fanch; Cable maverick shows innovative knack in making mountain ranches more eco-friendly.

• Author: Bronikowski, Lynn
• Position: Attitude at Altitude

Growing up in Gloversville, N.Y., Bob Fanch was fond of the old, rustic camps and lodges of the Adirondacks and dreamed of someday building facilities reminiscent of his youth while preserving land for future generations.

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He has done just that at Devil's Thumb Ranch near Winter Park, where in 2001 he and his wife, Suzanne, purchased the historic Devil's Thumb Ranch along the west side of the Diamond Bar-T Ranch. They've merged the two ranches into a year-round ranch resort and spa on 4,000 acres at the foot of the Continental Divide.

"This really is a labor of love," said Fanch, who worked closely with architects and a planning consultant to find green solutions to protect the environment while bringing modern amenities to the ranch dating to 1940 on land where buffalo once roamed free. "From the beginning, preservation of the land was important to us. We want to keep most of the ranch's 4,000 acres in their natural state."

The Fanches' mission to use sustainable materials and eco-friendly practices was so successful that in 2004, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency honored Devil Thumb's Ranch for measures such as using geo-thermal energy to heat the cabins and other buildings, and building an eco-friendly wastewater treatment system. The Fanches also reclaimed a 150-year-old barn that was moved to Colorado from Indiana and transformed into the resort's 26,000-square-foot activity center, as well as housing for John L's Wine Cellar and Uncorking Room, named for Fanch's father and brother, and Zach's Mercantile & Rental, named for the...