Description

Location Overview
Dolores Point sits atop a high mesa in western Colorado near the Utah border, just west of the small town of Gateway. To the west, the view stretches toward Castle Valley and the La Sal Mountains, while to the east it opens onto the Dolores River and the Uncompahgre Plateau. The strip runs about 3,300 feet long at an elevation of roughly 7,150 feet.

Camping & Recreation
A short hike to the eastern canyon rim offers a dramatic view overlooking the Dolores River nearly 3,000 feet below, and old mining equipment can still be seen scattered around the airstrip and parking area. Dolores Point offers great primitive camping, though no water or facilities exist onsite — solitude is the main draw. Nearby, the town of Gateway has a hotel that maintains the airstrip and can arrange a pickup for visiting pilots.

Notes & Warnings
This is a demanding strip. Pilots face an uneven surface, high density altitude, and shifting canyon winds, and overflying the runway first to check conditions and wind is strongly recommended. Runway 14 has a 1.7% uphill grade with several uneven "humps," and the southern third has a developing rut several inches wide and deep running about 80 feet down the center of the runway. Departures on runway 32 aren't straight — the runway jogs slightly left near the top of the hill — and STOL aircraft can use a high point 800 feet north for a clearer view of the remaining runway. Because the strip doubles as an active BLM road, ATVs or Jeeps occasionally use it; aircraft technically have right of way, but courtesy is expected, and wildlife or cattle may also be present as a hazard. As of a few years ago, Dolores Point was among several Colorado backcountry airstrips flagged as potentially at risk of closure under a BLM Grand Junction Field Office travel management plan — worth checking current status before planning a trip.

History
Dolores Point was originally built in the 1940s by Wally Winfield, a WWII Air Force veteran who later became a rancher and uranium miner in the Grand Junction and Gateway areas. He was tasked by the Atomic Energy Commission with building the airstrip to connect the region's uranium mining community with supplies and services from Grand Junction and surrounding cities. The strip remains a well-known destination in the modern backcountry flying community, frequently featured in pilot trip reports and Colorado airstrip guides.