In recent years, finding your own little unheard of spot on the river has become increasingly rare. Similar to how popular hiking trails have been exposed by websites and trail maps, many popular fishing areas in Colorado and in the greater Mountain West region have slowly, but surely become more crowded by those wanting to pick up the sport.

As a result, anglers have been forced to branch out and find other uncharted areas of the river which has led to some disputes between landowners, anglers and other river users.

Denver-based water-access platform RareWaters is attempting to settle some of the strained relationships between anglers and landowners by linking them in one place.

Originally starting his professional career in the finance world, RareWaters founder and chief financial officer Brenden Stucky first got into fly-fishing eight or nine years ago when he would use it as an outlet to rewind from his demanding job. 

“When I was going through that demanding career period I just got obsessed with it,” Stucky said. “I describe it as my version of yoga and it just helps me unplug and get away from today’s modern stresses.”

As Stucky grew more experienced and involved in the sport, he started to realize a major problem fly-fishing is currently facing. 

“The more I got obsessed with the sport, the more frustrated I got with the overcrowding at public waterways,” Stucky said. “Places can get pretty crowded. It is not only a problem in Colorado, it is a problem all over the United States these days. I got sick of going to places, pulling up at 7 o’clock on a Wednesday and every parking space for miles being filled with people.” 

In addition to every parking space being snatched by fellow anglers, Stucky said that he would also encounter poor fishing etiquette around big crowds, which ended up making the overall experience of the day being a far cast away from the serenity he was seeking while out on the river.

“I thought that there had to be a better way to do this,” Stucky said. “I grew up on a farm in Kansas and you used to be able to knock on a neighbor’s door and ask them if you could go pheasant hunting. You can’t really do that anymore.”

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With the hope of trying to address the problem, Stucky began exploring different options and in the process discovered there were a lot of fishable places that ran through people’s properties. 

From there RareWaters was truly born. In 2018 Stucky launched the business as a true startup with the mission of restoring some of the tranquility that is often associated with the sport.

At the company’s core, RareWaters seeks to decrease the current strain on public waterways by partnering with willing landowners to lease previously underutilized and overlooked river access points to anglers. 

In the early days of the company, Stucky would personally cold call landowners by looking at county clerk and assessor data online. He would give a pitch about how they could benefit from partnering with RareWaters and see if they were interested.

As the company started to pick up steam and partnering with other landowners, the company expanded to employ a more robust team, which includes current chief executive officer RJ Hosking who was intrigued by the company because of its potential to transform the landscape of the modern fly-fishing scene. 

Over the last several years, Stucky and Hosking have tirelessly worked to continue to build relationships with fellow landowners across mostly the Western United States, and, as a result, the company now has over 40 fly-fishing locations, including 23 in the state of Colorado.

“We are literally unlocking gates,” Hosking said. “We are unlocking gates to properties that probably haven’t ever been touched before or very infrequently. We are giving more access to more anglers.”

RareWaters works to ensure that everyone involved in the partnership benefits in some way. Not only are anglers getting access to private land, but landowners are also getting a form of passive income.

“We are a dual-sided marketplace that provides passive income for landowners while offering incredible pieces of land for people to fish,” Hosking said. 

Often touted as the Airbnb of fly-fishing because of the company’s business model, Stucky argues that the company is much more than just a land rental service for anglers. Instead, the company values the relationships between landowner and angler while also respecting the rural culture of the community.

“Airbnb is kind of creating some problems within those communities from a living and price point perspective,” Stucky said. “That is not what we are about. We are all about providing special experiences. Our model does not necessarily inflate real estate prices or create the same types of problems that Airbnb creates in those communities.”

So far RareWaters has been well received among the fly-fishing community and landowners. Stucky said that he can count the number of complaints the company has received in its history on one hand and that for the most part both anglers and landowners have been pleased with the bookings. 

“The anglers love it,” Stucky said. “All of our metrics on the angler side of the business are strong, if not industry leading in certain capacities. It is not to say that it is perfect, we are still learning. People seem to think that the price point is fair, that the properties we are signing up are great. The angler and land owner dynamic has been very positive over the last five years.”

RareWaters hopes to expand in the coming months and have over 100 partner properties by the end of 2023. The company will continue to focus on the Colorado and Oregon area over the next few years with a goal to expand to the East Coast and nationwide. 

“We have every intention of taking this thing national,” Stucky said. “The idea is for RareWaters to be a trusted national brand. If you are traveling with your family and friends to Pennsylvania, one day you are going to be able to trust RareWaters to put you on a really special stretch of water.”

RareWaters currently is partnered with landowners near Carbondale, Dotsero, Glenwood Springs, Hartsel and other locations across the state. Daily rates start at $125 per day, per angler, with some properties being listed at $200 a day. 

To find out more information about RareWaters, partner with the company or book a trip, visit RareWaters.com.