Spring Trail Maintenance – Dude Ranch Work Vacation
By popular demand! A new get-away idea! May 13 to May 19
So, if you want to get away from
the telephone ringing,
the traffic,
the TV commercials every six minutes
And you think that celebrating spring might include
hauling logs,
carrying buckets of dirt up steep climbs
setting fence posts and
a few hours of riding horses every day for a week?
May 13 is our spring trail maintenance week, and you are invited to join us!
We will have 12 – 15 new horses joining our herd, and they will need lots and lots of riding to get into shape for the summer.
Our trails will also need lots of attention (that is, lots of sweat and dirt!). Areas of erosion will be repaired, dead trees that may compromise safety will need to be removed, water bars built, and just maybe we will build a small barn.
Hard physical labor and
Lots of dirt.
No texting,
No cell phones,
No TV
and very limited internet available.
A break from civilization!
If this sounds like fun, visit our Dude Ranch Specials Page or call the ranch (970-224-1222) for more details.
BTW, summer is booking now. If you are planning to join us this year, you might want to call soon!
Is this a Bed & Breakfast wedding with a Murder Mystery Game?
or a
B&B Murder Mystery Weekend with a wedding?
Most people elope to a dude ranch to get away from their family and friends. They want a relaxed, very simple ceremony and a fun weekend getaway horseback riding.
Well, Joel and Sheri decided to have a simple, relaxed ceremony, but brought their family, including all the kids and the dogs.
Why? They had an opportunity to tie the knot while on pilgrimage to the Holy Land, and were married while visiting the Sea of Galilee. Wow!
But what of mom and dad? And what of the gang of brothers and sisters and the small herd of nephews and nieces?
What to do?
Sheri is a brilliant woman – she brought the family together for a re-do and just for fun a murder mystery game for the weekend! Joel’s a pretty smart guy – he married a brilliant woman! Twice!
Everyone had a great weekend except Cocoa. Poor Cocoa!
She takes one taste of her new candy, and dies! Dead as a doornail, despite the dog’s best efforts at muzzle to mouth resuscitation.
Who did it???
The list of suspects includes almost everyone who attended the wedding!
So here’s a small collection of some of the pictures from the murder mystery game and the wedding.
When at Sundance Trail Guest Ranch, either for a summer dude ranch vacation or Fall/Winter/Spring B&B stay,
you will spend lots of time with our horses (and donkeys!).
Horses communicate with body language. (Is this why women so often understand their horses immediately, and why guys are so often clueless?) Their faces, and especially their ears speak volumes, once you learn how to read them.
Here’s a quick primer on some easy to recognize “expressions.” Have fun!
Answers to each of these facial expressions are listed at he bottom of the page!
1. Stevie is ANGRY!!! She is having a bad hair week. Spring snow has melted and she want’s to party, and the geldings around her are all nerds or something!! Dude ranch horses are supposed to be romantic!!! None of these guys want to dance!!! Best to just leave her alone for a few more days…
She is clearly saying: “keep your distance or I will bite you!!!”
2. Mocha is taking a nap, or maybe she is meditating. Nope, she’s sleeping, in fact, she is snoring! One of her back hooves is up on the toe, her ears are flopped off to the sides, and her eyes are soft, gently starting off into the distance.
3. Rose Blossom is definitely sleeping! She’s still a baby, so she sleeps a lot. She even has her eyes closed, which only babies do – adults sleep with their eyes open.
4. Apache is awake, alert, and wants the cookie in my pocket. He is demonstrating interest and is interacting.
5. Khalli also wants the cookie in my pocket, but at the same time she is listening to some interesting gossip BEHIND her! Yes, kinda like radar dishes, horses’ ears can pivot front to side to back; even in different directions. Yes, if she wanted, Khalli could listen to two different conversations at once!
6. Rusty is actually sleeping. one of his hind feet is up on the toe, his ears are flopped off to the side, and his eyes are softly staring off into space…
7. Calamity is not happy that she is the last picture. She is small, but she is VERY bossy!
Hmmmm…… The weather people call for an October total of 2.9 inches of snow for our area. We got that three weeks ago, and it disappeared the next morning, as October snow should. The aspens still claim October as theirs; time to show off their golden leaves.
Oops! Wait a minute – we got a good eight more inches last night, and another six inches falling today!
The dogs are delighted! The older horses are playing like foals! The goats are making snow angels and laughing!
And the guests riding in the snow? Just look at their faces…
Tracy (from Houston!) says that riding in the snow is spectacular. I think that Laura (from Cleveland) agrees. Not too sure what Texan Kevin (also from Houston) thinks, but his horse, Jack is a happy fella! At lunch Kevin said it was a great ride…
Cowboy Victor was born and raised up here – he’s just cold!
–After successfully keeping momma black bear and her cubs out of the dumpster and the kitchen all summer, Sundance Trail Guest Ranch has been been completely overrun with bears… and mooses*!!
-Take home a bear as a memory of your ranch vacation! Or maybe a Christmas present from your family vacation. Looks like there’s a whole herd of the critters hiding in the gift shop, next to the Jackalopes, water bottles, disc golf Frisbies, and elegant Colorado hand carved bowls.
-Our neighbor, Rob, is a chainsaw artist, and he make some of the finest carvings we’ve ever seen!
-Our dude ranch has become a gallery of finished pieces!
-Rob’s work shows the demanding control and precision needed for this unlikely art form.
Big ones, little ones, some holding signs, some holding tables, some just sitting on a table top being cute.
Most of these are bears, but there are cubs and mooses* as well.
He takes custom orders for wood carvings of any kind; including bears, bear lamps, Eagles, Indians, Cowboys, Santas, pumpkins, …you name it!
Rob’s prices vary, depending on the size and difficulty of the piece, and whether any museums or fine arts galleries are bidding for the piece.
Generally, small bears & mooses*, about a foot tall, start at $35 or so.
If you have something special in mind, please feel free to email the ranch and Rob can give you a quote.
Also, Rob said he’s open to demonstrating his art here at the guest ranch if you have a group that would like to watch & learn more.
Trail riding on Annie is a great adventure vacation!
She has a very fast walk, which some riders enjoy, and which intimidates some anxious riders. She has very sensitive sides. Annie loves to run! The whole forest is her dude ranch!!!
She has never bucked, spun, reared or tried to unseat her rider. But she has a mind of her own, and does not immediately automatically follow her riders’ cues. She likes to be in charge, but will gladly follow a confident rider, after that rider has established her/his horse back riding authority.
Annie is excellent on trails – never spooks. Likes to lead every trail ride.
Timid riders who need a “push-button” horse would not enjoy her.
A wrangler favorite. Annie also LOVES water. When allowed, she will swim in our mountain lodge pond with the ducks (and her tack, and her rider…!). She also enjoys putting both front feet in the water troughs and kicking out all the water – just for fun!
Age: 1998
Color & Markings: Buckskin Height: 15 Hands Horse size: Medium QH Rider size: Medium Rider skill: Confident Bit: Padded hack
Guest Ranch Horseback Riding is seldom as intense as Dorothy May Winfield expresses here, but this poem beautifully catches those blissful moments of being “in the zone” with your horse. Thanks, Dorothy (and Stewart!) – please say hello to Scotland for us. We hope to see you again next year!
Mounting my quarter horse, I steel myself for the journey,
A ripple runs through him as my legs gently squeeze his sides,
He moves forward, slowly at first.
I feel his power beneath me,
Flicking the reins he gathers momentum
Faster and faster and faster,
He breathes deeply,
Fire bursts from his flared nostrils.
The plain stretches before us like endless time.
hands pull at my hair, my clothes,
Stripping my mortality.
My heart beats to the rhythm of his hooves.
The ball of fire above, now burns my naked body.
The saddle has gone,
There is nothing between us,
We have become one.
Only my senses are alive,
I am lost, deep within myself.
Our Western Horseback Riding philosophy is on our Riding Horses page.
Elope to a Guest Ranch Vacation: Fast! Fun! Stress free!
Justin: “We’ve gotten old and stodgy. We need some excitement around here. Let’s host elopements! Let’s host gen-u-ine western dude ranch elopement weddings. Ride a horse and tie the knot! ”
Ellen: “Elope to a Colorado dude ranch… Awwww… That’s sooo romantic!”
Dan: [Grumble grumble.] “Keep it simple!”
Justin: “That’s the whole idea! A simple Colorado get-away elopement wedding at a western dude ranch.”
1. Folks don’t need a preacher or justice of the peace to elope. In Colorado, they just need two witnesses to sign the license with them. And getting the license is easy – no blood tests, no waiting time; just ID and $30.” The Larimer County Clerk’s rules are pretty darn simple.
2. We’re only 2 hours from Denver International Airport. Couples can fly in, get their license, marry and be in their honeymoon cabin the same day! Next day half-day horseback rides, all day horseback rides, or maybe just an hour or two and some frisbee golf, or hiking or fishing, or maybe even a jack-a-lope hunt!
3. They can save themselves hassle – their wedding can create a frazzled “bride-zilla” or relaxed cow girl. Instead of endless family arguments, they can enjoy a romantic ranch vacation, a spontaneous elopement wedding and honeymoon. Pull out your hair organizing or sit in the jaccuzzi with a glass of champagne.
4. They can bring guests, or keep it intimate. Heck, they can bring their kids – we can throw in a few family binding ideas. Or they can bring a bunch of friends – I’ll bet Sherri and Joel would throw in a Murder Mystery and make a week-end party!
5. We can put together a handy-dandy Ceremony Planning Guide. They can cut and paste a ceremony from our guide in a matter of minutes, or they can write their own.
7. With our own retail liquor store, folks can enjoy alcohol if they wish: champagne, spirits, wine, beer and sodas.
8. And there’s no reason why married folks can’t elope and renew their vows.
9. Although Colorado does not yet recognize same sex marriage (we do), there’s no reason why we can’t provide these folks with a Certificate instead of a license.
Dan: “Simple rules (and not many of them!), simple ceremonies, simple fun! I like this.”
Ellen: “We’ll make little gift baskets for their rooms, and we can keep silk bouquets, and maybe some other simple keepsakes for couples to take home with them. And I can order petite wedding cakes if they want to celebrate.”
What do Pepi Roni (the pizza magnate), Judge Waylin Payne (of Roadkill, Colorado) and the science fiction author H. G. Wells have in common? Why, they’ve all been murdered right here at our Colorado B&B – dude ranch!
One of our favorite winter time activities is Murder Mystery weekends. Once a month or so, when we have 8 to 12 willing suspects, we find a poor murder victim sprawled out nearby – “deader than a doornail.” Murdered, and often with the first clue nearby.
Who did it? Helena Handcart? Charley Chaplin? Tiny Bubbles? Father Alfredo?
Our guests then spend the weekend, between meals and horse back riding, untangling each others’ half-truths. evasions and high jinks. The games are designed for participants who are willing to take a whimsical view of blackmail, larceny, deceit, and murder.
Those of you who are offended by such high-jinks as shady dealings, sordid affairs, and deceptive conduct should not book reservations for these weekends! If you do book, plan on some laughter!
We love hosting these games. Imagine, people come to spend a B&B week-end with us: They exercise our dude ranch horses, they make us laugh like crazy for the weekend, and then they pay us money! What a life!
We have games scheduled the weekends of:
November 11th Sorry! Fully booked!
December 9th
December 31st New years!
January 13th
February 24th
We can also schedule a game for any time that you might have 8 – 12 people who want to spend the week-end together and play (before dude ranch season begins in mid-May) – birthday party or maybe just get away with some friends!
Give us a call (970-224-1222) and we can tell you all about Bed and Breakfast murder in Red Feather Lakes.