Down by the LLR Corral

The wranglers live down at the corral either in bunk houses or trailers. It is down the hill from the rest of the guest ranch so unless you know it is there, you would never know there were horses sitting up by the pool or at the Lodge.


Rebecca wanted to go see the corral as soon as we settled in on Sunday afternoon. We later learned that the horses here all get Sundays off, which is really nice compared to the day riding places around Estes Park. This pretty Palomino was by itself but definitely wanted some attention. We later learned that is was new this year and Denny was getting it ready to ride next year.


Here are Denny's horse, the Paint, and Mr. Man, the pony Amber rode when she led trail rides. He's quite large for a pony but just right for Amber. He's still young (4, I think) so he didn't always listen but you could tell he was going to be a great pony when he matures a bit more.

Here's the view of the Twin Sisters from the Corral. Just a gorgeous setting and a wonderful place to go every morning.

Here's Mount Meeker one day after a ride. The road leads up to the rest of the ranch. The tack room was behind us, the corral was over to the left and behind, and the bunk houses were up to the left just outside this photo.

And, a slightly different view of Mount Meeker. This was sunrise on our last day there. It sure was beautiful!

One morning, we got to watch the hay being delivered. This truck sure makes it look easy. And, those horses go through a lot of hay!

The horses would not be happy to see this sign if they could read! Denny told us we could bring carrots down for the horses if we wanted. We bought some but none of them were really interested in them. Guess they aren't spoiled like the horses we ride at home!


Of course, the horses do get fed. Denny has this cool old truck (I forget the year) that is perfect for dumping the hay into the horses' bins. Notice how interested they are in what he is doing! That horse in the front was trying to help, I guess.

And, here are some of them after he's finished filling the bins.


That's it for today's photos. Up next, photos from our rides.

Guest Ranch Photos, Part 2

I wasn't having any luck adding more photos to the previous post, so I'll try a second post.

This is Millie, the owner's dog. We really enjoyed all the dogs there - just 3 of them and they were never pests.


Here's the sign to the Kid's Camp. Normally, I think those tree faces look tacky but I really liked this one and it made the kids laugh.

Here is one of the many hummingbirds we saw. They had 4 feeders and the birds seemed very territorial. One day, when the other large feeder was empty, one of the hummingbirds kept chasing away any of the other birds that came to the full one.


Next, I'll post some corral and ride photos.

Guest Ranch Photos

Here are some photos from around the guest ranch. I didn't take as many as I thought I did. Oh, well, there is always next year. These are from around the lodge; I'll add corral and horse photos later.


Here is the sign you see in the parking lot:


This is the Lodge:



Here's our cabin - #13. Note the tree growing through the roof. Unfortunately, it is now dead.


Here is the front room of our cabin. Rebecca slept here. No, I didn't make Ali take the top bunk. She liked being on the bottom bunk and she pulled the bedspread down from the top to turn it into her special little cave.



Here's the back room, where Ali and I slept.


And, here is the view out from our deck, which also had a really nice hot tub.


All of the cabins were different. Some were larger with 2 full bedrooms and 2 baths; some were smaller A-frames. They also have rooms in blocks of 4, many of which connect. Most of the rooms and cabins have hot tubs. They also have a large house, the Doctor's House, up on the main road. They rent that one to large groups. While we were there, it was being used by a former Commandant of the Marine Corps and his family.

Some more photos

Okay, back to school has been busier than expected. Well, not really, just very busy. Add in all the after school activities, getting started with Girl Scouts, and a holiday today, I just haven't had tons of time to work on photos. I had planned to post some last night during swim team practice but I couldn't get an internet connection to work. Oh well, anyway, here are a few Elk images to tide you over until I get photos done.

Here is the large herd I was the morning of the wildlife excursion:


Here are two yearlings from that herd:


And, here is the bull - only one in the herd that we could see, other than the yearlings, which don't count:


Oh, these guys aren't Elk, they are Mule Deer. Thought the baby looking back at us was really cute:

First Photos!

Well, here goes - the first photos. These are all from Ali's bike rides so I'll do the best I can explaining them.

This photo is the first one he took on his first ride. (He didn't take photos on all of them). I wish I could tell you the name of the distant mountain, but I can't. This ride was from Big Elk Park to Lake Meadows. See if you can find his bike in one of the photos he took on this ride.

I know the name of this mountain - it is Mount Meeker. Poor Mount Meeker - at 13,911 feet, it doesn't quite reach 14,000 feet in elevation, so it is mostly ignored by all the hikers who think anything less than that isn't worth climbing. But, it sure is a pretty view that we saw many times during our trip. I'm guessing the road is Cabin Creek Road, but I could be wrong.

Another view of distant mountains. If you want to know anything about it, you will have to ask him.

I'm guessing this next photo is a closer shot of the mountains in the distance of the previous photo. I could be wrong. Notice the glacial lake in the center.

I'm not sure why Ali took this photo. I'm guessing he stopped here to "commune" with Mother Nature.

Ali didn't take any photos on his second ride, so sorry, none for his first trip to Johnny Park. But, his next ride was back to Johnny Park (and down to it) so no real loss. He saw this guy on the trail. Presumably, it is a Western Terrestrial Garter Snake.

Ali's last ride was definitely a pretty one. This ride was south of Lane Guest Ranch, near Pleasant Valley. Can't tell you anything about the photos, but enjoy the scenery he elected to share with us. See if you can find his bike in one of these photos too.

Back to the big question, was it the right choice?

We're back at home, now for 2 weeks. I'm finally catching up and although I wrote most of my last posts on the airplane on the way home, I hadn't managed to find the time to post them and finish the rest. And, yes, the photos are coming - I took hundreds and am slowly managing to sort and get them ready to publish. I promise they will come and I don't think you will be disappointed.

Anyway, I started this blog talking about how I chose Lane Guest Ranch and wondering if I had made the right choice. Rebecca's tears on Friday evening and Saturday morning showed me I had.

Rebecca was very sad to see this vacation end – she met some nice kids – her new friends - and got to ride a beautiful horse and enjoy the fresh air. She quickly put this vacation up there with her two other favorites – Disney World and Mexico – and said it would have been way above the other two if she had seen a Bighorn Sheep. (She later told me it was the best vacation ever and that this had been the best summer of her life!)

So, with the knowledge gained about their behavior, it looks like an early summer trip to the Lane Guest Ranch for us next year – maybe for Ali’s birthday. And, we know that we’ll be getting to the park entrance when it opens for our second trip up Trail Ridge Road in search of Bighorn Sheep.

We all agree that the Lane Guest Ranch was definitely the right choice. The accommodations are rustic (but very clean) but what makes this place a success is the wonderful people who work there and their willingness to always find a way to say yes to anything you want or need. From Tom, the guy who services the pool and hot tubs plus manages the grill at lunch 2 days a week, to Al our waiter who also fills the hummingbird feeders and remembers I can’t have any dairy products, to Denny, Jenny, Amber and all the other wranglers who make sure everyone has a great ride, we salute you and look forward to seeing you next summer! And to Lloyd Lane, we hope that you continue to let people share your wonderful ranch for a long time - you are an exceptional host!

Finally, a Stellar's Jay

All the guide books write about the various birds you see in this area, and the favorite seems to be the Stellar's Jay – a gorgeous bright blue jay with a tufted head. We had seen a lot of wildlife, including many Gray Jays, but no Stellar's Jays.

I wanted some more early morning shots of Mount Meeker and knew that down by the corral offered one of the better views of it. So, up early again, I was out the door by 6:10 to catch the sunrise. Just as I got outside, I heard birds I had not heard before. When I looked, up, there were two Stellar's Jays just outside the main Lodge. I wasn’t able to get photos of them – I guess they are about as shy as the Bighorn Sheep – but at least I finally saw them. And, yes, they are as pretty as everyone says they are.

The walk down to the corral along with some nice views of Mount Meeker was a nice way to end the trip. The horses seemed to wonder why I was there – no one else was up. The new Palomino in particular, was very interested in me. He is just 4 years old and is a new acquisition for the ranch. Not yet ready to ride, he still seems to be a very friendly and eager young horse. Denny, the head wrangler, said he is happy with the progress he has made – he lets Denny put a saddle on him and has let Denny sit on him. He is kept in his own pen separate from the other horses so that he begins to associate human contact with good things. I gave him a last few strokes and said we would be back, hoping to see him in the saddle next year with Mr. Man, Bonnie, and all the other great horses we met this year.

The season is approaching the end for the ranch and the horses – they have 2 more weeks before they head down to Lyons to winter over in a 1,000 acre pasture. Before they go out, the ferrier removes their shoes so they really get to run wild. While some might think it cruel to keep them out all winter, those who have met them know that it is the best vacation they could ever ask for. They get to run wild, barefoot, while eating fresh, delicious grass with no human telling them what to do or putting saddles on them. Yes, they love to work but they need their holidays just like humans do.

Next up - Back to the big question, was it the right choice?

Mine #1 and Pleasant Valley

Today was our last full day and we were not really looking forward to our trip ending. There were tons of trails for Ali to test on his Klein and Rebecca and I were enjoying our daily horseback rides.

The Ranch Program Director had suggested to Ali that he head quite a ways south just past Pleasant Valley for a really nice ride at a trailhead marked Ceran Saint Verain. So he headed out just after breakfast (we always seemed to be the first to arrive for breakfast when they started serving at 7:30). Rebecca and I were off for our last ride on the Mine #1 trail. Rebecca got Bonnie again, which made her quite happy, and since I had liked Squirt so much (not everyone did), I got her for our ride. Stephanie and Amber were our guides for this trip, which ended up being my favorite. It is longer than the other beginner rides, goes above the tree line for some incredible views, and has a very fun, technical downhill section that it shares with Mine #2. The mine itself is pretty boring – a hole in the ground that we approach from above and can barely see – but the scenery is beautiful. The guides say that this ride is the hardest of the beginner rides and it shows – we had to stop several times to let some less experienced riders catch up. But, we played a great game on the way down – Amber grabbed a stick and place it in a tree. The next ride, in this case Rebecca, had to grab the stick and place it in another tree. And, so on, we went down the line until it either reached Stephanie in the back or was dropped. Well, it made it all the way back to Stephanie, which according to Amber was a record for the summer!

In the meantime, Ali was riding what he said was his favorite ride – a very technical but beautiful trail. It was very rocky and even he admitted to having to get off the bike a push in some places it was so steep and rocky. But, there were a couple of locals from Boulder out there too and even they had to get off and push. He came back with a smile and was even happier to see that it was burgers on the grill for lunch.

Rebecca again went with the Kids Camp – this time for putt-putt golf in Estes Park. Ali and I, unfortunately, had to start packing up. Ali wanted to make sure we had ample time to return our rental car, check in and pay for his bike, so we were leaving at 8 am the next morning.

Up next – Finally, a Stellar's Jay.

Early Birds Catch the Wildlife

There is a beautiful church not far up the Peak to Peak Highway from the ranch that I had been trying to photograph all week. It is aptly named the Church on the Rock, which you will see why when I post photos. Each time, the clouds and light had been bad so I decided to wake early and do it early in the morning. I woke about 6:10 and looked out our deck to see a gorgeous sunrise – Mount Meeker was a beautiful shade of pink with gorgeous clouds above. I quickly dressed, grabbed my camera gear and the car keys, and raced outside to catch the light on Meeker. I got a “grab shot” but that was all I could manage before the light starting getting too bright. Then, I headed out the highway to the church.

I decided to do a bit of exploring since it was still a bit early for the light to reach the church and I was hopeful I would see the herd of Elk again and maybe some other critters – I had yet to see a Stellar's Jay. First, I drove up the road towards Longs Peak hoping to get a nice early morning view of it. Instead, all I saw was a line of cars parked on each side of the road leading up to the parking area. Even at 6:30, the parking lot was already full and there were not many spaces along the access road to park. (I talked with one of the uber-hikers later, Mary Beth, and she said she has been up there at 3:30 am and parked in the last spot in the lot!)

Next, I drove up to the pond where we had seen the Elk yesterday, and sure enough, they were there again. So, I pulled into the next road to turn around, and there was a gorgeous coyote, peering across the road at the Elk. I managed two quick photos out the window before it decided it could not handle the herd on its own (Yes, they do hunt Elk but usually in packs and usually they go after the very young or elderly.)

After turning around, I pulled off the road and took a few photos. Mostly, I watched because I had a decent number of Elk photos already and I wanted to see if they did anything different. But, soon, I decided it was time to head back to the church, and I was right. The sun was lighting it nicely and there were some nice clouds behind it. I spent about 30 minutes doing various shots of it before heading back to the ranch. Figured it was about time for Ali and Rebecca to be up and I was getting a bit hungry. Of course, when I got back, Rebecca was up playing on her Nintendo DS while Ali was still lazing in bed….

Next up – Mine #1 and Pleasant Valley