Recently, we branded the last group of calves for the season at the Paintrock Canyon Ranch in Wyoming with the help of Linda and Savannah, two long-time guests. It was hot and dusty, and being the last branding of the year, the calves were huge, but our two friends jumped right in with the rest of the crew who’d come up from the other ranches for the event. By the time the last calf was branded, both of them were tired and dusty, but when given the choice of retiring or going out for a ride with one of the wranglers, elected to help unpack my daughter Tess’ household out of a semi truck that had just arrived from Colorado. They didn’t stop there; when it was unpacked, both remained afterwards to organize and straighten the house full of boxes.

Savannah and Linda are a testament to the amazing group of people who have been coming to our guest programs for the last 25 years. A testament to the strong friendships that we have made, to an ethic that drives people to jump in no matter what it is, because they want to learn more, want to become involved not only in the fun things such horseback riding, horsemanship, and cattle work, but also in the day-to-day ranch activities that puts them in direct contact with ranch life.

Ranchlands had its first ranch vacation guest in 2000, the first year of operations on the Chico Basin Ranch. Inviting paying guests to visit the ranch was a brand new, foreign idea, which in my mind had always been diametrically opposed to living and working on a ranch. It was a risk – we could not afford insurance – and I was also nervous about having strangers on the ranch who we would have to hand-hold on top of the rest of the ranch work that we had to do. But it was exciting too, because of the possibilities of what it could grow into over time. 

Little did we know how many people from around the country and the world would ultimately come to visit. Nor did we anticipate how many of our guests would become good friends, adding an entirely new dimension to Ranchlands that would change who we are.

I remember sitting in the office with Jeremy Gingrich, the very first Ranchlands apprentice, designing the very first ranch vacation flier. I wanted to make sure people understood that the experience we offered was grounded in actual ranch work and not pony rides. “Come live and work on a large-scale cattle ranch. Learn about grazing, land stewardship and ranch life from the inside,” we wrote. Way before social media and digital marketing, I advertised our stays through travel professionals like Gene Kilgore, the leading dude ranch broker of those times, paying to be on his reference book, and going to travel conferences and contacting travel professionals.

Our very first guest was a secretary from Hollywood, a young woman who we housed in the Casita, all alone in the middle of the 87,000 acres. I think she was about as scared as we were! I remember talking the evening before she arrived about what we would do if this person expected us to take care of her hand and foot. But what actually happened was the opposite. She pulled into headquarters at 7 a.m. in the vehicle we had supplied to her and the first thing she said was, “I’ll wait over here so that you can get done what you need to. Please tell me how I can help, I’ve come to learn, let me know what I can do.” Those words coming from her changed everything and has set the tone for our entire program. It relaxed us. Having guests immediately changed from a weight to a fun prospect, because we had someone who was genuinely interested in who we were and what we were doing. And that attitude has been indicative of the vast majority of guest’s attitudes and expectations of their stay on our ranches over the years. 

Over time, we have learned a great deal about the challenges of providing a paying guest with an experience that immerses them in this lifestyle. We now understand very well the importance of having the best people working on the ground caring for our guests and the highest quality that all meals should have. We understand the difficulties, the nuances required to provide a venue that transports our guests into a world they have never experienced before, in a safe and enjoyable manner. And then there are all the little, less obvious but critical things, such as hot water and plenty of it, high quality bedding, effective leadership and clear communication and coordination at all times.

Outcomes cannot always be anticipated and are mostly different than what we expect. What we initially saw as a business diversification (which it has indeed become) has become so much more. For us, it has been about making many good friends who regard our ranches as partly their own, which they share with good friends that they have made on their stays on the ranches. Over 25 years of guests have created a large and loyal group of people who have a good understanding of who we are as a family and as a business, and our mission to show how ranching is a catalyst for landscape-scale conservation that can have a significant impact on the ecological woes our world is facing.

As you may or may not know, this year has been the last we will be offering guest stays at the Zapata or Chico Basin Ranches. We have been concerned about starting an entirely new program in an entirely new landscape in Wyoming after having such a long and positive experience at the Zapata and Chico Basin ranches. However, two weeks ago when I was visiting with guests who were getting on their horses to head out for the day, several guests went out of their way to say how much they liked it here, more even than the Zapata. Whether they were being nice or truthful, it was so nice to hear. And it was nice to get affirmation that while we provide a quality product that many people want, our guests are also provide something valuable to us, which is simply a desire to help and become part of the community that Ranchlands is today.