Giddy up to Colorado!

Written by Karen Temple, March 1, 2012

From the novice to the most experienced rider, the very young to the very old, whole families come together while enjoying the great outdoors.

Valet parking, Colorado style, involves a few cowboys, a chuck wagon and a tour of the grounds. This toss back in time is a great way to transition into a Colorado all-inclusive dude ranch vacation, and that was exactly how our week began.

Colorado has a wealth of dude ranches that have been offering city folk a taste of the wild

west for the last 100 years. Located just two hours north of Denver, Colorado, guests arrive on Sundays at Latigo Ranch for a one-week program that has lots of flexibility and can accommodate families of all ages.

The Yost and George families have been running the ranch for the last 20 years. They truly make you feel like you have come back home to visit. Lisa and Randy George along with their two grown children, Hannah and Spencer, can be found in the kitchen cooking up delicious meals, always with a choice of meat, fish or vegetarian. Jim Yost is head wrangler while his wife Kathie manages the office and shop. When unattended, the ranch shop works on the honour system with index cards available for guests to mark down their purchases for future payment.

Our fellow guests from Vermont were on their seventh return visit to the ranch. Having visited many other ranches in their day, the couple are dedicated to Latigo citing the riding instruction and small group sizes as one of the main reasons for coming back. The food alone is enough to get me to return. All meals are taken together in the dining room with the adults eating with hosts while wranglers keep the kids entertained.

There are some great activities to experience during non-riding hours. Try your hand at lassoing, axe throwing, whip cracking, shooting or if you prefer something a bit tamer, there is dancing as well as cookouts and overnight campouts. All of this takes place at 9000 feet with a backdrop of the Colorado Rockies that never gets old.

The maintenance crew, dining room servers and wranglers all seem to be best friends. Their happiness is contagious, ultimately contributing to making your stay extra special.

If your bum gets a little numb, all ranches offer off-ranch activities from hot air ballooning to golf, fly fishing or white water rafting excursion. We chose the latter and were a little skeptical with the 42ºF temperature when we headed out for a day on the river. But it was unbelievable. Tony and Erin from Red Tail Rafting gave us nothing less than a great day. It was exhilarating, and at times relaxing but most of all fun. By mid-morning, our sun-baked skin was craving the splashes of cold river water that crashed over the edge of our dingy. Some cliff jumping, dingy splash wars and a great riverside lunch all added up to a great day out.

Before leaving Latigo Ranch guests design their own family branding iron which is then branded into the wall of the main dining room. Guests burn dots into the paneling around their brand to indicate the number of return visits. Judging by the number of dots I counted, Latigo is a resounding success.

We left the cozy cabins, beautiful mountain top views and home cooking and headed down into the valley for a visit to the C Lazy U Ranch. An Orvis recognized premier fly fishing destination, C Lazy U is named for the shape of the 2 miles of Willow Creek which meanders through the property.

Closing in on its 100th year in business, C Lazy U is a more glammed up resort-like ranch with higher-end amenities and camping à la glamour which they call glamping. Picture one of those big old canvas tents but inside there are hardwood floors, a real bed complete with high end linens, bedside tables and solar lighting. The ranch runs a 12-month operation. In addition to horseback riding, the ranch offers hunting in the fall and snow cat skiing in the winter.

Children are grouped by age, spend their days riding and their evenings dining and doing activities together with their counselors. Parents can choose to ride or not, fish, hike or spend a day being pampered at the luxurious Lazy You Spa. There is also a 12, 000 sq foot indoor riding arena.

Fridays are family days when the whole gang gets to ride together after first posing for a mounted family photo. C Lazy U is the only ranch that has an on-site bar. Other local ranches allow guests to bring their own alcohol. Evenings are very social as the adults gather for apéritifs before dining together either in the main dining room or on the gorgeous poolside terrace. If you have any energy after the incredible meal, there is nightly entertainment.

Proudly donning our plaid shirts and with a newly-discovered love of cowboy boots, we were sad when our four-wheeled ride came to shuttle us back to Denver for our flight home to Ottawa. A dude ranch vacation is about horses, horseback riding and experiencing the Rocky Mountains but while you are enjoying this taste of the wild west, you’ll find your family reconnects while having just simple, old-fashioned fun in the great outdoors.

For more information on either of the ranches profiled or to learn more about a Colorado Dude Ranch vacation, visit www.coloradoranch.com

What to look for when deciding on a ranch:

With so many ranches to choose from, make sure you know the features your family will require. Some offer a little more grit in a relaxed setting while others are more luxury cowboy.  Here a few questions to consider when deciding which ranch to saddle up to:

•    Does it have a pool?

•    Do they offer family rides and if so, how often?

•    Is there flexibility built into the schedule?

•    Is there riding instruction?

•    How big are the riding groups?

•    Is there child care available?

•    Do families eat together?

•    What non-riding activities are included?

•    Are they a member of the Colorado Dude Ranch & Guest Association?

      www.coloradoranch.com

•    Are they a member of the Dude Rancher’s Association (DRA)?

Www.duderanches.com

For more to do in Colorado, check out this article.