Guests of our ranch enjoy a beautiful sunset while on working ranch vacation, the ultimate horseback riding vacation in Nebraska

Working Ranch & Guest Ranch ~ Crawford, Nebraska

  Mule Deer & Merriam Turkey Hunting Paradise ~  Gateway to Crawford Hill

Nestled in the spleasure riding on our Nebraska working ranchcenic Pine Ridge of Northwestern Nebraska, our working cattle ranch & guest ranch offers mule deer and Merriam turkey hunting, the ultimate working ranch vacation,& horseback riding vacation, and railroad photography. We offer guests of various expermoving bulls on working ranch vacationience levels the opportunity to ride and experience ranch life, for a day or a week, on a beautiful, timbered high-country Nebraska working cattle ranch. Whether hunting or horseback riding, tell us about your experiences and desires and we will help you create the ranch vacation of your dreams!

Ponderosa Ranch, our 3300 acre Nebraska working cattle ranch, is located 70 miles south of the Black Hills of South Dakota. Our ranch boasts of a rugged beauty in its diversity; spectacular views insuccessful mule deer hunt on Nebraska working ranch every direction, open rolling grass meadows, a successful merriam turkey hunt on ranch vacationsteep hills, ridges studded with Ponderosa pine trees, canyons with Green Ash, Hackberry and Cottonwood lining the creek bottoms.

This makes a challenging terrain for the hunter or horseback rider but  a haven for mule deer and Merriam turkey. This same terrain provides excellent opportunities for archery, muzzleloader and rifle hunters.

We offer guests the opportunity to be a cowboy for a day or a week: to ride and fully experience ranch life on a scenic, timbered high-country Nebraska working cattle ranch. We offer a relaxed guests moving calves back into herd atmosphere, solitude for those who desire it, ranch broke quarter horses, comfortable, cozy, clean cabins, beautiful country and wide open spaces!

You decide what day of the week to arrive and to leave, and how long you want to stay. Rustic lodging, meals served family style, beautiful sunrises and sunsets, fresh air, star-gazing, a serene and peaceful retreat from the urban hustle and bustle...You will come as a guest and leave feeling like part of our family. We strive to provide rural down home hospitality for our vacation and adventure seeking guests! Come immerse yourself deeply in a vanishing lifestyle, and see why cattlemen and pioneers made Nebraska their destination long ago....

Because our ranch is a working cattle ranch we do require that guests have some prior riding experience.  We do not ride nose to tail, but spread out when the terrain allows and you need to be able to control your horse at a trot or canter outside of an arena if you wish to work with the cattle or help move cattle.  Our guest horses are very gentle quarter horses. You are welcome to bring your own horses.

We can custom tailor your riding and vacation time to match your experience level and desires. We can do pleasure riding only if you do not feel comfortable working with the cattle. The speed will be set by you, there will always be a little trotting involved but we do not need to canter/lope if you are not comfortable with that. You will have our undivided attention as we only take small groups of 5 people or less.  If you are unsure about your experience level being adequate, please contact us and we can talk about it! Your safety is very important to us as we strive to make this the ultimate horseback riding vacation for you and your friends or family.

If you wish to have the working ranch experience, you will ride, help round up and drive the cattle herd of 200 cows and calves, plus bulls, to new pastures. Also join us as we ride through the herd daily to check on them, checking fences, water, and minerals. Experience the thrill of bonding with your horse through the adventure of workingcattle grazing on our working ranch together to accomplish daily ranch tasks.

In May we normally round up the herd for branding and vaccinating the calves. In June we put the bulls out to pasture and sort them off and bring them home in August. We round up the herd again for vaccinating calves around Labor Day. We repeat this process again in October for weaning and selling the calves and pregnancy testing the cows. We sort off the cows who aren’t pregnant and haul to our local livestock auction. Then the rest go back out to pasture until we run out of grass or it starts snowing. They will be moved closer to home then for feeding hay during the snowy season and calving season in the spring. Then the cycle repeats itself.

cutting heifer out of the herd on working ranch vacationOther tasks that go on through out the year on our working ranch are checking water, filling salt and mineral bins, gathering strays, fixing fence, doctoring sick cows or calves.  Also maintenance and improvement projects on our tack, well/water system, buildings, equipment, etc., trimming hooves on the horses, spraying weeds....We have about 200 acres of alfalfa that we hay for winter feed.

Enjoy seeing all the wonderful wildlife on the  ranch - mule deer, white tail deer, wild turkey, coyotes, eagles and hawks, porcupines, raccoons, and many others.   Even elk and mountain lion have been seen on our Nebraska working ranch.

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Monday November 17, 2008