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Located as we are on the southern rim of the San Bernardino National Forest, we get a lot of wildlife visitors. This Peninsular bighorn sheep is an example. We don't see them often but it's always a thrill when we do. One of the unexpected features of this region is the abundance of wild grapes. The bear, birds, and deer eat most of them, but there are usually a few left for us. To protect them for those freeloaders, we wrap them in organza jewelry bags so they can ripen

Springtime is also the season during which our local rattlesnake population wakes up. There aren't too many but we always have to be watchful. For that reason, we asked Snakeworx to conduct some rattlesnake aversion training for our eight dogs. With periodic refresher courses, the dogs will stay away. Peninsular bighorn sheep that inhabit our foothills make the occasional appearance around the ranch. This one looks to be in robust health. Here at Lost Creek Canyon Ranch,

The venerable Eldorado Country Club in Indian Wells (founded 1959) gathered up its members and joined us recently for a hike, stretch class, and two meals. Some of the participants found themselves so relaxed by the setting that they dozed off in between exercises! Among our biggest events of the season was a fundraiser for the Bighorn Institute of Palm Desert. More than 60 people came up to enjoy the ranch, gobble down BBQ from one of our favorite restaurants (Cornerstone)

Our dog population is now up to eight, and they're all big. We go through an awful lot of dog food. Poet is our latest addition, an Armenian Gampr puppy that has been growing like a weed. He's nearly as big as our Great Pyrenees and still has a ways to go. Still, he's a complete sweetheart and loves to play with our younger dogs. We have an old bee house at the ranch, built long ago and entirely of stone. Evidently there was an active beekeeping business here for a while

February was a tour-heavy month with a number of groups passing through the ranch. Among the notables were board members of the non-profit organization Animal Samaritans, a huge provider of health and welfare services to our valley's animals. KESQ weatherman Patrick Evans was among the attendees. Another event that took place at the ranch this past month was a yoga retreat with some 20 participants. Their day included a ranch tour, lunch, yoga sessions, animal intros, and

The new year kicked off our peak winter season here, and we have quite a few tours already on the books. Our citrus is ripening and soon we'll be awash in grapefruit, lemons, oranges, and tangelos. Our weather too is nearly perfect this time of year, and we can bask in the sunshine while the rest of the country suffers in deep freeze. Many of our tour groups are from the north, and they are especially appreciative of our winter warmth. Not surprisingly, our various family

As you may know from following these posts, Lost Creek Canyon Ranch is also host to the SoCal Mini Horse Sanctuary. The Sanctuary sits on about 11 acres in our middle ranch area and houses miniature horses and donkeys, plus emus, alpacas, and more. All are rescues. And last month, there were two more arrivals: a pair of miniature cows. They're very friendly and quick to come over for a pat and a treat. This is one of the two new arrivals - a miniature Highland cow. He's

The advent of fall brought with it the finishing touches to our remodel of the Depot, formally a broken-down building used for storage and now a spectacular venue for location photography, meetings, special events, weddings, and more. Among its first events was a special pre-Thanksgiving dinner for our ranch friends, families, and staff. We enjoyed the sundown views, ate until we were ready to burst, and had a thoroughly wonderful time. If the upcoming year holds any specia

We have a new tenant at Lost Creek Canyon Ranch, and we're thrilled to break the news. The Southern California Mini-Horse Sanctuary has relocated from Hemet to our Middle Ranch area and taken over about a dozen acres. Their critters include miniature horses, donkeys, and cattle, alpacas, emus, guinea fowl, and more. Jeannie is the on-site owner there and we will be adding a tour of her menagerie to our own in a newly available combined tour. It's like your own private zoo

So just like every year, September is monsoon season here in the desert foothills. More unusual this year was a flash flood warning that gave us a 10-minute heads-up before a deluge of mud from the San Bernardino mountains rolled down the hill and filled up our two ponds. Both were filled to the brim, flat as two little football fields. And since some of our heavy equipment was down for repair, our ranch hands got to work the old-fashioned way: with shovels and sweat. It was

Look what our trail cameras caught roaming in our west pond: a female mountain lion (or cougar) and her three cubs taking a morning...

Our ranch manager Guilmer had a noteworthy 50th birthday this month, and the whole crew celebrated with thousands, or perhaps even...

Well, it looks like June brought with it an uninvited guest in the form of a juvenile black bear. He and mommy showed up one...

This has been a very sad month. Barley, our beloved top dog for more than 10 years, passed away due to a run-in with a service vehicle. ...

Our ranch Rivian has been a great purchase, and we were especially appreciative when a Rivian tech came out to the ranch for a service...

Linda received a belated birthday gift from Don Joaquin in the form of this handmade swing. It's a great way to while away the day as you the watch the birds and the shadows creep across the mountainside. And there's plenty of room for our big white pooches to saddle in for a pat.

The ranch staff surprised Linda with a birthday party complete with cake, flowers and a card. The "Happy Birthday" chorus was a little rough, but it was a kind and thoughtful thing to do.

January is birthing season for our local cattle, this little cutie is going to get very big. These cows are feral but used to our...

Some might call it junk, but for us it's ranch art. This tractor's work days may be over, but it will spend the rest of its days...

This military surplus Hummer is our new tour bus of choice. It holds up to 10. Our New Hummer Ready for Your Tour A sad story with a...