This is dry rangeland with few cattle amidst a forest of  piñon and juniper trees. We are restoring the grass and the beetle damaged forest to what it must have looked like in 1870.   Homesteaders had a hard time, but, for a while, the land had been suitable to the ancestral Indians. You can explore and help find the many abandoned sites that are out there.

The pithouse is  one that the ancient people might have built if they had glass doors, running water for toilet and shower and electricity for a microwave. Quiet nights are broken by the call of hoot owls and the wail of  coyotes. You will feel isolated  but the ranch is just 3/4 of a  mile off the county road and  14 miles from town. You will look up to the  Mesa Verde escarpment and be near the park entrance. There is one double bed and a rollaway for kids. To keep prices low, this is a self-catering unit where the guest makes up the bed with our linens and sweeps out on leaving. There is a simple kitchen and we can help with some food  for breakfast.

Breakfast Not Included

Season Open: Year round if you can get in and out on our farm road

Study the  range and forest restoration.  Help record ancestral Indian sites. Walk the mile to Stinking Springs Cañon.  See if you can discover the remains of the watch tower near the expanse of slick rock. Imagine  you are the homesteader and decide how you will get water.

Rate Range: $.60.00 a night

We are off of County Road 34 but the route is complicated. You must open and close  two gates and cross our neighbor's land. The isolation is part of the intrigue. We have to arrange your visit in advance. E-mail for details.

We have lived in our passive solar house for 30 years.  The pithouse is a small version where the sun provides winter warmth and the  earth envelope keeps you cool in the summer.