N Bar Ranch New Mexico
Dreamed of riding the open range on a good horse, driving a thousand head of cattle?
Ride back in time for a week at the N Bar Ranch in New Mexico where dreams come alive and adventure reins.
78,000 acres of wild high country, 3000 head of yearling steers and just four guests. You bet you will be a cowboy, this is the real deal!
The N Bar Ranch is New Mexico’s oldest working guest ranch.
For over twenty years we have made cowboy dreams a reality for thousands of folks. With only four guests a week your visit is a real hands on adventure.
We keep all 3000 yearlings in one of the six big pastures for a month and then gather and move to the next pasture for a month and so on from May through October.
Each pasture is about 12,000 acres so by the time we gather, drive, spread, and get strays a month has galloped by and it’s time to do it all again. Let me tell you it is long day after long day of gathering and driving big bunches of cattle. It’s cowboy heaven! Many days we will watch the sun rise and set from the back of a horse. So no matter when you visit there is always plenty of cowboyin’.
THE RANCH
The N Bar is a century old working cattle and horse ranch in the mountains of western New Mexico. We are remote, over an hour from the closest town. The headquarters sits in a beautiful valley surrounded by the 3 million acre Gila National Forest.
If you think of New Mexico as heat, rocks and rattlesnakes think again!
We are at an elevation of 8,000 to 10,000 feet, this is high country at it’s finest. Towering Ponderosa Pine forests, alpine meadows, Spruce covered mountains and miles of rolling grass lands. We have it all!
Wildlife abounds here. We are known as one of the premier elk habitats in the U.S. It is an everyday deal to ride and see hundreds of elk in one herd and view many herds each day. We also have plenty of antelope, deer, hawks, eagles, wolves and other critters.
Rich in history this high and lonesome country was the heartland of the Apache. Victorio, Mangus, and Geronimo all were born and lived in this awesome land.
Billy the Kid, Kit Carson and Ben Lilly traveled these trails. Butch and Sundance were cow-bosses on the ranch for three years.
Things are safer now but the country hasn’t changed a bit. You will see it as they saw it. Wild, free and unspoiled.
Don’t let the thought of New Mexico in the summer scare you away, it’s not what you may think. We are at 8,000 feet elevation and ride up to 10,000 feet which makes for comfortable days and chilly nights. July and August the days are in the upper 70’s and low 80’s with frequent afternoon thunderstorms which make for incredible sunsets. Mid summer nights will be in the upper 40’s and low 50’s.
WE HAVE NO scorpions, rattlesnakes, ticks, chiggers, blackflies or mosquitos!
Accommodations
Which pastures we are riding determines where we eat and sleep.
In the spring and fall we will be staying at the headquarters.
Everyone in their own cabin, hot showers and sit down meals in the cookhouse.
Mid summer we may spend a few nights each week out on the range in a basic cowboy camp of tents and bedrolls, no showers and meals are eaten on our laps.
Our cabins are nestled in the pines and just steps away from the cook house, showers and corrals. Each has a twin and a double bed, gas heat,
solar light and a deck with a couple chairs for relaxing as the sun goes down. They are clean, warm and cozy, everyone loves them.
The Bunkhouse has two sets of bunk beds, gas heat and gas lights with a deck over looking the valley. It’s a bit roomier than a cabin and perfect for three or four folks.
We also have a Big Cabin, for just $50.00 more per person, per night. It has two bedrooms, full kitchen and bath, living room with wood stove and a deck that over looks the hay field and horse pastures.
The Big Cabin can be rented year round for $90.00 per night with a two night minimum. You bring your own food and do your own cooking.
This price does NOT include riding.
The shower house has just been renovated and is really, really nice! There is a cowboy side and a cowgirl side each with two sinks and a shower with plenty of hot water!
Meals
Meals are served up in the cook house which is just steps away from all the cabins. It’s a very cool building.
All our meals are simple and hearty and there is always plenty.
Breakfast is a big one, then we each make our own lunch from a
spread and pack it with us. (We often don’t stop for a picnic but just eat on the go.)
Dinner is stews, roasts, BBQ and such. Of course a few New Mexican meals also. (You will learn not to be scared of green chili.)
All our beef and eggs and many veggies are home grown and most of our other meats are local. We like to eat and eat well!
When we are out in camp we have a chuck trailer with us and eat well there too.
Yes, we only have an outhouse but I promise you it is the nicest you have ever been in.
It too was just renovated.
2013 CALENDAR
This calendar is not an absolute, set in stone sort of deal. What we do and when we do it depends on grass and water and a few dozen other things. It is impossible to say months ahead of time exactly what we will be doing and when. The Spring Spread might take two weeks or six weeks. Fall Gather could be the same so just use this as a general guide line.
Spring Spread
The cattle will start arriving in early May. They will come in on semi’s a few hundred a day, a few days a week.
When they get in the corrals they will be looked over and anything not looking good will be cut off and held for doctoring.
Many of the arriving cattle will need to be branded which we will do at the H.Q. corrals. We will then push the cattle out into one of the big pastures and drive them to water before we let them drift. For those of you who know the ranch they will be going into Bearwallow and Negrito Pastures at this time of year.
The days cattle aren’t arriving we will ride out gathering and driving them deeper into the mountain pastures spreading them thin. We will be staying at the main headquarters.
May 12-18
May 19-25
May 26-June 1
June 2-8
SUMMER DRIFT WEEKS
The grazing plan calls for the 3000 yearlings to move to new pasture each month. The summer will just be constant gathering, driving and spreading cattle. There won’t ever be a day that we aren’t working cattle.
We will be riding Loco Mountain, Canyon Creek and Pitchfork pastures during this time of year and staying out in camp a few nights a week.
June 9-15
June 16-22
June 23-29
June 30- July 6
July 7-13
July 14-20
July 22-27
July 28-August 3
August 4-10
August 11-17
August 18-24
August 25-31
September 1-7
September 8-14
FALL GATHER AND SHIPPING
We will have worked our way around the ranch over the last few months and late fall we’ll end up in 7HL pasture ready to come into the smaller holding pastures for shipping.
The first couple weeks we will be gathering 7HL and getting all the strays rounded up.
The last few weeks are spent gathering a bunch out of the holding pastures to ship every few days. Into the corrals we drive them to be sorted, weighed and loaded on trucks. It’s a lot of fun!
We will be staying at the main headquarters.
September 15-21
September 22-28
September 29-October 5
October 6-12
October 13-19
Transportation
We are a long way from any where, it’s the price of living in paradise. Our rates include pickup {Sunday @1:00 p.m.} and drop off {Saturday @ 1:00 p.m.} in Albuquerque, the nearest airport.
We recommend you fly into Albuquerque the Saturday before the Sunday pickup. The ranch is located 4 1/2 hours from the airport. It is a beautiful drive through every eco-zone New Mexico has to offer but if you have been flying all day it’s just a long drive. Albuquerque is at 5,000 feet elevation, so staying over is a great way to get acclimated to the altitude. We have a great deal with the Sheraton Hotel, a very nice place right next to the airport. They will pick you up when you arrive in Albuquerque and take good care of you. We pick up only at the Sheraton Airport Hotel on Sundays at 1:00 p.m., and get you back to either the hotel or the airport at 1:00 p.m. the following Saturday. Please do not make your return flight departure earlier than 2:00 p.m. Saturday.
Requirements
You don’t need to be a top hand to come out, by the end of a week you will be well on your way to being one.
But you must be at least an intermediate level rider. You must be able to saddle and mount unassisted and be confident and easy on your horse at all gaits. The spring pastures are mountainous and can be technical with steep slopes, fallen timber, rocks and streams. The summer and fall pastures are more open and rolling but still offer up some challenging terrain.
We have a weight limit of 275 pounds and you must be in good physical shape with no serious medical problems. We are three hours from the nearest hospital!
You must not be a whiner!
You must be willing to pitch in and get dirty.
You must have a sense of humor and bring a joke.
We don’t claim to be for everyone. We aren’t going to babysit you.
WE AIN’T NO DUDE RANCH!
If your looking for kidney shaped swimming pools, shuffleboard, or a Jacuzzi look some where else.
RATES
The rate for a week at the ranch is $1200.00 per person. This is all inclusive except tips. The N Bar Ranch only takes 4 guests per week so please make your reservations well in advance. We require a deposit of $400.00 at the time of booking a reservation. The balance is due 30 days before arrival.
We take Visa, Mastercard, Discover and personal check.
We do not take kids under 16
We offer a 10% discount for returning guests and active military.
REFUNDS
We do not offer any refunds of deposit but we are happy to rebook you for a later date within one year.
We recommend you purchase trip insurance -- TravelGuard is just one example, 1-866-833-8784.
What to Bring?
Clothing and Riding Gear
-long sleeved shirts, light colored in spring and summer -heavy sweater and/or wind breaker! Even in the middle of summer, when the sun goes down it gets COLD. -scarf or bandana -gloves -walking shoes or hiking boots -boots with heels for riding (hiking boots don't make it, unless you don't want to ride) -hat: cowboy. Cowboy hats offer more protection from our intense sun. -canteen with a study strap. The size we suggest is one quart or one liter. -rain gear--but please, no super-light "disposable" ponchos
Personal Items
-toiletries -chapstick or some kind of lip balm with sun protection -towel -sunglasses -sleeping bag rated down to thirty, this is needed anytime of year-flashlight and extra batteries -camera YOU ARE ENCOURAGED TO BRING YOUR OWN SADDLE-BOOZE! B.Y.O.B.; we'll stop at a grocery store on the way to the ranch so you can stock up -cash. (for tipping the help)
We are a long way from anywhere, and a three hour drive to the nearest drug store, so please be sure you have an adequate supply of all medications you may need.
Things to Forget: We have no electricity so leave those blow dryers, curling irons, shavers, and radios at home. Your cell phones, Blackberries, Raspberries or what ever the hell ya got won't work here either. Besides, you're on vacation! And hey, we know your dog is special and sweet and perfect, but ours aren't and we have too many as it is, so please, NO DOGS!
N Bar Ranch
P.O.Box 409 Reserve, New Mexico 87830
575-533-6253 [email protected]
www.nbarranch.com N Bar Ranch New Mexico
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