Just an (Extra)Ordinary Week Here!

      We’ve had week after week of awesome families here on the ranch and it’s been incredibly fun catching up with old friends and welcoming new ones! There’s not too much we can say—the pictures speak for themselves. So take a look!

  And check out this adorable family! It’s hard to believe this photo was from their FIRST trip here 15 years ago!

      And all these years later? They are still loving their trips to the ranch. We watched these boys turn into amazing young men and one even came to work here a summer. We LOVE this family and love how they love this place. Already looking forward to next time Chris and Sue!

      Thanks to the Kaiser family for sharing some of their photos with us. Check out this FISH they caught and had prepared by our chef! Now that’s a meal all by itself!

They scored in the antler hunting department as well. (We think they may have acquired a new addiction…it gets in your blood for sure!)

And props and love to one of our new guests who fit perfectly into our hilarious ranch family—Ricky we miss you!!

…But our aim was better in the staff show…(Can’t. Stop. Laughing. We love you!)

      We had a few small animal rescues this week-- starting with this little hummingbird who managed to get into our river porch where we eat overlooking the Colorado River. Our staff found him weak and cowering in the corner, but a little time under a warm lamp and some sugar water and he was quickly revived. What a happy moment for our loving staff to see him fly away!

     And here was a rescue by our ranch kids. The children this week found a broken-winged butterfly who took a couple of days to rest and recover before she got used to her taped wings and discovered she could fly away. It was a bittersweet moment for all her wonderful nurses!

We bet some of you know what THIS is! (And it’s awesome. And delicious. And a surprise-ish.)

      You know what else is a surprise? Summer storms! People often ask us what the weather is like. We can honestly say that MOST of the time it’s gorgeous and sunny, but sometimes? One of these babies can blow in and then blow out again as fast as it came.

But we find it the perfect time to move things.

And bathe the ranch dogs.

     How about a HIKE? The flowers are still awesome in the high country with all the great moisture we’ve been receiving this summer. And all the variety of colors make an already beautiful trail, a gorgeous one!

And the ranch dogs were loving it too!

A few more fun pictures from our week!

Tubing anyone?

A carriage ride to town?

How about a pool party kids?

Could ice cream make it any better?

      And congrats to this beautiful couple who spent their anniversary with us during their week on the ranch. We can’t wait to see them back next summer to do it again!!

So many antlers found this week!

And just look at those Beaver Badges! Such a  proud moment….

But what’s a ranch without a BRANDING? To start, you need a good, hot fire….

Some good friends…

A branding iron….

And some leather to brand!

We do a lot of boots, belts, wallets and the like, but sometimes our guests have some great new ideas.

What will YOU bring to be branded?

     We finished out the week with a special treat for our guests. This talented woman is the one and only Juni Fisher—a western music STAR and for the 6th consecutive year, she  added Bar Lazy J as a stop on her summer tour schedule. We are so privileged to have her performing her award winning songs on our stage and not only does she offer an incredible show, she has become a wonderful friend as well. We are always so happy to have her join us for a ride through the Rockies during the day before her shows (and ONE of these days we’ll get her on the zip line! *hint*hint* Juni!)

     Be sure to check out her music and website at www.junifisher.net and you can give a listen to Listen—the title track to her most recent album and one of our favorites. Every horse person needs to hear it and heed it! It’s a winner—literally!

More of the fun coming at ya! We’ve got lots going on and lots more coming up!