Wilderness Trails Ranch
7 days - Durango to Durango
Experience the best of the southwest Colorado on a fabulous riding holiday. A trip to Wilderness Trails is the ideal blend of active adventure and luxurious relaxation! Forge a relationship with your horse, work cattle, hike into 500,000 acres of wilderness, fish, white water raft, water-ski, tube, swim, soak, indulge in a massage, and dine like royalty.
Wilderness Trails Ranch is located 35 miles northeast of Durango in the incredibly beautiful San Juan Mountains of southwestern Colorado. This is a true wilderness setting, bordering the Piedra and Weminuche Wilderness Areas, which host an abundance of wildlife, crystal clear streams, open meadows, high mountain vistas, and vast mountain forests covering thousands of acres. Boasting the nickname "The Switzerland of America", it is one of the most beautiful areas in Colorado
Wilderness Trails Tanch has been family owned and operated by the Roberts since 1970. Each summer, the family (Gene, Jan, Lance, Randy, and Erika) and their friendly staff welcome guests to the ranch and the spectacular surrounding mountains. They will match a horse to your riding ability and offer plenty of riding variety, Western riding lessons, half and all day scenic mountain and valley trail rides, fishing rides, trailblazing, trotting and loping, cattle work, natural horsemanship clinics, arena work, and gymkhanas.
- Day 1 (D)
- Transfer from Durango to Wilderness Trails Ranch.
- Day 2 to Day 6 (B,L,D)
- June, July, August and September are perfect months for a riding holiday at Wilderness Trails Ranch. The ranch is blessed with ideal temperatures from the mid 20's to low 30's, no humidity, refreshing evenings, stunning star-scapes, and sparse insects. During the days you can choose from the comprehensive riding and horsemanship program, take an alpine drive with optional hike, go water-skiing or tubing, fish on stocked ponds, hike, do yoga or take a roping lessons. During the evenings enjoy campfire sing-a-longs, live musical entertainment, and western dance lessons. The ranch is ideal for families and there special children's programmes catering for children as young as 3 to 16 year olds. During the month of September experienced riders can spend the days gathering cattle from their summer range, comprised of thousands of acres adjacent to the ranch. You'll ride 6 to 7 hours a day gathering the cattle, while the evenings are spent swapping tales and tunes around the fire. Alternatively you can choose to go white water rafting, indulge in a massage, go fly-fishing or join a Natural Horsemanship Clinic (supplements payable locally).
- Day 7 (B)
- Transfer to Durango.
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- Cost per Person:
- June to August: £1360
- 6 years to 17 years: £1110
- 3 years to 5 years: £780
- September (adults only): £1060. Please note there is a supplement of £90 for the week of 28 September.
- Includes: Return transfers from Durango, La Plata Airport, accommodation and meals as indicated, all riding, cattle work, youth programs, a scenic drive up Middle Mountain, water-skiing/tubing, nightly entertainment, fishing at several stocked ponds, and many other activities. The ranch does not accept gratuities! The only services not included in the price are massage therapy and spa services, private horsemanship clinics, and/or our extra off ranch excursions such as professionally guided fly-fishing, white water rafting ($20-$25/person), and a tour of Mesa Verde National Park ($25/person).
- Single Supplement: £245 (June to August). On request (September).
- Departure Dates: Sundays from June to 30 September.
- The Accommodation: Accomodation is provided in clean, well-appointed, rustic cabins that nestle amongst pines, fir, spruce and aspen trees. All cabins have coffee makers, refrigerators, iron, ironing boards, decks, private bathroom and daily maid service. The two bedroom, two bathroom Ponderosa cabins are ideal for families of 4 to 5, with a king or queen bed in one room and two singles in the adjoining room. (A rollaway can be added.) On ranch facilities include a heated swimming pool and hot tub, two stocked trout ponds, and a recreation room.
- Food & Drink: The ranch features a broad menu each week of made to order breakfasts, varied lunch specials always with plenty of fruits and salads and exceptional gourmet dinners ranging from cowboy steak & fish cookouts, to succulent Prime Rib, Mexican, Italian and Mediterranean specialities. Kid friendly food is always available to cater to younger tastes. Low carbohydrate or other special dietary needs can also be arranged with a little advance notice.
- Laundry: There is a coin-operated machine for guests' use.
- Children: The ranch has supervised programmes for 3-5 year olds (The Pony Express), 6-10 year olds (The Saddle Tramps), 11-12 year olds (The Bandits), and 13-17 year olds (The Posse). Children and teens ride with their groups, and each programme has one or more counsellors depending on the size of the group. Adults may join their childrens' rides, but children cannot join adults' rides. The ranch offers a family ride each week and are happy to arrange other family rides if required. The Pony Express and Saddle Tramps eat several meals separately from the adults, while the Bandits and Posse typically eat with the adults unless they decide otherwise. Children under three stay for free, but the ranch does not provide a program for them. Baby-sitting is available most afternoons and some evenings at a rate of $12 an hour, which is paid directly to the staff member.
- Non-Riders: Wilderness Trails Ranch offers a myriad of activities other than horseback riding, including hiking, fishing, water skiing and tubing on Vallecito Lake, Mesa Verde tour, river rafting, dance lessons, hay ride, campfire sing-a-long, roping lessons, live music and dancing, massage therapy and spa services, yoga, and more. They can also arrange for trips on the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad and top-quality guided fly fishing on the San Juan River.