The Jeffers Ranch

Some of the most hospitable ranchers have been the Jeffers. This family led us for several days across some beautiful country. We met Mr Jeffers Sr on the day his son Lem guided us from Springer. Eddie helped with scouting through a weeks worth of rides where we would end up at his ranch for the following weekend.

The Jeffers Ranch is probably the most beautiful place we have ridden yet. The places they can take us by horseback are breathtaking. It's hard to imagine such places exist when we are so used to travelling by car at 70 MPH.

Everytime we turned a bend there would be a totally different scene. Eddie guided us through deep canyons and wide meadows of tall grass and bright colored flowers. We could see antelope running in the distance. Before long we would be climbing in the foothills amongst the pine trees and he pointed out a tree that had bear claw marks. He led us to a spot where they had built a pond and he thought we could water the horses, but it was dry so we back tracked through the pines to another spot. Before you know it we're in another huge meadow with a deep gulley. Do I cross it or go around it? Oh, just cross it. It isn't that deep.

Did I mention the overlook where we could see for more than 100 miles? What a beautiful sight!
We could see the volcano on the side of which we had camped for one night. It's amazing to me what beautiful ranches these people have. I wonder if they really realize or appreciate what they have.

Anyway, we turned away from that beautiful overlook and started downhill. We rounded a bend and another bend and another... We finally saw our destination. The Jeffers Ranch was a very impressive sight! The red roofed buildings were all surrounded by very green fields with one very green, round field of alfalfa off to the side. It was a lovely sight. And a very small sight. We had a long way to go. A long way to go down this mountain. A long way to go down this steep mountain! After quite a while we met a 4 wheeler. What a relief. We must be almost there. Well, they said we still had 2 miles more to go down this jig jag trail down this steep mountain. It really wasn't difficult unless you got the horse behind you that kept pushing your horse from behind. If I were a horse that would be a little annoying. But we all made it just fine. The trail came out in a pretty little meadow next to a stream where the horses all took a drink before a short walk to the ranch.

The Jeffers put on a branding for us on Saturday morning which was very entertaining. And in the evening we had a campfire for the second time since we started our trail ride. What a treat.

Sandy and Wayne Gifford and I had the chance to take a special tour with the Jeffer's son up to his part of their ranch. He is a history buff and took the time to show us some spots where Kit Carson and his cronies spent some time. Their ranch is right where all those famous guys lived and died.

Matt Doherty, their son, told us how his great... grandfather had had a mercantile and in the 30's when people couldn't pay or their credit turned bad he collected on their debts with deeds of land. That how he got his ranch. Matt showed us his home and the old cemetary as well as the ruins of the old community that are near his home. We then drove up to the summer pasture. He took us up probably 10 miles to overlook Colorado and to step on a part of the ranch that is actually in Colorado as well. The view was breathtaking. We kept driving to a beautiful meadow where his grandmother used to live in the summers. She always came down in the winter because there would be 10 or more feet of snow up there in the winter. It was a beautiful place to live in the summer.

We drove further up to an even larger meadow with a large lake. There were elk grazing, which his dog Maggie immediately chased away. Matt thought we would see some black bear but didn't have the luck to see them on this trip. He said in the summers when they have cattle up there they ride their horses up twice a week to check the cattle. It takes two days to check the entire pasture so they ride half one day go back down for the night and check the other half the next day. They check for eye problems, diseases and injuries. When asked if they carry guns- yes, for mountain lions.

On our drive down from the summer pasture he showed us their solar powered water tanks. Even with all the snow they get in the winter they always have a shortage of water out here. We in the East do not comprehend what they deal with as far as water is concerned.

Poking up next to one of the water tanks I saw a little horn so Matt stopped the car. He walked over to retrieve it and lo and behold it was an entire elk head with large horns attached but a little too fresh to put Matt's wife's new car. Too bad because there would have been a few people in camp that would have loved to take that trophy home with them. In fact, I may have kept it myself.

We stopped at an old adobe house on the way down that Matt has visitors stop in and sign their name as a memento. The roof is deteriorating and he hopes to restore it this summer.

Before we made it back to his house the sun was setting, painting some beautiful pinks and blues behind the mountains. Sandy and I both agreed that this had been a highlight of our trip. Matt's love of history and pride in his heritage was contagious.