Rancho Grande is the perfect place to get away from it all. Richard greeted us right away and made us feel at home. We had picked up groceries along the way so he immediately showed us the way to Shelly’s Shake to offload. Shelly’s Shake is a large gathering room with an equally large kitchen, located right next to the beautiful lake where we spent most of our time swimming, fishing and boating. The water was the perfect temperature. When we weren’t in the water we were cooking in the kitchen, grilling burgers on the BBQ, napping in the hammocks, playing pool in the game room, driving the trails, playing with the dogs and roasting marshmallows. The Yurts were beautifully decorated, perfectly ventilated and nestled against the forest. The cabin (with A/C) was centrally located near all the animals. Mornings were spectacular. With my coffee in hand and sitting on the porch I would watch the goats, chickens, dogs and squirrels play. We gathered fresh eggs from the chicken coup, said hello to the pigs in passing and visited with the horses and Alpacas. A very unique experience was when Alex brought the goats out for their morning walk. The goats were so friendly. They gathered around us, all 125 of them, as we fed them fresh apples from the trees. So fun Nights were breathtaking – with no city lights the sky was filled with stars and the Milky Way. After a very long day of working on the ranch Alex offered to show us Saturn and Jupiter through this high powered telescope he had located in a field. The site of Saturn’s rings and the shades of Jupiter were like pictures out of a textbook – truly amazing. I recommend having night binoculars. While sitting next to the campfire by the lake we heard something – looking through our night binoculars we could see a Mama Dear and her babies drinking from the lake. The next day we spotted them up in the mountains. Richard and Alex were very considerate, thoughtful and helpful. Alex was always around to assist us with whatever we needed. Even while working Alex would stop to talk with us about the ranch. We couldn’t have felt more welcomed and comfortable. We are already planning our next trip to Rancho Grande with more of our friends. I highly recommend visiting the ranch. You won’t want to leave

-Linda
  September 2021