At traditional guest ranches in neighboring states, visitors must stay by the week. Rates start at $1,000 a person, pricey by many people's standards.
The Beehive State has its share of spreads that welcome guests, but they let you stay by the night. Ideal for dudes who don't have the money or the time to spend a week.Utah's ranch accommodations run the gamut of the "rustic" scale, from "primitively rustic to "rustic but very nice."
Ruby Ranch on the banks of the Green River, for example, has an old ranch house with no electricity or indoor plumbing. It's a step back in time. "That's why people come," said a spokeswoman we talked to by phone from her home in the town of Green River.
Reid Ranch, on the other hand, was built as a guest ranch to accommodate groups. Facilities include a lodge with private guest rooms, a bunkhouse and two cabins. Groups return year after year, rating it higher than guest ranches they've stayed at in other states.
Some, like Boulder Mountain Ranch off Highway 12 and Dalton Gang Adventures/Bar MK Ranches between Monticello and Moab, are working cattle spreads that welcome guests on the side. Others, like Pack Creek Ranch near Moab and Reid Ranch on the south slope of the Uintas, cater exclusively to visitors.
Many of the working ranches give you the option of herding cattle alongside ranch hands. But at the Bar MK Ranches, it's expected. You'll spend 8 to 10 hours a day in the saddle and bed down at one of the ranch's eight camps.
Utah's ranches offer a chance to escape the hubbub of the Wasatch Front.
This list includes a sampling of rates. Most of these ranches offer other packages, too. Several seem ideal for family reunions.
- Boulder Mountain Ranch is working cattle ranch 7 miles west of Boulder on Hell's Backbone Road, 801-335-7480; B&B rates: $60 for a lodge room that sleeps two, private bath; $54.50 for lodge rooms without private baths; cabins range from $65.40 to $81.75. Prices include tax and continental breakfast.
- Dalton Gang Adventures/Bar MK Ranches. This is a working cattle ranch headquartered in Monticello, 801-587-2416; Guests spend 8 to 10 hours a day in the saddle as they tag along with ranch hands doing daily chores. Minimum three-day stay; $140 a day per person includes accommodations and meals. You'll stay in cabins, tents or sleep under the stars.
- Deer Springs Ranch, working cattle ranch near Bryce Canyon, 801-644-2606; cabins with kitchens sleep from 6 to 22 people and rent from $42 to $154 a night; meals available by reservation.
- Hidden Springs Ranch & Resort, working ranch in the mountains near Fountain Green, 801-977-8776; $75 per person per night includes dinner and continental breakfast; weekly rates available; horseback riding is $15 an hour; fishing in private ponds also $15 an hour.
- La Sal Mountain Guest Ranch, 32 miles southeast of Moab in the La Sal Mountains, elevation 7,000 feet, 801-686-2223; working cattle ranch has 11 homes available for rent. All have furnished kitchens. Great for family reunions. Breakfast at the main ranch house included in the rate; $60 for the first two adults and $20 for each additional adult, $10 for kids. Children 5 and under are free. Group rate (eight or more people) is $20 per person.
- Coral Canyons Ranch, off U.S. 89 near Mt. Carmel Junction, 800-469-3789, is a working guest ranch. Daily B&B rate is $49 for one person, $10 for each additional person, with a maximum of three people per room. Guest accommodations are on the second floor of the family ranch house. Shared bathroom. The ranch has received kudos for its scenery. Web address is (http://www.gowildwest.com).
- Nine Mile Ranch, working cattle ranch 25 miles northeast of Wellington in Nine-Mile Canyon, 801-637-2572; four rooms in the ranch house are used for "bunk & breakfast" from $40 a night for a couple to $65 for a family; camp sites are $10; log cabins are $30 a night; teepee, $30 a night.
- Pack Creek Ranch, 15 miles southeast of Moab in the La Sal Mountains, 801-259-5505; $135 a day per person includes three meals, accommodations; horseback rides are additional; children's rates.
- Quarter Circle E Guest Ranch, LaPoint, 801-247-2749; guided hunting and fishing trips, trail rides, mountain biking.
- Ruby Ranch, 20 miles south of the town of Green River on the banks of Green River, 801-564-3538; working cattle ranch; guests stay in an old ranch house with no electricity and no indoor plumbing except for showers; $35 per person for B the ranch has a Green River launch site, $10 launching fee, $5 camping .
- Reid Ranch, 7,800 feet elevation on the south slope of the Uintas, 800-468-3274; It caters to groups (family reunions, church outings, corporate getaways) but reserves the last week of June and first two weeks of July for individual families. Rates: $150 a night per couple; family of three, $225; family of four, $300; family of five, $375. Includes meals, accommodations and activities (horseback riding, heated pool, spa, archery, volleyball, horseshoes, private lake etc.). Group rates apply to a minimum of 25 paying guests. The ranch will start taking reservations for next summer on July 1.
- Rock Creek Ranch, near Mountain Home on the south slope of the Uintas, 801-454-3332; rustic cabins (electricity but no indoor plumbing, old-fashioned cook stove); horseback riding; pack trips into the Uintas. ($49.95 a night for the large cabin; $37.50 for the smaller cabin). Cafe in the main lodge.
- Rockin' R Ranch, Antimony (37 miles north of Bryce Canyon), 733-9538; $199.50 for two adults per day includes meals, activities and horseback rides; group rates for family reunions are $40 per adult per day.
- U-Bar Wilderness Ranch, south slope of the Uintas, 1-800-303-7256; $64 a night for cabin with two double beds; three meals a day are $25 for adults, $19 for children; an hour horseback ride is $20 for adults, $18 for and children 6-11.
- Zion's Kolob Mountain Ranch, near town of Virgin, 801-628-0743; $159 per night includes three meals and an hour of horseback riding; room-only prices range from $59 to $140.
- Zion's Ponderosa Resort, near east rim of Zion National Park, 800-293-5444; $79 per night on weekdays, $99 weekends, double occupancy.