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Colorado Guest Ranch Summer Employment
 Guest Ranch Wranglers - a serious bunch Summer is coming soon – yeehaw! We are now looking over applications for summer 2012. Here’s some highlights:
Summer Dude Ranch Kitchen Staff
Don’t listen to those wranglers! YOU are the most important part of our ranch!
Some of the most important memories that we want to create for our guests are meal memories. We eat in the dining room, in the back yard, and on the trail. We serve “hearty western fare family style,” which can include lots of vegetables and salads as well as meat and potatoes. Because Ellen and Dan are both RN’s we see many guests who have therapeutic diets or allergies.
The kitchen staff is a group of five people who have high energy and good humor. Psychosis is not an obstacle to working in the kitchen, although active drinking problems will get you sent on your way. Kitchen and housekeeping staff typically works forty-five hours per week over six days.
 Horse back riding summer ranch job There are five positions in and around the kitchen:
1. Kitchen Manager/THE Cook (the Boss)
2. Breakfast Cook/Prep Cook
3. Dining Room Steward/Dishwasher
4. Kangaroo #1/Housekeeper/Dishwasher/Other skill #1
5. Kangaroo #2/ Housekeeper/Dishwasher/Other skill #2
Guest Ranch Barn Employment:
Don’t listen to those kitchen people! YOU are the most important part of our ranch!
Some of the most important memories that we want to create for our guests are from horseback! The barn has three types of wranglers:
 Making happy people: not a bad summer job! 1. The Barn Manager (Boss)
2. Children’s Wrangler
3. Plain Ol’ Fashioned Wranglers
Dude Ranch Rock Climbing Instructor.
This is a part time position, usually done by a Kangaroo or Wrangler. (i.e. Must be bi-lingual (speaking both kitchen and horse) or schizophrenic.
 Hunting jackalopes - guest ranch employment can be dangerous! If you are interested in working for us, then please
1. Study the Dude Ranch Job Descriptions, then
2. Visit the page that lists our Guest Ranch Employment Expectations, and then
3. Wranglers (only) please visit the Dude Ranch Wrangler Video script, then
4. Feel free to send us a Sundance Trail Guest Ranch Application.
A Pretty Darn Good Deal! 10% Off Colorado Country Inn Christmas or New Years B&B -
 Country Inn Christmas Horseback Ride Usually by now we are fully booked for the Christmas Country Inn holiday week, and the New Year’s Eve Murder Mystery.
 Pet Friendly Sledding: Christmas Country Inn We’re not!!! Come see us!
Come join us! Your dogs are welcome! We are pet friendly. (You can bring human friends too. Heck, even your children!)
We have Colorado snow on the ground, and sunny days. It makes for beautiful horse back riding!
We ride our horses just about every day.
After your ride, you will enjoy the quiet. Here’s some pictures of our Bed & Breakfast rooms and suites.
We can also arrange Swedish Massage.
 Is that Charlie Chaplain? The evening of New Year’s Eve we plan a Murder Mystery game. These games can be hysterically funny!
 Sledding down the front steps. Get in touch with your “inner murderer”!
More about our B&B Murder Mystery weekends.
Winter Country Inn B&B Rates
To book your reservation, give us a call at 970-224-1222 or 800-357-4930.
You can subscribe to our new newsletter, to be published not-too-frequently – we promise!.
 Riding in the front yard Here’s a few memories from winters past.
 Happy rider, happy horse.
 Soooo Romantic! Is this a Bed & Breakfast wedding with a Murder Mystery Game?
or a
B&B Murder Mystery Weekend with a wedding?
Most people elope to a dude ranch to get away from their family and friends. They want a relaxed, very simple ceremony and a fun weekend getaway horseback riding.
 Country Inn Wedding Well, Joel and Sheri decided to have a simple, relaxed ceremony, but brought their family, including all the kids and the dogs.
Why? They had an opportunity to tie the knot while on pilgrimage to the Holy Land, and were married while visiting the Sea of Galilee. Wow!
But what of mom and dad? And what of the gang of brothers and sisters and the small herd of nephews and nieces?
What to do?
 Cocoa Tasting Her New Creation Sheri is a brilliant woman – she brought the family together for a re-do and just for fun a murder mystery game for the weekend! Joel’s a pretty smart guy – he married a brilliant woman! Twice!
 Despite the Dog's Best Efforts, Cocoa Dies Everyone had a great weekend except Cocoa. Poor Cocoa!
She takes one taste of her new candy, and dies! Dead as a doornail, despite the dog’s best efforts at muzzle to mouth resuscitation.
 Two Suspects: Princess Leia & Luke Jr??? Who did it???
The list of suspects includes almost everyone who attended the wedding!
So here’s a small collection of some of the pictures from the murder mystery game and the wedding.
 Kids, dogs, dead bodies... what a wedding!  Mom doesn't watch the high-jinks, she CAUSES the high-jinks!  Is Wally Winker Cocoa's Wacker?  Murder Didn't Affect Anyone's Appetite for Cake!  A Cup of Wine, Thee, and a Murder Mystery  Family Adventure
Colorado Dude Ranch horses communicate very clearly!
 1. What is Stevie saying here? This quiz is part of a series of articles that we have written in the Sundance Trail Guest Ranch Horse Safety and Horse Communication collection, including Speaking to Your Dude Ranch Horse Part 1 and Speaking to your Dude Ranch Horse Part 2.
When at Sundance Trail Guest Ranch, either for a summer dude ranch vacation or Fall/Winter/Spring B&B stay,
 2. And Mocha? you will spend lots of time with our horses (and donkeys!).
Horses communicate with body language. (Is this why women so often understand their horses immediately, and why guys are so often clueless?) Their faces, and especially their ears speak volumes, once you learn how to read them.
 3. And Rose Blossom? Here’s a quick primer on some easy to recognize “expressions.” Have fun!
Answers to each of these facial expressions are listed at he bottom of the page!
 4. What is Apache saying here?  5. What is Khalli doing?  6. And Rusty?  7. What is Calamity Jane saying here? 1. Stevie is ANGRY!!! She is having a bad hair week. Spring snow has melted and she want’s to party, and the geldings around her are all nerds or something!! Dude ranch horses are supposed to be romantic!!! None of these guys want to dance!!! Best to just leave her alone for a few more days…
She is clearly saying: “keep your distance or I will bite you!!!”
2. Mocha is taking a nap, or maybe she is meditating. Nope, she’s sleeping, in fact, she is snoring! One of her back hooves is up on the toe, her ears are flopped off to the sides, and her eyes are soft, gently starting off into the distance.
3. Rose Blossom is definitely sleeping! She’s still a baby, so she sleeps a lot. She even has her eyes closed, which only babies do – adults sleep with their eyes open.
4. Apache is awake, alert, and wants the cookie in my pocket. He is demonstrating interest and is interacting.
5. Khalli also wants the cookie in my pocket, but at the same time she is listening to some interesting gossip BEHIND her! Yes, kinda like radar dishes, horses’ ears can pivot front to side to back; even in different directions. Yes, if she wanted, Khalli could listen to two different conversations at once!
6. Rusty is actually sleeping. one of his hind feet is up on the toe, his ears are flopped off to the side, and his eyes are softly staring off into space…
7. Calamity is not happy that she is the last picture. She is small, but she is VERY bossy!
Request our Dude Ranch brochure, or Download pdf now, or Email the ranch.
Mountain Lodge Horse Back Riding in the Snow
 Laura and Skip enjoy the snow. Hmmmm…… The weather people call for an October total of 2.9 inches of snow for our area. We got that three weeks ago, and it disappeared the next morning, as October snow should. The aspens still claim October as theirs; time to show off their golden leaves.
 HoustonTracy with her horse Gauge Oops! Wait a minute – we got a good eight more inches last night, and another six inches falling today!
The dogs are delighted! The older horses are playing like foals! The goats are making snow angels and laughing!
And the guests riding in the snow? Just look at their faces…
 This Sure Ain't Houston Horse back Riding Y'all! Tracy (from Houston!) says that riding in the snow is spectacular. I think that Laura (from Cleveland) agrees. Not too sure what Texan Kevin (also from Houston) thinks, but his horse, Jack is a happy fella! At lunch Kevin said it was a great ride…
Cowboy Victor was born and raised up here – he’s just cold!
 Mountain lodge cowboy Victor horseback riding his trusty steed, Trigger! So now it’s official.
It’s fall. now we’re ready for Halloween!
Trick or treat!!!
 First snow-person of the season. Jack! No Jack! No! Ahhhh... naughty dog....
An Adventure Vacation Trail Rider: Asia
 Asia is small, but sure is pretty! Asia is a beautiful little girl. Just look at those eyes! Easy to catch, groom and tack.
Good all-around – in the arena, in the pasture or on the trail. Neck reins, never argues, can be fast if you ask her!
This is a horse with lots of heart and potential. She is young, but developing real grace and poise.
>Note: Pink booted dude ranch cowgirl, Marion, is from France and rides with short reins.
Age: 2003
 Asia has pretty eyes. Color & Markings: Bay; star, strip, snip
Height: 14 H
Horse size: Small
Rider size: Small
Rider skill: Confident Beginner/teen
Bit: Low port
 Dude ranch horse & rider: Asia & Marion!
Guest Ranch take-over!!!
 Dude Ranch Bear Table –After successfully keeping momma black bear and her cubs out of the dumpster and the kitchen all summer, Sundance Trail Guest Ranch has been been completely overrun with bears… and mooses*!!
-Take home a bear as a memory of your ranch vacation! Or maybe a Christmas present from your family vacation. Looks like there’s a whole herd of the critters hiding in the gift shop, next to the Jackalopes, water bottles, disc golf Frisbies, and elegant Colorado hand carved bowls.
 Bears Hiding in our Dude Ranch Gift Shop -Our neighbor, Rob, is a chainsaw artist, and he make some of the finest carvings we’ve ever seen!
-Our dude ranch has become a gallery of finished pieces!
-Rob’s work shows the demanding control and precision needed for this unlikely art form.
 Itty Bitty Dude Ranch Bear & Kleenex Big ones, little ones, some holding signs, some holding tables, some just sitting on a table top being cute.
 Sundance Trail Guest Ranch Front Porch Greeters! Most of these are bears, but there are cubs and mooses* as well.
He takes custom orders for wood carvings of any kind; including bears, bear lamps, Eagles, Indians, Cowboys, Santas, pumpkins, …you name it!
 Bears Protecting Ranch Dining Room Fireplace Rob’s prices vary, depending on the size and difficulty of the piece, and whether any museums or fine arts galleries are bidding for the piece.
 Colorado Ranch Vacation Hugs 5 cents! Generally, small bears & mooses*, about a foot tall, start at $35 or so.
If you have something special in mind, please feel free to email the ranch and Rob can give you a quote.
Also, Rob said he’s open to demonstrating his art here at the guest ranch if you have a group that would like to watch & learn more.
* We appreciate that in some parts of the country the plural of “moose” is “meese” but here in Colorado we use the more correct ranch term “mooses.”
Guest Ranch Vacation Old-timer Dusty!
 Family Dude Ranch Vacation KIds Horse: Old Man Dusty Dusty is about 35 years old. He is a solid professional, and refuses to retire. He loves kids, and when saddled, gets in line and follows the leader.
A great teacher for beginners, a great buddy horse for a kid on an adventure vacation.
Dusty is missing most of his grinders and is fat because he is fed Senior Feed twice a day.
Note: Pink booted cowgirl (Marion!) is from France and rides with short reins. Dark haired cowgirl (Kaitlyn!) is a beginner student.
 Dusty is a fat old horse! Age: Older than dirt
Height: 15
Horse size: Medium
Rider size: Small to medium
Rider skill: Children/beginners
Bit: Padded hack
 Kids ride Dusty on their Adventure vacation!
Trail riding on Annie is a great adventure vacation!
 Annie (with John) loves to lead every Trail Ride at our Guest Ranch She has a very fast walk, which some riders enjoy, and which intimidates some anxious riders. She has very sensitive sides. Annie loves to run! The whole forest is her dude ranch!!!
She has never bucked, spun, reared or tried to unseat her rider. But she has a mind of her own, and does not immediately automatically follow her riders’ cues. She likes to be in charge, but will gladly follow a confident rider, after that rider has established her/his horse back riding authority.
Annie is excellent on trails – never spooks. Likes to lead every trail ride.
Timid riders who need a “push-button” horse would not enjoy her.
A wrangler favorite. Annie also LOVES water. When allowed, she will swim in our mountain lodge pond with the ducks (and her tack, and her rider…!). She also enjoys putting both front feet in the water troughs and kicking out all the water – just for fun!
 Annie - cutest lady in the horseback riding world!
Age: 1998
Color & Markings: Buckskin
Height: 15 Hands
Horse size: Medium QH
Rider size: Medium
Rider skill: Confident
Bit: Padded hack
 Annie loves to laugh!
Guest Ranch Horseback Riding is seldom as intense as Dorothy May Winfield expresses here, but this poem beautifully catches those blissful moments of being “in the zone” with your horse. Thanks, Dorothy (and Stewart!) – please say hello to Scotland for us. We hope to see you again next year!
 Dude Ranch horseback riding; Sundance Trail Guest Ranch Colorado Mounting my quarter horse, I steel myself for the journey,
A ripple runs through him as my legs gently squeeze his sides,
He moves forward, slowly at first.
I feel his power beneath me,
Flicking the reins he gathers momentum
Faster and faster and faster,
He breathes deeply,
Fire bursts from his flared nostrils.
The plain stretches before us like endless time.
hands pull at my hair, my clothes,
Stripping my mortality.
My heart beats to the rhythm of his hooves.
The ball of fire above, now burns my naked body.
The saddle has gone,
There is nothing between us,
We have become one.
Only my senses are alive,
I am lost, deep within myself.
Our Western Horseback Riding philosophy is on our Riding Horses page.
Elope to a Guest Ranch Vacation: Fast! Fun! Stress free!
 Kim and Gale's Western Dude Ranch Elopement Wedding Justin: “We’ve gotten old and stodgy. We need some excitement around here. Let’s host elopements! Let’s host gen-u-ine western dude ranch elopement weddings. Ride a horse and tie the knot! ”
Ellen: “Elope to a Colorado dude ranch… Awwww… That’s sooo romantic!”
Jackjack: “RRRRrrrrrooooo!”
Dan: [Grumble grumble.] “Keep it simple!”
Justin: “That’s the whole idea! A simple Colorado get-away elopement wedding at a western dude ranch.
1. Folks don’t need a preacher or justice of the peace to elope. In Colorado, they just need two witnesses to sign the license with them. And getting the license is easy – no blood tests, no waiting time; just ID and $30.” The Larimer County Clerk’s rules are pretty darn simple.
2. We’re only 2 hours from Denver International Airport. Couples can fly in, get their license, marry and be in their honeymoon cabin the same day! Next day half-day horseback rides, all day horseback rides, or maybe just an hour or two and some frisbee golf, or hiking or fishing, or maybe even a jack-a-lope hunt!
 Dan & Michelle's Western Dude Ranch Honeymoon 3. They can save themselves hassle – their wedding can create a frazzled “bride-zilla” or relaxed cow girl. Instead of endless family arguments, they can enjoy a romantic ranch vacation, a spontaneous elopement wedding and honeymoon. Pull out your hair organizing or sit in the jaccuzzi with a glass of champagne.
4. They can bring guests, or keep it intimate. Heck, they can bring their kids – we can throw in a few family binding ideas. Or they can bring a bunch of friends – I’ll bet Sherri and Joel would throw in a Murder Mystery and make a week-end party!
5. We can put together a handy-dandy Ceremony Planning Guide. They can cut and paste a ceremony from our guide in a matter of minutes, or they can write their own.
6. They can save lots of money. Getting married in jeans is cheap, relaxed and fun. Ride horses a dude ranch wanderlust adventure! Dude Ranch Elopement Wedding Rates at Sundance Trail Guest Ranch
7. With our own retail liquor store, folks can enjoy alcohol if they wish: champagne, spirits, wine, beer and sodas.
 Gale Helps Kim with Her Last Minute Elopement Wedding Jitters 8. And there’s no reason why married folks can’t elope and renew their vows.
9. Although Colorado does not yet recognize same sex marriage (we do), there’s no reason why we can’t provide these folks with a Certificate instead of a license.
Dan: “Simple rules (and not many of them!), simple ceremonies, simple fun! I like this.”
Ellen: “We’ll make little gift baskets for their rooms, and we can keep silk bouquets, and maybe some other simple keepsakes for couples to take home with them. And I can order petite wedding cakes if they want to celebrate.”
 Dude Ranch Square dance caller Mark A little while ago, a journeyman square dancing caller named Mark Hammett somehow got entangled with a local group of crazy people, and the result is the Ponderosa Promenaders Square Dancing Club.
The Promenaders meet every week. Cyril somehow managed to get Ellen, Dan and Justin off the dude ranch to enjoy part of the winter in weekly lessons, and we’ve all been having a ball.
In fact, we’re having so much fun that we’ve installed a new dancing floor in the dude ranch recreation room!
 Corrine and Mark Mr. Mark has graciously agreed to call for us this summer!
He and his bride Corrine will be joining us for supper every Monday and then will be teaching us with the beginning of the dude ranch season in late May.
We will be square dancing every Monday night!
All of our neighbors and all “Angels” are always welcome! No experience necessary! There is no charge to dance at the Sundance Trail.
 Ponderosa Promenaders .
Directions to our dude ranch.
If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to call us (970-224-1222)
 Dude Ranch Justin Graduation God dropped Mr. Justin Ripley onto our laps just when we most needed him (Notes about LeAndra’s latest adventures coming soon; I’m waiting for pictures.)
And what a gift he has been. Careful, we now have two Justin’s: “our” dude ranch Justin the barn manager, and “LeAndra’s Justin” who is our neighbor, friend and local Department of Wildlife Officer.
Our dude ranch Justin, originally from Indiana, has experience as a vet tech, and as a med tech – corpsman from his years in the army. Justin is an experienced horseman, and experienced horse trainer, a dude wrangler, and was Barn Manager at one of our neighbor Colorado dude ranches for a number of years.
He can do everything around here except cook, and Ellen has plans to change that!
Justin brought his horse, Doc, and two dogs, Sassie and Misha.
What is this picture all about? Dude ranch dancing! More details to follow soon.
 Justin & Cyril dancing Justin has big plans for our little ol’ dude ranch. Hard wood floors are going into the recreation barn and the dining room for dancing, and this week he’s “scoping out” the property for “just the right spot” for a volley ball court.
So screw your hat down tight, looks like a dude ranch rodeo year!
 With neighbors like Mae and Charlie, our dude ranch B&B sees lots of mystery murders! What do Pepi Roni (the pizza magnate), Judge Waylin Payne (of Roadkill, Colorado) and the science fiction author H. G. Wells have in common? Why, they’ve all been murdered right here at our Colorado B&B – dude ranch!
One of our favorite winter time activities is Murder Mystery weekends. Once a month or so, when we have 8 to 12 willing suspects, we find a poor murder victim sprawled out nearby – “deader than a doornail.” Murdered, and often with the first clue nearby.
 Murder on the Dude Ranch? Who did it? Helena Handcart? Charley Chaplin? Tiny Bubbles? Father Alfredo?
Our guests then spend the weekend, between meals and horse back riding, untangling each others’ half-truths. evasions and high jinks. The games are designed for participants who are willing to take a whimsical view of blackmail, larceny, deceit, and murder.
Those of you who are offended by such high-jinks as shady dealings, sordid affairs, and deceptive conduct should not book reservations for these weekends! If you do book, plan on some laughter!
We love hosting these games. Imagine, people come to spend a B&B week-end with us: They exercise our dude ranch horses, they make us laugh like crazy for the weekend, and then they pay us money! What a life!
 Agatha Christie, baffled by this Bed & Breakfast mystery murder, consoles herself.. We have games scheduled the weekends of:
November 11th Sorry! Fully booked!
December 9th
December 31st New years!
January 13th
February 24th
We can also schedule a game for any time that you might have 8 – 12 people who want to spend the week-end together and play (before dude ranch season begins in mid-May) – birthday party or maybe just get away with some friends!
Give us a call (970-224-1222) and we can tell you all about Bed and Breakfast murder in Red Feather Lakes.
 Mae West and Charlie Chaplin on a dude ranch?
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