Dude Ranches: Not Just For Dudes

Heading out to Grand County, Colo. was my daughter’s idea. She’s the cowpoke in our family, having demonstrated a deep love of horses from a very early age. It wasn't the first time I wondered whether she might have been switched at birth.

As a born and bred city slicker, I'd had little chance to ride a horse and even less desire. But we all do things for our kids we never expected to do, right? In that vein, heading to Colorado to check out two dude ranches seemed like a small sacrifice. Besides, I thought, there was always a chance I would get in touch with my inner cowgirl.

My Inner Cowgirl

Turns out I had little choice but to find her. Unlike the nose-to-tail trail riding we flatlanders practice in the Midwest, riding in Colorado can mean cantering through a field, climbing a steep hill, or worse, heading down one.

Fortunately for novices like myself, dude ranches are all about learning to ride. They cater to everyone from rookies (me) to more experienced riders (my daughter, Tess, then 10) to seriously accomplished riders. Visitors can spend a week riding, grooming and bridling the horses, getting to know the other riders and just hanging out in pristine natural settings where nary a cell phone is heard to ring.

The week starts in the corral, with a wrangler who pairs riders and horses and doesn’t let a rider out of the gate, regardless of age, until he or she can demonstrate an ability to control the horse.

• The entrance to Aspen Canyon Ranch.
• Courtesy of Aspen Canyon Ranch

Upscale or Down Home

We spent two days at Drowsy Water, a real down-home experience, and two more at Aspen Canyon, a less rustic, more upscale ranch. Both offered the expert riding lessons and Western hospitality I expected from a dude ranch. Our only disappointment was the lack of a pool at Aspen Canyon.

Weekly rates at Aspen Canyon are $1,700 for adults; $1,200 ages 7-16; $900 ages 3-6 and free for 2 and under.

Weekly family rates at Drowsy Water are $1,735 for adults; $1,540 ages 14-17; $1,350 ages 6-13 and $755 ages 5 and under—deduct $345 if you don’t ride. (But if you don’t ride, why go?) Youngest children get pony rides around the ranch, no trail rides.

Most of the ranches offer other activities, too. We loved the Colorado River white water rafting trip run by Mad Adventures, for an extra $45 for adults and $38 for children 4 to 12 years old (the minimum age is 4).