Ranches around Big Horn, Wyoming

Entrance to the Spear Ranch around Big Horn, Wyoming

 

 

 

 

The Spear Ranch was a beautifully manicured ranch that did not look like a "working-ranch". Everything was so modern, well maintained, even manicured that it appeared to be a hobby-ranch for some wealthy city slicker. A simply beautiful property in any event.

 

 

Direction signs to ranches down what looked to be private roads around Big Horn, Wyoming

 

 

 

 

 

 

Beautiful buildings visible from the road on this Ranch around Big Horn, Wyoming

 

 

 

 

 

 

This looked like a "play-ranch" for some wealthy city slicker. The property was extremely beautiful and carefully manicured almost like an English golf course, if you get my drift. Beautiful non-the-less!

 

 

 

 

Entrance to the Gallatin Ranch Big Horn, Wyoming

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Entrance to the Little Goose Ranch Big Horn, Wyoming

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This was the "end of the road" for us since Little Goose Ranch was at the end of Little Goose Canyon Road and from here on it was a private road on private property with NO TRESPASSING signs. We would have loved to followed this road to the end, but it was not to be. Possibly another time.

Ranch buildings at the Little Goose Ranch near Big Horn, Wyoming

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

While this is stunningly beautiful property with simply beautiful barns and other buildings what caught my eye was the "hogback" running from one side of this picture to the other. For those of you that are not familiar with the term "hogback" let me help you a bit. According to "Webster": a hogback is: "a ridge of land formed by the outcropping edges of tilted strata; broadly : a ridge with a sharp summit and steeply sloping sides". Several things have occurred to create this "hogback". In terms of how this happened we must go back 50 to 100 million years ago when this area was an inland sea where over millions and millions of years layers of sediment formed that would eventually become layers of sedimentary rock. Over millions of more years the inland sea rose and dried out. Then the mountain building began that created the Big Horn Mountain Range -- we are looking west at the eastern exposure or foothills of the Big Horn Mountains. As the mountains rose those once flat layers of sedimentary rock were thrust up until they broke. Some of those layers of sedimentary rock were much harder than others. With those layers of sedimentary rock now in an almost vertical position instead of laying flat, erosion started carrying away the softer layers exposing the almost vertical side of the much harder layer of sedimentary layer (now sedimentary rock like limestone or sandstone). So that "hogback" that you see exposed across the entire length of this picture is the result of mountain building forces that thrust the once flat sedimentary rocks into a vertical position then erosion that carried away the softer sedimentary rocks exposing the much harder layer of sedimentary rock. We see these hogbacks up and down the eastern slope of the Rockies in Colorado and along I-25 & the Big Horn Mountains here in Wyoming. Another beautiful exposure can be seen northwest of Cheyenne, Wyoming from Horse Creek Road SR-211 between Horse Creek and Farthing. A few miles west of Loveland, Colorado off Big Thompson Canyon Road, is an exceptional hogback called Devil's Backbone. In Canon City, Colorado near Royal Gorge there is a scenic drive called Skyline Drive that is a one-way drive along that hogback. Do not miss that scenic drive and experience when you visit Canon City and or Royal Gorge. Another great "hogback" is located a few miles southwest of Denver in a place called Dinosaur Ridge in Morrison, Colorado. Dinosaur Ridge is indeed a spectacular hogback that beautifully exposes dinosaur-bearing rock. Both bones and tracks of a variety of animals from the Age of Dinosaurs are visible. This is a great (must do) place for both adults and children. There is a Dinosaur Ridge Discovery Center on site that really helps both children and adults understand what they have seen and are about to see.

Old barn on Little Goose Canyon Road out of Big Horn, Wyoming

 

 

 

 

We took this picture on our return trip down Little Goose Canyon Road. We we passed by earlier an older gentleman was doing carpentry work on that unpainted door area you see in this picture. It was such a picturesque barn that Joyce just had to snap this picture. Thanks Joyce. :-)

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Mike & Joyce Hendrix

 

 

 

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