Wyoming Hereford Ranch

Keith and I like to sometimes take a quick ride into the Wyoming Hereford Ranch on our way home. The Ranch is just on the other side of the freeway from the KOA. Here we found a small herd of herefords near the ranch house. There were new calves amidst the big cows, though they don't show up in the photo. 
From the WHR website:  
Since 1883, Wyoming Hereford Ranch has been a major source of registered Hereford cattle. Superior seed stock has been marketed throughout North America and many other lands providing for efficiently produced tasty, healthy and nutritious beef. The location, the environment, the men and women and the Herefords involved here have made this hallowed Hereford ground.

And maybe these horses belong to the residents of the big house. I always love to see pretty horses in a green field, no matter where we are.

Arriving in the 1870s and utilizing investment capital from Scotland, Alexander Hamilton Swan created a literal empire, consisting of one million acres of land and over one hundred thousand head of cattle. However they were not the efficient kind, being slow to mature and gaunt of frame. To Swan’s benefit, an associate of his, british-born George Morgan, convinced him to experiment with native cattle of England, specifically Herefords. Swan decided to establish a large registered Hereford herd, which he did in 1882 under the name of Wyoming Hereford Cattle and Land Association.

A glimpse through the trees shows some of the outbuildings around the ranch. All the buildings are painted red, a beautiful contrast to the grass and trees. (Click to see this photo up close.)

This is the Ranch House, an amazing edifice. It sits on a little rise above the brilliant red barns and outbuildings.

My favorite part of the Hereford Ranch is this avenue of giant cottonwoods lining the approach to the complex. Our car is pointing away from the buildings because the light was better that way.  I read on the website that the grounds, the barns, and the avenue in the photo are frequently used for weddings and other types of gatherings. Horses and old-fashioned wagons are also available to make the event truly a western one. It is a beautiful place, one that we will visit again and again.