It’s hard to predict what travel in 2021 will look like, but as people start to feel more confident to roam, places offering space and privacy to social distance in comfort with the freedom to explore may be high on travelers’ lists. According to the Expedia 2021 Travel Trends Report released in mid-November, while hotels remained the most popular lodging option in 2020, “the types of accommodations showing the biggest growth compared to last year were castles, ranches, cabins, chalets and cottages. These types of retreats, typically found outside of big cities, were the perfect getaway spots for travelers in search of wide-open spaces, nature and privacy.” Experts project this trend is to continue as people look to travel safely amid the pandemic.
Far removed from big city lights, Canyon Madness Ranch announces the launch of a luxury ranch set on 14,000 acres of outdoor adventure paradise amongst the geographic majesty of northeastern New Mexico. Opening to guests for the first time in April 2021, the ranch provides thrilling equestrian pursuits, firearm-related sports, and an incredible range of wilderness activities, from archery to hiking to river kayaking and more.
An intimate property welcoming just sixteen guests, Canyon Madness Ranch’s extensive land holdings encompass Enciero Canyon, a box-canyon with seas of red clay interrupted by giant twenty-foot deep crevices. Views look out to the awe-inspiring red sandstone cliffs of the Canadian River Canyon. Mixing the high excitement of adventurous outdoor recreations with the comfort of luxury accommodations and stunning, uninterrupted, and pristine natural beauty, Canyon Madness Ranch is truly a playground for all. Going way beyond any traditional dude ranch, the Canyon Madness Ranch experience offers the quietude and enjoyment of an atmosphere that existed more than a hundred years ago, while still allowing guests to experience twenty-first century comfort.
Designed as a wilderness paradise, the peace and tranquility of Canyon Madness Ranch mixes outstanding architectural design and well-appointed accommodations with state-of-the-art sport shooting facilities, equestrian experiences and training, outdoor pursuits of all types and creative dining.
Teepee Lodge: An Architectural Standout
The main house at Canyon Madness Ranch, known as Teepee Lodge, is brand-new, and was designed by Mexican Baja architect Alejandro Uribe, who is well known for luxury and resort residences in Cabo San Lucas. Nearly architecturally impossible to complete, the lodge features twin teepee-shaped peaks over an eighteen-thousand square feet structure of indoor lodging and two levels of massive metal-alloy decks. Sitting on hard rock in a remote area, the structure’s two balconies are cantilevered over the edge of the river eight hundred feet below.
The design concept involves two teepee-shaped structures connected by a great room of immense size, suitable for living and dining, relaxation, and entertainment. The second-floor deck offers a pool table, foosball table, air-hockey tables, and expansive lounging areas. Eight contemporary styled suites offer private living rooms, ensuite baths, King beds, and sliding doors that access the balcony and the incomparable river canyon view. Each suite features its own eclectic interior design elements. All common areas are large, user-friendly and face the majestic canyon as well. Other amenities in the lodge include the owner’s private gun and art collection with paintings, sculptures, and artifacts from international artists, a large remote-controlled outdoor jacuzzi, an expansive commercial kitchen, and a menu featuring ranch-raised meats and farm vegetables.
Outdoor Pursuits
There are two main categories of outdoor activities offered at Canyon Madness Ranch based around the non-traditional firearms range and equestrian activities. Guest support is provided through certified or professionally trained guides and instructors.
Sport Shooting
Canyon Madness Ranch’s firearms program is designed to appeal to a full range of amateur and hobby users to professional or expert firearms enthusiasts. The gun ranges include a pistol range, a rifle range providing a wide range of weaponry, long-range shooting (including scoped rifles to a maximum range of 2 miles), a championship Sporting Clay course and a Trap course. For a unique shooting experience, the ranch offers a military-style firearms experience that includes firing a large caliber Barrett M82-A1 (50 cal.) from the bed of a Humvee that was a veteran of the Iraq War.
The ranch’s twelve-station championship quality sporting clay course was designed by Pete Blakeley, a pre-eminent course designer in the United States. At the end of this course is an installation called the “Covey Rise” where five clay-throwing machines eject a myriad of clays randomly and in multiples, suitable and fun for many shooters engaged in shooting these “birds” at one time. In close proximity, there is also an independent trap shooting course for those interested in another dimension of sport shooting.
Horse and Equestrian Activities
Guests can set out on trail rides of unparalleled beauty around canyon edges, sunrise, or sunset rides to the gorgeous canyon river, or add excursions to old nineteenth century Indian and homestead sites. The ranch also boasts a large, covered arena for focused training and lessons in disciplines like English cross-country trails and jumping or Western style reining, cutting, cow herding or barrel-racing for beginners through expert-level riders. Canyon Madness Ranch offers guests much more than the common “nose-to-tail” teams of trail riding horses; the ranch houses more than thirty high-quality and well-trained horses, including quarter-horses, paints, Gypsy Vanners and Gypsy Crosses in order to give guests a range of riding experiences.
Kayak, Canoe, ATV, Photography, Fishing and Archery
The size and nature of the terrain allow the ranch to showcase some of the most adventurous hikes and ATV/UTV rides. Rides can range from scenic to truly thrilling as the trails wind up and down and around the canyon edge. More challenging trails even feature opportunities for rock-crawling and bouldering. For those interested in nineteenth century American history, remnants of old homesteads abound together with artifacts like arrowheads and pottery remnants. Seasonally, depending on runoff in the Canadian River, the ranch offers river activities such as kayaking or canoeing. Guests can fish for small fishes or crayfish in the waters, but significant trout fishing is not available. The topography of both the canyons also provide memorable photographic opportunities.
Guests that are expert climbers are welcome to enjoy the mountains and sandstone cliff faces at their own discretion. Adjacent to the firearms ranges and at a safe distance is a full archery range. Equipment is available and can be enjoyed by men, women, and teenage children. The ranch is blessed with a plethora of wildlife and has not put much effort into developing a hunting program. For now, the ranch promotes shooting animals with cameras rather than bullets.
Dining
The Canyon Madness Ranch kitchen focuses on presenting a culinary experience of the most unusual kind, serving dishes uncommon in traditional high-end restaurants in town. With an emphasis on a farm to table bounty, chefs focus on healthy, organic, farm-raised, and more exotic meats including buffalo and ostrich, spices, and tastes. The ranch will house an ostrich farm with two adults producing fresh eggs for the menu. Most dietary restrictions can be accommodated if notified at the time of booking.
The Landscape
With a total of 14,000 acres, the ranch offers enough terrain of all types to satisfy the recreational desires of any guest. The awe-inspiring landscape, kept pristine by lack of excessive human activity, is home to abundant and diverse flora and fauna and scenic and soaring cliffs and rock formations. The two bookend canyons that define the majesty of this ranch provide a visual impact of maddening proportions. In person, the scale of this grandeur is overwhelming. On one side, the steep river canyon is lined by multiple layered cliffs of red sandstones and moss rocks and houses more than two miles of the Canadian River, the longest tributary of the Arkansas River rising from the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. On the other side, the ranch features the remarkable Encierro “Box” Canyon with steep edges and measuring more than two and a half miles in diameter. Incredible geological formations of countless deep crevices in the red crusted soil set the scene for the legendary kaleidoscopic sunrises and sunsets of New Mexico. Nature enthusiasts will appreciate this pristine landscape that is home to abundant and diverse flora and fauna.
