A real Texas ranch experience

“We allow people to come out to our ranch and we guide them around the area on our American Quarter Horses,” says Phyllis.  “We teach them how to ride a horse, then take them to the rim of the Palo Duro Canyon and explain the rich history of West Texas: The Comanches, Charles Goodnight, Palo Duro Canyon, so many things that happened here that people are not aware of. They love it.”

People from all over the world have been there.  When I visited with Phyllis, there were guests there from Luxembourg and Switzerland. 

“We have a variety of horseback rides that range from one hour to three hours and we also do chuck wagon events where we have entertainment, history talks, and serve a great western meal of brisket and all the fixings.  That’s very popular, but we only do it for private events.  They’re great, and people enjoy them.”

The ranch operates only during the day and evening.  There are no overnight accommodations.  Phyllis says not everyone who goes to the ranch is an experienced horse rider.

“Most people who come here don’t know how to ride a horse.  They’ve ridden maybe a couple of times or rode when they were younger, but they’re coming from Europe or Australia.  They just want to ride a horse in Texas.  They are thrilled to be here pretending to live the cowboy life.”

Phyllis gives visitors a real Texas ranch experience.

“A lot of people are interested in what we do, and we try to deliver not with a Disneyland kind of fervor but with a good old Texas ‘this is how it is’ reality.”

Before she left the hotel industry, she managed the Ambassador Hotel in Amarillo and turned it into a five-star facility.

“I decided to start a business doing some things that I truly love, which include hospitality, horseback riding, and history.”

She credits Paul McCartney of the Beatles fame for giving her the idea to start the business.

“He was staying at the hotel, and I invited him and his wife to come out to the ranch.  I told him about how friends would come out to ride, and he told me I ought to start a business offering rides to the public. So, I did.”

When she first got word that a celebrity was going to be staying at the hotel and was told who it was, she was extremely excited because she loved the music of the Beatles.  She put Paul in a suite that was all about cattle. Paul is a vegetarian.