Getting Back in the Saddle

As we drove down the gravel road to the Moore Ranch, we were greeted by a cow, three calves and a goat who thought he was a calf. The Moore Ranch, a 1,416-acre family ranch surrounded by prairie in southwest Kansas (about 40 miles southeast of historic Dodge City), is where my mom and I were going for three days on what the Moores call “a ranch experience.” I didn't know what a ranch experience was exactly, but it sounded like something worth trying.

Soon after meeting the animals on the gravel road, I met their human counterparts—Nancy, Joe and Laramie Moore. Laramie, who at 12 is only a couple years younger than me, is home schooled. He doesn't watch TV, he already knows how to drive and he raises chickens—200, at last count. When he was in first grade, he wrote a book titled Everything You Want to Know About Chickens.

I was a little jealous of his life on the ranch, especially the fact that he didn't have to go to school every day.

Cows, Chickens and Other Critters

After dinner of baked potatoes, green beans, homegrown beef from their longhorn cattle and banana bread, we went to see our cabin. It was a small, simple stand-alone cabin with a private toilet and shower. All seven of the cabins were brought in from an old motel in Cunningham, Kan. Five served as guest rooms and the other two were a gift shop and the Cook Shack, where you could get sodas and coffee and watch videos of the Moore's collection of cowboy movies.

• A ranchhand at the Moore Dude Ranch helps the author reacclimate to being on horseback.
• Pam Grout

While touring the ranch, I soon discovered that the bovine greeting committee was just the beginning. The Moores also have 600 other cows, Laramie’s 200 chickens, horses, guinea hens, sheep, cats and three dogs named Rita, Poppy and Molly.

Later that evening, Mom and I walked down to the Cook Shack. The wooden walkway leading from our cabin was covered with small toads that jumped away whenever I tried to catch them.

In the center of the big table in the Cook Shack was a small wooden box. My mom thought it was filled with playing cards and she asked me to open it. But instead of hearts, diamonds and spades, a fake mouse jumped out. My mom screamed, and I cracked up laughing.