After closing their doors earlier this year, the crew from Rafter Six Ranch are back up and running at a new location.
The new property is being leased from Bow Valley Provincial Park and is right next to the old property, where the ranch remains for sale, which is accessed by the same road.
Kateri Cowley, daughter of Stan and Gloria Cowley, who started the business, said they are working in conjunction with the park and are allowed to do trail rides and camping on the property.
The new location opened on Mother’s Day of this year, May 11.
They no longer have the ranch house accommodations or dining facilities, but Kateri referred to the new Rafter Six as more intimate and interactive. She said they still have a lot of the horses that visitors have come to love.
“We would just like to encourage people to come out and come for a horseback ride with us and see that we’re back in the saddle,” Kateri said. “It was kind of a little bit of a blow, but we’re still riding, still smiling and still having a great time out here.”
While speaking with the Eagle, people were certainly coming out. The family’s King Sheppard dog Cowboy eagerly greeted visitors driving up to the new site. Visitors were looking for everything from trail rides for the whole family to private lessons.
One young girl’s eyes glistened as she looked at Kateri’s shiny new Calgary Stampede belt buckle. Kateri had won it at the annual Cowboy Up Challenge and was the first woman to take home first prize in the history of the competition.
Kateri showed the young girl a clip of her race on her iPhone and the girl described her dreams of becoming a barrel racer.
“It’s really inspiring for a lot of people to see that you can get knocked down but you can get back up,” said Kateri with a smile.
After 38 years of operations, the Cowley family closed their doors in January. In 2008 the Cowleys entered into an agreement with a company hoping to expand the ranch, but in 2009 that company entered into receivership. The Cowleys were left to carry the debt.
The asking price was originally listed at $12.5 million, but Kateri said it might have gone down since then.
The ranch began an Indiegogo campaign Nov. 30, 2013 that ran until Jan. 15 of this year. The campaign had a goal of $6,500, and managed to raise nearly double that at $11,327. Donations ranged from $6 to $466.
Kateri said the money helped her family with the move and to feed the horses over the winter.
“It definitely helped the last month move a little bit smoother,” she said.
The campaign is only one example of the community helping the family, according to Kateri, who said her family has been really fortunate.
“We’ve always tried to make everybody feel comfortable. I guess it is coming back around and a lot of people are very supportive in helping us out and our staff have been amazing too,” she said.
The ranch has had several movies shot at their location and hosted several stars and dignitaries over the years, including Prince Charles, Marilyn Monroe and Walt Disney. Kateri chats about visits from Casey Affleck, Josh Hartnett and Brad Pitt – who she describes as really nice and down to earth.
“There is a really special thing about this place. A lot of people have come and met their life partners here and found themselves,” she said. “A lot of guests have been coming back for years.”
Kateri said there was a huge response from visitors even if they had only visited the ranch once or twice.
“It was really heartwarming, but at the same time is was a little bit heartbreaking,” she said.
Kateri said that they were not to sure what the future holds for the other property, which sits hauntingly vacant looking over their current location. Kateri said that she does know that her family loves the area and what they do.
“Hospitality is in our blood,” she said.
For more information on the ranch visit raftersix.com.
