Eastern Oregon Cottonwood Ranch

Cottonwood Ranch
15072 Cottonwood Creek Rd, Fields, OR 97710
This Eastern Oregon ranch presents a tranquil retreat from urban life & busy highways where the only sounds are the working ranch life & surrounding nature.  Situated in Southeastern Oregon along the Nevada border, Cottonwood Ranch lies in the western foothills of the Trout Creek Mountains.  Cottonwood Creek flows through the ranch headquarters creating a beautiful oasis that attracts local wildlife traveling through the area.  The ranch encompasses 1,027+/- deeded acres, including 658+/- acres of water rights & additional grazing from two BLM permits.

A vast majority of the grazing ground are beautiful rolling hills with native high desert plants consisting of crested wheat, rabbit brush, Idaho fescue, sagebrush & more.  The two BLM permits have self-efficient water sources with one having developed springs while the other has a 3 windmill wells & a solar well complemented by storage tank & buried mainline tied into 5 water troughs.  Irrigation is supplied by a variety of creeks & a well.  Two pivots are currently in place with one having variable frequency drive & remaining irrigation free flood waters. 

Improvements are all located in proximity of each other along Cottonwood Creek.  The property features two homes, a shop, working corrals, livestock shed, & additional storage buildings.  One home has beautiful characteristics as it is an original Sod House with the exterior portion showcasing it.  The home itself is a 3-bedroom, 1 bathroom having ample amounts of storage space with a large walk in storage space for canned goods.  The other home features a 1988 manufactured home that has been fixed up & partially remodeled, the home is a 4 bed 2-bathroom setup with large entertainment rooms.

The surrounding area provides a picturesque setting with lush rolling hills & mountain ranges in every direction.  The Pueblo Mountains, Steens Mountain, & Alvord Desert are just a few of the recreational attractions in the area for hunting, horseback riding, star gazing, backpacking, & more.  Mule deer, big horn sheep, antelope, & sage grouse, are just a few of many native animals.

The Cottonwood Ranch has historic characteristics from the original sod house to the hard-working lifestyle of living on the land.  This Ranch can run 300 head of cattle and put up enough hay to make this a balanced outfit, making it a true cowboy outfit in southeastern Oregon.

CATTLE
The 1,027 deeded acres feature excellent cattle ground with irrigated pasture, set of working corrals, livestock shed, & cross fencing.  The irrigated ground is planted in grain & grazed in the later portion of the season.  Near the house are the set of working corrals with sorting pens, livestock scales, hydraulic head chute, & a large pasture space that would be excellent for calving.

The BLM ground are all beautiful rolling hills with the East Sandhill Allotment having ample feed in the foothills from winter runoff in the drainages & developed springs throughout the area.  Developed springs feed into water troughs for livestock & wildlife passing through the area.  The West Sandhill Allotment is out the back door of the ranch headquarters with a flat portion in the valley & climbs into the west portion of the Trout Creeks.  The allotment is a private & year around with crested wheat is the primary source of food with a well supplying water in the higher elevation.  The well feeds into 5 water troughs spanning nearly 3 miles from each other with buried mainline.  The water in the flats is supplied by wells powered by windmills & generators.

IRRIGATION
The 658+/- acres of irrigated ground are sourced from a range of different water sources; cottonwood Creek, Dry Creek, Red Mountain Creek, Oreanna Creek, Holloway Reservoir & a well are the number of different sources.  The ground has flood ditches that distribute the water throughout the fields with a series of diversion points.  The ground is planted in a mix of grain & hay.  There currently are two pivots installed with a variable frequency drive & mainline interconnected with a turbine pump.  Owners are currently working on transfers to use the pivots.  Additional to the primary water rights, there are an additional 64.7 acres of supplemental water rights.  Located near the irrigated fields is a large stack yard with game fence keeping out deer & antelope in the area.

RECREATION
Surrounded by thousands of acres of BLM ground, the ranch has plenty of recreation in the surrounding area.  The Alvord Desert, Steens Mountain, Pueblo Mountain, Trout Creek Range, & more have many opportunities to horseback riding, ATV trails, mountain biking, backpacking, hunting, fishing, & more. 

Alvord desert has been one of the most well-known places in the area with its attraction for wind surfing, camping under the stars, & driving around due to its large surface of flat dried lakebed.  The Alvord Hot Springs are located off the desert providing a great space to soak up & Fields Station has great food as well as their ‘Worlds Famous Milkshakes’.

The irrigated fields provide food & habitat for surrounding animals.  Deer & antelope have been seen almost daily in the fields providing fantastic hunting opportunities to fill LOP tags.  Big Horn sheep are found in the mountain ranges in the surrounding area.  Quail, chukars, grouse, hawk, eagles, & more also can frequently been seen on the farm or nearby.

The isolated high desert provides a beautiful scene of star gazing as it is considered one of the darkest places in the lower 48.  The only light pollution being from locals that often time are 10s of miles away from one another.

IMPROVEMENTS
The ranch features a handful of outbuildings all located along Cottonwood Creek & near one another.  On the ranching side they have a good set of working corrals complimented with a barn featuring 8 stalls,4 with runs, & a tack room with storage.  A GP building is located nearby for storage & tools.  A shop with concrete floors can be found by the corrals for quick access.

The two homes featured are an original Sod House & a manufactured home.  The Sod House sits in a beautiful setting surrounded by mature trees & was built by the first homesteaders in the turn of the century.  Exterior walls on the southern & eastern portion still show the original build while other portions consist of cedar & stucco covered by a comp roof.  Inside the home are beautiful original features of wood floors as well as 21^st century updates.  The kitchen is a larger space with ample countertop space, over under oven, gas stove top, dishwasher, refrigerator, & island space.  The bathroom features updates & a large vanity space.  Washer & dryer are in a food storage room on the north portion of the home with ample shelving for all your needs.  One bedroom is located downstairs while the remaining three can be found upstairs with both featuring original wood floors.  Outside the home is an 18 fruit tree orchard with peaches, pears, apples, plums, & cherries. 

The second home is a 1988 double wide that features 4 bedrooms & 2 full bathrooms.  The home has laminate flooring running through it with two open living spaces & views of the valley.
LEGAL: 40S36E00-00-00500 & 40S36E00-00-00400
IMPROVEMENTS:            
Two Story House – 4 Bed, 1 Bath – 1,787 sq ft
Manufactured Home – 4 Bed, 2 Bath – 1,782 sq ft
GP Building – 2,400 sq ft
Machine Shed – 1,760 sq ft
Livestock Shed
Working Corrals
Livestock Scale
ACREAGE: 1,027.94+/- Deeded Acres – Per County Records      
GRAZING PERMITS: Sandhills West Allotment & Sandhills East Allotment
WATER RIGHTS:                                                                             
Certificate#    Primary Acres           Supp. Acres   Priority Date              Source
93921              497.4                           41.5                 Aug. 28, 1980             Multiple
34230              41.5                             23.2                 June 26, 1962              Well
11385              40                                --                      Sept. 21, 1933             Multiple
1024                80                                --                      April 1, 1916               Multiple
11349                          480 Acre Foot Reservoir         Oct. 2, 1916   
FINANCING: Cash or Bank Financing
TAXES: $3,196.08 – Per County Records (Farm deferral)