Join us this week for a very special guest blogger, Cherie Hedenskog. Cherie visited The Ranch when she was five and shared her experience with her class by writing a book this past year. As we gear up for a summer and holiday season of family reunions, vacations and gatherings, Cherie’s perspective reminds us of the lasting power of travel for guests young and old. Years later, her enthusiasm for new hobbies, sights and experiences is still evident. We love helping forge unforgettable family memories. Enjoy a tour of our homestead from Cherie’s perspective.
My Journey at The Ranch at Rock Creek
written and illustrated by Cherie Hedenskog
The Historic Barn
Have you ever been to The Ranch at Rock Creek? Did you know that the Historic Barn was built in the 19th century? That was in the 1800’s! You will learn about the funny goats, the log cabins, the horseback riding, the fly fishing, and last but not least, the bowling.
Meet the Goats
Cherie with Fruit Snack and her kids S’mores and Gummy Bear
Now, the Ranch at Rock Creek goats are awesome because this little boy named Rodee Owen named them. The goats are named S’mores, Fruit Snack and Gummy Bear… those are funny names!
When I was there I chased them, and they ran away, and then they chased me and I ran away – it was super fun! The goats are black and white, and spots are kind of like the spots on cows. They are amazing goats, and when you go to The Ranch at Rock Creek, you should go see them. You’ll like them, I promise!
Bowling in the Silver Dollar Saloon
The Ranch at Rock Creek’s bowling is the best! It is so much fun! They have bowling balls with the initials R.C. (that stands for Rock Creek). And, they have bowling shoes there and you pick your size. Then, you pick up your bowling ball. Be sure not to pick a super-duper heavy one, because you might fall down or it will be too heavy for you.
The bowling alley is in the Silver Dollar Saloon, which is a bar. I went in there and I am a kid, that is crazy! The bowling alley is a four lane bowling alley. When I went they put a rubber thing that makes it so the ball doesn’t go in the gutter.
Cherie bowling with her dad
My mommy and daddy went bowling too. I am really good at bowling but my mom and dad are a little bit better because they have had more practice than me.
Sometimes I get all the pins down, and sometimes I only get one, or two, or three pins down. It just depends on how you roll the ball and how you aim the ball. If you aim the ball right, and roll the ball right, you might hit all of the pins and that is amazing.
I think that you guys will have so much fun bowling at The Ranch at Rock Creek, and there is a whole lot more to do there too!
Horseback Riding in the Arena
When I was there, I had so much fun on my horse Tuxedo. He was nice and he was black, all black.
Cherie riding Tuxedo
My mommy and daddy had cool horses too, but I did not pay attention to what their names were. I do remember what they look like: my moms was white and brown spotted, but she was light brown and white spotted with a white mane. She is very pretty. My dads horse is dark brown and white and has a black mane, and his horse is a boy.
Adopt-a-Horse is one of the activities available for Flint’s Forest Rangers
When you go to the Ranch At Rock Creek you do not just ride in the arena, and adults can ride on the hill tops! She had a rope that was connected to Tuxedo and she walked him with me on him, and it was snowing too! The snow was falling on me, my mommy, daddy and Kari and my mommy and daddy’s horses and my horse Tuxedo.
It was fun riding a horse while it is snowing, I had the biggest smile on my face.
The Camp Roosevelt barnyard (with Historic Barn in the distance) after a fall snow
Log Cabins
The Ranch At Rock Creek log cabins are so cool. They are sort of like houses, which they are, but all made out of wood. My cabin was very nice. It had a sofa, a kitchen, one bed for me, a big bed for mommy and daddy and a fireplace. When you get your house, you also get a bike because you are not allowed to ride a car around. So, they give you a bike!
Cherie with her bike in the snow
There are a lot of different rooms at the Ranch At Rock Creek, not only the one I told you about. There are 29 houses that you can chose to live in for a few weeks or less.
Cattail Cabin, where Cherie stayed
The people who work there provide cowboy and cowgirl hats and all sorts of things that you could need for the trip. The fancy way that the people who work there call the houses is “accommodations.” So, there are 29 accommodations! There are four types of accommodations: Granite Lodge Rooms, Historic Barn suites, Luxury Canvas Cabins and private homes.
Bear House, another popular family accommodation
The Historic Barn was built in the 19th century–that was the 1800’s! The 1800’s was a long time ago, right? But most of the time someone is already using one, or two, or three, or more. So, you will not be able to get all 29 options, sorry! But, you can choose any accommodation that is available.
The Ranch At Rock Creek is a five star guest ranch. That means that they are the nicest ranch ever if they have five stars.
Fly Fishing on Rock Creek
I LOVE fly fishing at The Ranch at Rock Creek. It was so much fun! I went there with my mommy and daddy, and this guy who helped me with fishing. He was very nice. When you want to go fishing, make sure that you wear a puffy coat, jeans, a scarf, boots, a cozy hat and earmuffs because the water is super-duper cold.
There are seven species of fish in the creek: cutthroat, which is the one I caught, rainbow, cutbow, brown, brookie, bull and Rocky mountain.
The best thing happened when I caught a FISH. It is called a cutthroat trout. It was pretty big, about a foot apart between its head and tail fin. It was so cool catching a fish and holding one with my own two hands.
Wow, you read all about The Ranch At Rock Creek, and now you are an expert on The Ranch At Rock Creek! You have read about the funny goats, the bowling, the horseback riding, the log cabins and the fly fishing.
All About the Author
The author of this blog is Cherie Hedenskog. She lives in San Diego. Her favorite color is blue, and her favorite favorite animal is a dolphin, and her favorite sport is skateboarding. She has a pet leopard gecko and his name is Xander. She is 9. When she is not writing she is with her family and the other stuff that she told you about. Good bye, see you!