Although most of our acreage consists of steep hillsides covered in conifer forest with trees an average of 50-80 years old, we have several acres at the bottom of the canyon that is suitable for other uses.  Every acre produces an abundance of resources in many forms and we must be good stewards of all of them. 

Round Prairie Creek runs through our property for nearly a quarter mile and generally flows year-round.  The riparian area along the creek, is protected to ensure that it is lush, green, cool and tree-covered with maples, alders, aspens and cottonwoods.  We have numerous natural Springs whose water trickles to the creek, passing through small wetland areas, keeping them moist and allowing some incredible plantlife to thrive.  Many people forget that the native plants and shrubs in the forest understory are just as important as the large trees of the forest canopy and are much more prolific.

A great variety of wildlife live in, or wander through, our forest and come down to tiny spring-fed Ashley Pond for water and food.  Bears love it and we have seen bobcats, lynx, cougar, wild turkey, red fox, grey squirrels and an occasional marten, porcupine or racoon. There are many tiny mammals such as red tree Voles and deer mice.   

This small canyon sounds like an aviary in  Spring because so many birds live here.  You can hear Pilleated-head, tiny Hairy and Lewis' woodpeckers pounding on trees while blujays scream at Rufous-sided Towhees.  Tiny Chirping Sparrows and Gnatcatchers flit in the ferns and Meadowlarks warble in the grasses.  Wild geese and ducks sometimes pause for a rest,  osprey and hawks hunt, soaring overhead on the breeze and we have seen Sandhill cranes, Herons and even an Egret on occasion. 

We have several small meadows which our horses share with the deer.  We contain the horses so that they do not damage fragile areas and we rotate them so that they do not overgraze.  During wet seasons, they remain off the meadows completely.   We use our horses to inspect our forest as we ride under the trees and sometimes to drag out a log or two.   Everyone has a job on the Forest Farm.  Even their waste is utilized to fertilize areas where soil is thin. 

We grow food and fruit in our orchards and gardens and process them so that we will have natural healthy food all year long and we collect native plants of all kinds from the forest and grow them, along with seedlings, in pots/beds in our small nursery, all of which are watered from natural springs.  It takes a lot of work, but we take great pride in being as self-sufficient as possible.