Feel the Power of Nature.
Feel Interconnected. Feel Alive.
While we get our Warm Springs up and running, we thought you would enjoy a description of a day in the life of one of our guests. You can also watch "Excellent Adventure," a two part video showcasing a typical day at the ranch along with many of the scenic landscapes and vistas you will be surrounded with.........
You wake up early at the crack of dawn to see and hear the world famous Elegant Trogan perched on a cottonwood. You decide to hike into El Cajon Canyon, a surreal boxed canyon where there is stunning beauty at every corner. You may hike all the way inside the canyon, seeing a family of coatimundi on the way to 2,000 year old petroglyphs painted on cave walls. You look up at 300 foot tall canyon walls, and you pass through a perpetual tunnel of sycamore and cottonwood leaves as you walk through the river bed, most of which is running with yearround spring fed water.
You jump from one massive boulder to the next, bouldering your way through sections of the canyon. Only the sound of nature can be heard; gentle breezes, the song of birds, the trickle of running water; oftentimes the sound of nothing is deafening, yet completely relaxing.
After a delicious breakfast, which you enjoy outdoors in a balcony overlooking peaks, rock formations, mountains and ridges, with a view out of an Old West movie, you decide to explore the Bavispe River. On the way there, your guide and you have a great conversation about the region as you look at the stunning scenery that reminds you of a national park in the US, similar to Zion. Once near the river, you hike through an amazing canyon with a tropical feel to it. You get your feet wet as you walk through a warm stream fed by natural spring water.
You trek further into the canyon and feel like you have entered something out of Indiana Jones, as the 500 feet high canyon walls narrow to about 10 feet apart, boulders strewn everywhere, the only path to the river being the comfortable flowing riverbed full of water that pours out of the canyon wall itself. Finally. you reach the river, admire its sheer beauty, and get into a kayak for an unforgettable 14 mile journey through stunning boxed canyon scenery.
If you have time you explore pristine Lake Angostura, a 20-mile long body of water that is devoid of humanity. There is not one boat or jet ski on the entire lake, no exhaust, no nothing; indeed, there is no other person except you and the constant splash of bass jumping out of the water. Kayaking through placid waters, looking up at the Sierra Madre mountain range that was once host to Geronimo's last stronghold, you feel totally relaxed and energized as the waters of the lake combine with soft winds to lure you into a sense of deep peace.
In the afternoon, after gourmet lunch, you and your guide take a jeep tour through some of the ranch's most beautiful areas. You traverse country that is wild, rugged and remote. The road oftentimes looks down hundreds of feet into canyons, and the sheer scenery of the land has your camera working overtime. You see scenery that is inspiring, breathe air that is pure and fresh, and all the while you glance at a natural wonder devoid of human activity or footprints. You realize you are seeing a land lost in time; the land truly seems like the last frontier. On your way you spot beautiful coues deer and wild javelinas well as a vast assortment of diverse birds. You feel reenergized and rejuvenated; you feel alive.
Once back at base camp, you enjoy a great home cooked, mesquite -fed meal next to a warm and comforting fire, seeing the sky above as if it is burning in a raging inferno, just as the sun disappears over the western horizon. In time you are enveloped by pitch black darkness, yet up above you see hundreds of thousands of stars, looking at a haze that you later learn is not a cloud or haze at all, but the Milky Way itself. You see stars you have never laid eyes on, innumerable clusters and patterns you never knew existed. You discover that this region is perfect for stargazing, and you see that no human lights interfere with your ability to rediscover the stars.
Finally, you pass out, ready to reenergize and do it all over again tomorrow. You don't know who got more of a workout, you or your camera. As you fall into dream land, you realize you are staying in a land called the "lost frontier," "the land lost in time," "some of the wildest land you will ever see," and, naturally, Chamahua, "the land from which all things flow." You feel you are in a National Park, yet without crowds, noise, civilization. You are right where you want to be. Somewhere, in the background, you doze off to the howling sound of coyotes readying themselves for a night of hunting.
In the morning, you decide, you will hike up 7,450 ft tall El Pinito, or possibly hike yet another stunning boxed canyon, after a great horseback ride, of course, possibly even soaking and immersing yourself in mineral rich warm springs, or you will go on yet another jeep tour, this time to parts unknown, amid beauty unsurpassed, in a land you will never forget.
Life could not be better. This adventure vacation is a trip of a lifetime. It is exactly what you wanted, and needed. Rancho Los Baños feels like home.