I grew up near the mouth of Blacksmith Fork Canyon, about 15 miles from Hardware Ranch Wildlife Management Area, but hadn't paid a winter visit there in about 20 years until the day after Christmas.
The Hardware Ranch area offers some prime trout fishing opportunities, which I have sought out from time to time in the warmer months. But winter transforms the 19,000-acre, state-run ranch into one of the best opportunities around to get up close and personal with the Rocky Mountain Elk, which also happens to be Utah's official state mammal.
My recent visit reminded of me of the wonder I felt as a child while observing the majestic creatures in a more or less natural environment. Each year, approximately 500 to 600 head of elk descend on the ranch's high mountain meadows and slopes to feed on hay grown on-site and supplied by the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, which manages the operation.
Similar numbers of visitors come to enjoy the ranch's signature horse-drawn sleigh rides, which give people near face-to-face views of the elk in exchange for a nominal fee.
"It's great because the kids can see the wildlife in a more natural setting instead of in cages," said Mike Morris of Salt Lake City, who brought his 7-year-old daughter McKenzie and 5-year-old son Michael to the ranch for a post-Christmas visit.
McKenzie Morris was surprised at how big some of the animals are.
"I hope they don't get mad at us," she said.
Actually, the elk are usually quite calm when the sleighs go by. It's when people approach them on foot that they become nervous, said Shoat Roatch, one of the ranch's tour guides.
"They keep an eye on us, but they kind of get used to it after awhile," Roatch said.
Winter temperatures at the ranch are often warmer than those in Cache Valley below, due to weather inversions that trap colder air at the lowest elevations -- the same phenomena that account for poor winter air quality in Cache Valley and along the Wasatch Front.
Hardware Ranch itself is supported by visitor fees as well as sportsmens' license fees.
The ranch has also received substantial donations from the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, which has aided the development of advanced elk-handling facilities for ongoing research projects that there.
In 1945, the State of Utah purchased 7,560 acres near the top of the Blacksmith Fork drainage from the Box Elder Hardware Company using funds from the Wildlife Restoration Act. Over the years, more land acquisitions brought the size of the ranch to 19,000 acres.
Hardware Ranch became a respite for elk who were gradually being displaced from their traditional winter range in Cache Valley by agriculture and residential development.
By the 1930s, friction between elk and farmers was mounting. Feeding elk at the ranch became a solution, and the animals learned over the years that Hardware Ranch had become a reliable source of food during the snowy months.
The elk come down from higher elevations in the surrounding mountains when deep snow makes it difficult to find food in the wild.
The ranch also provides habitat for other native animals.
Hardware Ranch began to take on another important role in the 1950s, when it became a center for elk research.
Each winter, some of the elk that come to feed receive ear tags and are weighed in trapping facilities. Each year, a number of elk are trapped in research pens and tested for diseases like brucellosis, which hurts populations by causing cow elk to abort their calves.
Bulls that have brucellosis will spread the disease to any cows they mate with, so it's important for wildlife managers to identify any animals infected with the disease as soon as possible to prevent its spread.
"We're proud to say we haven't found a single case of brucellosis here yet," Roatch said.
It was evident in the childrens' (and adults') faces as our "engines," two 2,300-pound Clydesdale horses named Justice and Littlefoot, pulled us away from the impressive elk herd, that seeing the animals up-close gives people a greater appreciation for the abundant wildlife we enjoy in Utah.
I left Hardware Ranch wondering why, having lived so close to it for so long, this was only my second visit to see the wintering elk. I guess it's easier sometimes to take a place for granted when it's in your own backyard.
Managing Hardware Ranch
Wasatch Audubon Society monthly meeting
Tuesday, Jan. 19, 7 p.m.
Ogden Nature Center
966 W. 12th St.
Dan Christensen, manager and supervisor of Hardware Ranch Wildlife Management Area, will discuss management of the ranch that is so well known for the large wintering herd of Rocky Mountain Elk and the public sleigh rides. Since its inception, the operation has involved elk research, production of meadow hay, and a variety of informational activities and projects for the public.
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