40,000 Acre Oregon Cattle and Timberland Ranch Listed for $30 Million
An Oregon ranch that includes thousands of acres of pine trees and has the ability to graze up to 700 cows in the summer has been put on the market for $30 million.
The Kinzua Ranch located in Wheeler County near Fossil the property is approximately 40,000 acres of contiguous, deeded land. The ranch is known for its timberland, grazing resources, abundance of water and various wildlife populations. At the current price tag the land would average $750 per acre.
“Kinzua provides exceptional timberland investment opportunities, unprecedented hunting and fishing, and is a low-overhead, well-managed, and highly productive grazing operation offering significant management flexibility because of its overall size and configuration,” says Robb Van Pelt, associate broker for Mason Morse Ranch Company.
The ranch has traditionally been able to handle 600-700 cows with 30 bulls grazing from May 15 to Nov. 1. Strategic logging on the property over the years has helped improve grazing areas. There are several ponds scattered throughout the ranch to support grazing throughout the season, while seasonal streams supply additional water during the early grazing season.
The land on the Kinzua Ranch was formally established in 1909 when lumberman E.D. Wetmore bought the property through land grants signed by President Theodore Roosevelt. Wetmore would later create a logging town called Kinzua in the middle of the property in 1928 where the Kinzua Pine Mills Company was located. The town featured about 125 homes and had a peak population of about 700 residents. Today, the town of Kinzua of is gone after the Eastern Oregon Logging Company purchased the land in 1978 and more than 400,000 Ponderosa Pine were planted on the town site in 1984.
The current timber holdings on the ranch include Ponderosa Pine as the principal species, with lesser stands of Douglas Fir, White Fir, Tamarack, Lodge Pole Pine and Aspen making up the balance.
Improvements on the ranch are fairly limited in terms of buildings. There is one newer hunting cabin and two older cabins located on the ranch, but no other large out buildings for storage. There are three sets of corrals on the ranch and an extensive road network.
The Kinzua Ranch sits at approximately 3,100 to 5,100 feet above sea level with rainfall varying from about 15 inches to 35 inches, depending on elevation. It sits on the Umatilla Columbia Platuea in the lower John Day Basin in the Blue Mountains about 11 miles east of Fossil.
The frost-free days on the ranch average 60 to 80 days annually, depending on elevation. In the summer months, the average temperatures are 77-87°F degrees and in the winter months, the average temperatures are 42-56°F degrees. Wildlife on the ranch includes elk, deer, bear, blue and ruffed grouse, waterfowl, quail and turkeys.
The ranch was previously for sale in 2017 and had been listed for $28 million at that time. The similarly sized Antone Ranch in Wheeler County, Oregon recently sold after being listed for $55 million by Mason Morse Ranch Company.
