Encompassing 3,325± deeded acres in its own valley with over four miles of frontage on Upper Klamath Lake and over four miles of Denny Creek, Rock Creek Ranch is one of the premier agricultural, lifestyle, and conservation properties available in the Northwest. Owned and operated for over five decades by the same family, this best-in-class property represents the optimal combination of scenery, accessibility, privacy, water, wildlife, and agricultural productivity. The ranch is conveniently located 20 miles from Klamath Falls, the service center for the region, and an hour from the commercial airport in Medford, Oregon via State Highway 140.
The property’s vibrant, irrigated meadows spread north across the valley floor to the lakeshore and are flanked by gently sloping timberlands consisting of pine, fir, and cedar. Building improvements complement the ranch and are highlighted by a tasteful and comfortable 5,500± square foot owner’s home remodeled in 2010. Featuring four bedrooms and four bathrooms, the residence is situated in a secluded location at the north end of the ranch and offers elevated views west across the lake to the forested slopes of the Cascades. Other improvements are clustered near the ranch entrance and include a modern log shop building, a small rock ranch house, and a historic well-maintained log barn built in the 1880s. An internal road network enables one to reach all parts of the ranch and includes a well-designed underpass below Highway 140 that provides access to the southern part of the property.
Historically, Rock Creek Ranch was managed as part of a year-round cattle operation that included winter operations in northern California. The ranch is currently leased for seasonal grazing accommodating approximately 400 cows/calves and 1,600 yearling cattle for up to seven months of the year. The ranch also benefits from a private grazing lease that spreads across nearly 37,000± acres contiguous to the ranch. In addition, approximately 75 acres of the property is leased annually to Oregon State University to raise hay and potatoes. Supporting the agricultural operations are highly reliable surface and groundwater irrigation rights that cover approximately 1,000 acres.
The property lies within Klamath County’s destination resort overlay zone, which offers the potential for expansive tourism development. The ranch is not covered by a conservation easement at the present time. However, because of the property’s size, location, zoning, and extensive frontage on Upper Klamath Lake, it is a prime candidate for one.
Bordered almost entirely by large, undeveloped timber holdings, Rock Creek Ranch is a contiguous, well-blocked property that extends for approximately four and a half miles from the ranch’s northern end along Upper Klamath Lake to the headwaters of Denny Creek at the property’s southern boundary. At its widest point, the ranch is approximately two miles from east to west. State Highway 140 crosses the lower one-third of the ranch and provides year-round, paved road access. The main entrance to the ranch is from Eagle Ridge Road, a graveled county road that connects to Highway 140 and crosses the eastern edge of the ranch for approximately one mile. An excellent interior road system enables one to reach all parts of the ranch and includes an underpass below Highway 140 that was designed with help from scientist and livestock behaviorist, Temple Grandin, to facilitate livestock and vehicle access to and from the southern portions of the property.
Encompassing the northern end of the ranch, Ball Mountain is a gently sloping, timbered covered ridgeline that fronts on Upper Klamath Lake and divides Ball Bay on the west side from Shoalwater Bay to the east. Upper Klamath Lake wraps around Ball Mountain, and a series of roads and trails crisscross the mountain and provide numerous private access points to the lake. The owner’s residence is situated on the west side of Ball Mountain in a secluded stand of pines overlooking Ball Bay. South of Ball Mountain is an extensive network of highly productive, flood irrigated pastures that begin south of Highway 140 and extend and expand northward to the lake. The diverse lakefront, which extends for over four miles along the north edge of the ranch, features gravel beaches, marshes, pine and fir forests, aspen stands, and the Denny Creek outlet where the creek joins the lake.
Originally referred to as Rock Creek (the namesake of the ranch), Denny Creek originates from mountain springs at the far south end of the property. The creek flows east and then north for over four miles before it joins the lake. The upper portion of Denny Creek meanders naturally through a riparian forest and includes over 25 acres of restored wetlands that are fenced from livestock. The lower three miles of the creek are channelized along the western boundary of the property for efficient delivery of water to the ranch’s irrigated pastures. This portion of the creek holds almost unlimited restoration and enhancement potential to improve riparian and instream habitat for various aquatic and fish species native to Upper Klamath Lake. The site of the community of Tomahawk is located in the pines near Denny Creek at the very south end of the ranch. An original chimney stack still stands and is the only remains of this small settlement. Western explorers Kit Carson and John C. Frémont, during Frémont’s Second Journey of Exploration, camped at this site in 1846 and were attacked by an Indian raiding party. In the 1920s, Rock Creek was renamed Denny Creek in memory of a member of Frémont’s party who was lost in the attack.
One of the largest private agricultural holdings on Upper Klamath Lake, Rock Creek Ranch is defined by its immense natural beauty, diverse wildlife, overall productivity, and abundant water resources, including extensive lake frontage. The ranch is private and secluded, yet easily accessible to quality communities and a commercial airport. Ranches with this combination of features and amenities rarely come on the market.
Rock Creek Ranch is located in southern Oregon 20 miles northwest of the city of Klamath Falls (population 22,000). The ranch lies on either side of State Highway 140, a state scenic byway that links Klamath Falls with Medford 60 miles to the west. Retaining a small-town aura, Klamath Falls is the center of commerce for the region and home to a full array of retail and commercial venues, as well as quality health care at Sky Lakes Medical Center. Crater Lake-Klamath Regional Airport lies five miles south of the city and is home to a full service, fixed-based operator, Century Aviation, as well as the Oregon Air National Guard 173rd Fighter Wing, the US Forest Service’s Klamath Falls Air Tanker Base, helicopter and fixed-wing flight schools, and air cargo operations. Medford (population 86,000) is an hour from the ranch and offers commercial air service via Rogue Valley International-Medford Airport on Alaska, Allegiant, America, Delta, United, and Allegiant Airlines. Amtrak also serves Klamath Falls operating its Coast Starlight passenger train daily between Seattle and Los Angeles. Driving distances to other regional cities are as follows: Portland, OR, 290 miles to the northwest; Bend, OR, 150 miles to the northeast; Reno, NV, 270 miles to the southeast; and Sacramento, CA, 315 miles to the south.
Lying east of the Cascade Range along the border with California, Klamath County features a diverse landscape encompassing snowcapped peaks and timbered mountain slopes to lush valleys and sagebrush covered foothills. Klamath County covers approximately four million acres with the Fremont-Winema National Forest comprising over half of the county’s landmass. The lucrative beaver pelt market lured trappers to the area in the early 19th century, while the area’s fertile bottomlands drew settlers from the eastern United States along the Applegate Trail for over a century beginning in the 1840s. Established in 1882, the county was named for the Klamath peoples, the tribe of Native Americans living in the area when the first European explorers arrived.
Rock Creek Ranch features over four miles of frontage on Upper Klamath Lake, the largest freshwater lake in the state and one of the largest in the nation. Water from the lake is used toward the irrigation of 240,000 acres in southern Oregon and northeastern California as part of the federally administered Klamath Project initiated in 1905. The lake is one of the most prolific birdwatching areas in the Northwest with multitudes of waterfowl, shorebirds, and wading birds taking advantage of the lake’s marshy habitat during their spring and fall migrations. The Williamson River is Upper Klamath Lake’s principal tributary stream and famous for its trophy-sized Redband trout (the region’s native rainbow trout with genetic links to steelhead) which migrate up the Williamson from the lake during summer months. Majestic Crater Lake National Park, Oregon’s only national park, is also located in Klamath County just 60 miles north of Klamath Falls. Famous for its amazing water clarity and deep blue color, Crater Lake is the deepest lake in the Western Hemisphere with an average depth of nearly 1,150 feet.
Timber and agriculture are traditional mainstays of the local economy. Three-fourths of Klamath County is forested and its large stands of timber support numerous wood products businesses. Farming is also an important industry with local growers taking advantage of excellent soils, an extensive irrigation network, and abundant sunshine to raise cash crops such as wheat, barely, sugar beets, and potatoes. Regarded for its exceptional grazing resources, Klamath County is a highly sought-after location for West Coast cattle operators. A common practice for many ranchers is to summer cattle herds in Klamath County and then move to lower elevation areas in northern California during winter months. In addition to timber and agriculture, tourism and outdoor recreation have emerged as important components to the local economy by capitalizing on the area’s natural beauty and year-round recreational opportunities.
The elevation of the ranch ranges from 4,150 feet along Upper Klamath Lake to 4,720 feet at the high mark of Ball Mountain. The climate for the area is best described as semi-arid with about 300 days of sunshine a year and annual precipitation of 14 inches. Summers are warm with daytime temperatures in the mid-80s and evenings often cooling into the 50s. During winter months, when the majority of precipitation is received, average daytime highs are in the low 40s. The freeze-free season averages 120 days with the first fall freeze occurring around September 20th and the last spring freeze on June 1st.
Rock Creek Ranch consists of 3,325 deeded acres, more or less. The ranch holds a private lease to graze cattle on almost 37,000 acres of private timberlands contiguous to the ranch.
Rock Creek Ranch lies within Klamath County’s destination resort overlay zone, which offers the potential for expansive tourism and resort development. The ranch is not covered by a conservation easement at the present time. However, because of the property’s size, location, zoning, and extensive frontage on Upper Klamath Lake, it is a prime candidate for one.
Rock Creek Ranch shows pride of ownership in every respect. Building improvements complement the ranch and are highlighted by a tasteful and comfortable 5,500± square foot owner’s home built in 1967 and remodeled in 2010. The forested setting of the home is ideal and the views looking out across Upper Klamath Lake to the eastern Cascades are spectacular. The two-story floor plan includes a master bedroom on the main floor with three bedrooms on the bottom floor. Features include a sun room, granite countertops and stainless-steel appliances in the kitchen, jetted tub and steam shower in the master bathroom, and slate and custom wood flooring throughout. The home also features a three-car garage. Below the residence is a private harbor and boat launch for easy access to the lake.
The main ranch improvements are clustered near the ranch entrance and include a modern log shop building with a concrete floor, a rock home that is one of the original structures on the ranch, and a historic, well-maintained log barn built in the 1880s. Between the ranch headquarters and the main residence is an additional 1,450± square foot home that was built in the 1940s and remodeled in the mid-1960s and is currently unoccupied and used for storage. The buildings are serviced by wells and septic systems, as well as by electricity through PP&L Electric, traditional hardline telephones, and high-speed internet. In addition, a 75-kilowatt hydropower facility is located on upper Denny Creek providing renewable power back to the grid through a net-metering arrangement with PP&L. Revenue from this agreement helps to offset irrigation pumping costs for the ranch. The power house dates back to the 1920s and provided electricity to the original ranch buildings as well as to the townsite of Tomahawk.
The ranch holds two highly reliable water rights that cover a combined place of use of 1,004.6 acres. The first right is a pre-1909 surface right from Denny Creek to irrigate up to 936.6 acres from March 1 through September 30 and water 2,500 head of cattle year-round. The right has a volume of 13.55 cubic feet per second (CFS) and an annual duty of 3.06 acre feet per acre. The second right is a groundwater right, with a priority date of December 13, 2001, that covers two wells on the ranch. The right allows for 68 acres of primary irrigation and 934.4 acres of supplemental irrigation with a total maximum rate of 12.56 CFS and an annual duty of 3 acre feet per acre. The main well is located near the powerhouse at the south end of the ranch, and the second well is located near the ranch headquarters. The ranch holds two additional water rights - a right to divert water from Denny Creek to operate the hydropower plant and a right to store and manage water from Denny Creek and the main irrigation well. The pond for the storage right is located next to Denny Creek between the power house and main well.
All minerals owned by the ranch will transfer to the new owner at closing. The ranch believes it owns the majority of the mineral estate underlying the property, subject to verification.
Annual property taxes are approximately $10,000. There is no sales tax in Oregon.
The Klamath Basin offers some of the best recreation in the Northwest, and Rock Creek Ranch lies in the heart of it all. The ranch is home to a host of wildlife including elk, blacktail deer, black bears, mountain lions, bobcats, foxes, sandhill cranes, nesting bald eagles, waterfowl, quail, blue grouse, ruffed grouse, wild turkeys, and migratory songbirds. The ranch qualifies for landowner preference permits each year to hunt deer and elk (four for each species). Upper Klamath Lake is a major stopover for ducks and geese on their way to wintering grounds in California, and lakefront marshes on the ranch offer excellent waterfowl hunting, particularly during the early season migration. The fly-fishing waters of the Klamath Basin are exceptional and rival the West’s most popular trout-fishing destinations. Upper Klamath Lake along with its main tributaries, the Williamson and Wood Rivers, routinely yield wild Redband trout in the ten-pound class. The lake itself is one of the best stillwater fisheries for large trout in the western US. The Klamath River below Keno Dam, with a Federal Wild and Scenic River designation, only a few minutes west of Klamath Falls, is considered by many to be the state’s best tailwater fishery for wild trout. The Fremont-Winema National Forest and Mountain Lakes Wilderness Area are located only a mile west of the ranch. There is excellent trail access to the Wilderness Area for hiking and horseback riding just north of the ranch off of Highway 140. The Spence Mountain recreation area with nearly 70 miles of multipurpose trails, lies adjacent to the ranch with access to trailheads only minutes away along Eagle Ridge Road. Spence Mountain in conjunction with the Klamath Trails Alliance offers a developed network of trails for mountain biking, hiking, trail running, and even cross-country skiing and snowshoeing in the winter. Running Y Ranch Resort is 10 minutes away toward Klamath Falls along Highway 140 and features a high-end set of vacation amenities, including a hotel, spa, and an Arnold Palmer signature golf course.
Rock Creek Ranch is a highly productive, profitable cattle ranch that utilizes a combination of irrigated meadows, native rangelands, and timbered uplands. Historically, the ranch was the headquarters for a year-round cattle operation that included a winter unit in northern California. The ranch is currently leased for seasonal grazing accommodating approximately 400 cows/calves and 1,600 yearling cattle for up to seven months of the year. Ranch operations are supported by a private grazing lease that spreads across 37,000± acres contiguous to the ranch. Approximately 75 acres of the irrigated portion of the ranch are leased annually to Oregon State University to raise hay and potatoes. A system of ditches and pumps enables the efficient movement and use of water between 14 separate irrigated pastures that are spread across 1,000± acres of the ranch. The ranch also features a sustainable timber resource that the owner has carefully managed over the years and selectively harvested based on timber prices and market conditions. Another revenue source on the ranch involves a lease to the local broadband internet company to place a “line of sight” internet tower on Ball Mountain. Part of this agreement involves providing free internet service to the ranch.
