HISTORY OF LOG RIVER RANCH

Three years down, WOW! This sure has been a crazy ride already. Since we are celebrating our third year of business, here is some history of the ranch for you.

Log River Ranch all started back in the late-70’s when Grandpa Brit purchased this beautiful river-front property. The inspiration to own land here in the Chama Valley started with the friendship between Grandpa Brit’s love of the mountains and the outdoors, which he thankfully passed on to all of us.

There were no structures on property at the time, so the plan to build a stunning 5,500 square foot log cabin began. Constructed then deconstructed in Montana, the log cabin was sent off to New Mexico to be put back together again. Finally finished in 1983, the cabin was a real work of art. All the design and decorations were created with Western and Mountain Cabin influences in mind, and it stays that way today. With four bedrooms and four bathrooms, the log cabin is the perfect getaway any time of the year and has become a treasured addition to many bride and groom’s special wedding day. The original purpose was a summer home for Grandpa Brit, but it soon developed as the family vacation house in every season. As a young girl, I personally remember always coming during the winter months, to enjoy the snow and all the activities it has to offer. There is a special kind of peace when sitting by the fire, surrounded by feet of snow.

We lost Grandpa Brit in 2016, but were able to keep the ranch the way he would have wanted it to stay.

In 2017, we chose to build the now iconic wood barn. This is now the staple of the ranch, with the huge wood timbers and 14ft barn doors. The barn saw it’s first wedding on October 14, 2017, which happened to be our own! We weren’t planning to use the ranch as an event venue at the time, but this gathering went so well that we decided to figure out a way to make it happen for other couples beginning their lives together!
After a year of contemplation and planning, we decided to launch Log River Ranch, which opened its beautiful barn doors to couples in May 2019. We are so excited to continue to share important life events with people! This is why we do what we do. We love for our guests to visit Chama, to experience the ranch and the beauty of this entire mountain valley.

Cheers to many more years of making history!

Karlee and Austin Phippen