Just over an hour's drive west of Albuquerque, NM, the Lobo Ranch occupies 46,485 deeded acres of stunningly beautiful landscape marked by large mesas, rock formations, sandstone bluffs, expansive grasslands and open valleys interspersed with hundreds of archaeological sites and ancient petroglyphs. This working cattle ranch has outstanding recreational attributes, including abundant wildlife and plentiful habitat, on over 70 square miles of contiguous land adjacent to the Marquez Wildlife Area.

With elevations that range from approximately 6,000 feet to more than 8,000 feet, the ranch encompasses several distinct ecosystems that are home to a variety of wildlife from Rocky Mountain elk, mule deer and Barbary sheep to black bears, mountain lions, quail, turkey and upland birds. Seasonal pastures with excellent winter range along the southern and eastern valley slopes favor both cattle and elk. The current owner grazes approximately 400 animal units in an operation that is biased toward wildlife and range preservation.

Improvements include a 3,700±-square-foot guest lodge with a large fireplace and wrap-around porch, a bunkhouse, manager’s residence, barns, equipment shop and a helicopter hanger. The ranch is accessible year-round via Cibola County Road 1, a county-maintained gravel road, north of Interstate 40 at the Laguna Interchange.

Location:
Lobo Ranch headquarters are 55 miles or about an hour’s drive from Albuquerque, N.M., via Cibola County Road 1 and Interstate 40. A county road leads from the headquarters to State Highway 279, providing easy access year-round.

Laguna, N.M., a census designated place or CDP, gives the ranch its mailing address and encompasses the original settlement of the Laguna peoples, as well as the modern Laguna Pueblo, located south of the ranch.

The closest community is Bibo, N.M., (pop. 140), approximately 6 miles from the ranch and home to the Bibo Bar & Grill, a popular watering hole known for its green chili cheeseburger.

Grants, N.M., the county seat of Cibola County, is 53 miles west of the ranch.

Most of Lobo Ranch is in northeastern Cibola County with about five percent of the ranchland in adjoining Sandoval County. The Marquez Wildlife Area borders the ranch on the north.

Albuquerque International Sunport, the city’s large, full-service airport with non-stop flights to Denver, Dallas-Fort Worth and more than 20 other U.S. cities, is about an hour’s drive from the ranch. Grants Municipal Airport is about 55 miles west of the ranch.

Recently the owners of the Lobo Ranch have constructed a dirt airstrip approximately 2,600 feet and 80 feet wide for small aircraft usage.

General description:
Lobo Ranch extends 12 miles north to south and nine miles east to west, encompassing more than 70 square miles of some of the most spectacular and varied landscape that New Mexico has to offer. From La Mesa del Canon Seco in the north to La Mesa de Lobo in the south, massive tablelands define the terrain of the ranch. From the caprocks, craggy cliffs descend steeply into secret, rocky canyons and wide valleys that roll into the grasslands beyond.

This is a geologically young and dynamic land formed by tectonic upheaval and volcanic activity during the Late Cretaceous Period and continually shaped by water, wind and weather in the millions of years since. Twisted sandstone spires and sedimentary cliffs worn into natural stairways, arches and amphitheaters mark secret places where ancient peoples carved their stories into the rock more than a thousand years ago.

To those ancient peoples and their descendents, this was—and is—a sacred land, marked by the guardian peak of Mount Taylor, which dominates the horizon west of the ranch.

It is a changeable place of brilliant sunlight and shifting shadows, of colors of every hue, delicate purple wildflowers, red rock fingers, green pine forests, fiery orange sunsets. It is a place of vast blue sky and endless stars, of billowing clouds and sudden summer rainstorms that leave the air impossibly fresh and crisp. It is a place revered by ancients and moderns alike, a land for all time.

Lobo Ranch is comprised entirely of deeded acreage. There are no state- or federally-owned lands within the ranch’s boundaries.

The ranch ranges in elevation from about 6,100 to 8,200 feet above sea level. Most of the mesa tops rise above 7,000 feet, including Mesita de La Madera at 7,730 feet.

The different elevations and diverse terrain of the ranch create discreet ecosystems and distinct seasonal pastures, which benefit cattle and game alike. The valleys slope generally toward the south and east, making for excellent winter range on the southeastern pastures. Summer pastures are generally at the higher elevations in the northern areas of the ranch. In all, there are about 10 pastures, with the largest about nine sections in size.

The current owner grazes about 400 animal units in an operation that is biased toward conserving range grasses and enhancing the wildlife habitat. In drier years, the number of cattle on the ranch has been reduced to preserve the native grasses.

Vegetation
Like the terrain, the vegetation is diverse, ranging from xeric scrubland to thick, healthy grasses. Predominant grasses include Grama, Sideoats, Sacaton, Galleta, Winter Wheatgrass, Pine Grass and Arizona Fescue. Browses include Four-wing Saltbrush (Chamisa), Winterfat and Apache Plume, as well as various rushes and sedges.

The higher elevations are forested with Ponderosa and Piñon Pine and Gambel Oak. Gray Oak and Mountain Mahogany also grow here.

46,485± deeded acres

Broker comment
In the western US it is increasingly rare to find large deeded acreage ranches, especially within reasonable proximity to a major city and regional airport. Most New Mexico ranches are heavily interspersed with state and federal leased land. The Lobo Ranch is rare in the sense that all the deeded land is in one contiguous block. Additionally, most of the property is extremely private and one could literally go days without seeing another person. The land itself is diverse and generously vegetated offering wildlife habitat and grazing for livestock. Punctuated throughout the ranch are several massive plateaus, deep canyons, arroyos, numerous drainages, massive rock outcroppings and steep ledges. The sunrises and sunsets over this landscape are absolutely exceptional and second to none in every way.

The current owners have reduced the total number of livestock, repaired existing water resource features and constructed new dirt tanks in strategic locations. Internal road infrastructure has been substantially improved as well. This ranch represents an opportunity to acquire a large, private piece of land well suited for recreational and agricultural interests that is not heavy on improvements and very well located.