Life of Wry

Sheep Ranch. It’s a tiny place halfway between Murphys and Mountain Ranch.. which may not tell you much! It’s in Calaveras County, has a population of less than 100 (one source said 87), has no currently viable businesses, and was actually named after a sheep ranch in the late 1800s. The placard below says the town is 160 acres.

I bring this up because Sally and Ron bought a house there last summer and I drove there today for a two-day visit. (And I believe covered most of the town in a late afternoon walk with Sally.)

Here are some shots…

Down the road from Sally and Ron’s place, is this old school house. A neighbor of theirs grew up in Sheep Ranch and her mom attended school here. It looks to me like the building is a winter or two away from total collapse.

This is the old general store on Main St. Not occupied. The interior looks like it may have looked a few generations ago. This is right around the corner from Sally and Ron’s place. Note gas pump.

This is the old Pioneer Hotel. They actually still have informal community gatherings here.

Their next door neighbor … (that small brick structure, not the jail as Sally’s mom originally thought, was reportedly used to defuse dynamite.. dynamite used in local gold and quartz mining (don’t quote me on that).

Their house at sunset…

Their place is on nearly an acre and will give them projects for the rest of their lives. 🙂 Lots of fruit and nut trees, a couple of gardens, outdoor barbeque area and an outdoor shower.. for starters. There are a couple stand alone buildings that will provide Ron with workshop space, and laundry and storage and .. other stuff. Inside, no end to home projects and the fun tasks of perfecting the space for max enjoyable living.

Going to be a fun visit!