Oregon Space Cowboys: A Modern Approach to Land Management
Tucked away in the Northeast corner of Oregon on the edge of Hell's Canyon lies the Zumwalt Prairie. Here, a group of dedicated cattlemen are mixing satellite technology with traditional ranching techniques to bring a new approach towards land management.
In 2017, Dan Probert partnered with The Nature Conservancy, the Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) and The Climate Trust to develop a plan that would allow the grasslands on his 12,225 acre Lightning Creek Ranch in Joseph, Oregon to thrive, helping to ensure a sustainable future not only for his ranching lifestyle but also for the livelihood of the native plant and animal species.
SIG SAUER recently sat down with Probert and his ranch hand Cody Ross to discuss the strategies that they employ to keep their ranching business and lifestyle thriving.
But Probert isn't just looking to protect the grasslands upon which his herd of 1,000 cattle graze. Also grazing on the rolling hills nestled between the glaciated Wallowa Mountains and the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest are herds of wild elk which no longer have the numbers of natural predators that they once did. To help manage their numbers, Probert organizes elk hunts and in the process, helps to preserve the resources of the 500-square-mile Zumwalt Prairie on which the Lightning Creek Ranch sits.
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