When New York magazine mogul Malcolm Forbes purchased the Forbes Trinchera Ranch in 1969, he planned to turn the 180,000-acre San Luis Valley ranch into a wildlife game preserve. But wildlife ranching only lasts for three months — not enough time to make it the ranch’s only source of income.

The Hydro Ax uses an eight-foot hydraulically operated blade to remove trees up to 30 feet tall and chops the wood, leaving a trail of mulch. Forbes Ranch managers bartered lifetime hunting rights for the equipment so they could thin overgrown brush and trees, opening the canopy to create forage for animals.

Photo by Jennifer Burris Olson.

The Forbes family still owns the ranch, but it’s up to Ranch Manager Ty Ryland to figure out how to make it a successful business. Ryland, a jack-of-all-trades with extensive understanding of ranching, biology, ecology, environmental science, economics, forestry, law, and business, has initiated a wide variety of projects to turn a profit — timbering, hunting, offering conference facilities, and growing hay.

Students explore some of the Forbes Trinchera property. It’s among the largest ranches in Colorado, extending from aspen-covered elevations to sagebrush flats and cottonwood stream bottoms. At one stop, a ranch hand cuts through barbed wire to show them where a giant yellow Hydro Ax is removing sagebrush and pinion trees to improve habitat. The students watch elk run across the range, explore streams gradually healing from erosion, and conclude their visit at the southern foot of Mt. Blanca, tallest of the three 14,000-foot peaks on Forbes Trinchera.

Ryland tells the students that the ranch breaks even only one of every six or seven years. He talks about some of the options — bison, cattle, watchable wildlife — he has considered to turn a profit, noting that the Forbes family “didn’t get to where they are today without making money.” He adds that he is continually working to form an entity to preserve the integrity of the land.

“I am always looking at how to make this place economically sustainable,” Ryland added. “I wish you all could tell me how.”

Without hesitation, the students raise their hands.