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Show Sleish Rides Knd for Elk Watchers Sleigh rides to elk feeding .grounds at Hardware Ranch have ended for the season. The horse sleighs have been put away, and personnel at the ranch are busy with spring chores. The unique rides at the Division Div-ision of Wildlife Resources' ranch, east of Hyrum, attracted attract-ed over 23,300 elk viewers this past winter. Since the Division purchased the ranch in 1946, people from every state and several foreign countries have enjoyed the free sleigh ride among the elk. The purpose of Hardware Ranch is to maintain the Cache elk herd in huntable numbers, to hold the herd back from agricultural agri-cultural lands in Cache Valley, and to protect the critical foothill foot-hill winter ranges needed for deer production. The ranch played a colorful role as an early day Indian and trapper rendezvous. It was first homesteaded in 1868 by Lehi Curtis. The name "Hardware" comes from the second owner, the Box Elder Hardware Company. Com-pany. In 1894 a dairy farm and cheese factory was operated at the ranch. This was once the largest cheese plant in the Utah Territory. |