This solid ranch property near Mink Creek, Idaho is conveniently located about 14 miles outside of Preston. It is the second largest property on East Birch Creek Road and consists of about 465 deeded acres of which 197 acres are classified as crop land. The Ranch includes a small home, classic barn, and shop. Cache National Forest shares a common boundary about 3/4 of a mile. The Ranch, which is perimeter and cross fenced, will run about 30 cows, and produce enough hay for the herd and sell the surplus hay. The property is bisected by the Mink Creek Canal, and Upper Birch Creek Ditch. The ground below the canal is irrigated with three wheel lines and some hand lines via water obtained through irrigation shares with Birch Creek Irrigation Company and Consolidated Irrigation Company. Backing up to Cache National Forest, deer and elk frequent the property, which is located in hunting district #77.
Located in Franklin County
Preston, Idaho
Recreational and Agricultural Assets
Surrounded by Beautiful Mountain Vistas
465± Deeded Acres
Conveniently located 3/4 Mile to Mink Creek, 14 Miles to Preston, 125 Miles to Salt Lake City
Second largest property on East Birch Creek Road
About 3/4 Mile of Boundary with the Cache National Forest
Mix of Irrigated Hay Meadows, Highly-Improved Pasture planted in Crested Wheat, & Timber and Mountain Pasture
197 Acres of Crop Acres
Irrigation Water Shares with Birch Creek Irrigation Co. and Consolidated Irrigation Co.
3 Wheel-Lines and Hand-Line Irrigation
Mink Creek Canal bisects the property
Currently runs about 30 cows year round and produces enough hay to feed the herd and sell extra for some income
Mostly Perimeter Fenced and Cross Fenced
1945 Modest 3-Bedroom, 1-bathroom home
Solid, well-maintained Gambrel Barn
Newer Metal Shop with concrete floor
Hunting Unit #77
Deer and Elk Frequent the Property
Reduced to $2,200,000
Norris Ranch is about 14 miles northeast of Preston’s downtown stoplight. Drive north out of Preston on Idaho State Highway 34. At the junction of Highway 36 just north of the bridge across the Bear River proceed 8 miles up Mink Creek Road to the turn off for Birch Creek Road.
Excellent commercial airline service is available at the Salt Lake International Airport. Major airlines provide service to the region, including Delta, American, Southwest, United, and KLM which operate an average of 370 departures daily.
Preston, Idaho was settled in 1888 and has served as the trade and education center for the Northern Cache Valley. It remains an agriculturally-oriented town with a population of about 4,000. This clean, attractive community maintains beautiful parks, nice rodeo grounds, primary health care facilities and a good array of farm equipment dealers. Preston, only about 12 miles from the Ranch, is the county seat of Franklin County and offers a hospital, medical and dental clinics, three banks and several grocery stores.
The college town of Logan, home to Utah State University, is 45 miles away and still treats the farmer and rancher with great respect and appreciation. With a base population of nearly 52,000 supplemented by about 28,000 students at Utah State University, Logan provides social and cultural resources not found in many western agricultural regions. Many equipment dealers and suppliers provide excellent, competitive services and prices. A regional medical facility and established clinics provide additional healthcare resources.
Approximate highway mileages from the Ranch are as follows:
Preston, Idaho
Montpelier, Idaho
Logan, Utah
Ogden, Utah
Pocatello, Idaho
Salt Lake City, Utah
Jackson, Wyoming
14 Miles
35 Miles
45 Miles
75 Miles
85 Miles
130 Miles
150 Miles
Acreage Breakdown
Irrigated Land below the Canal
Improved Pasture Land
Native Range
Approximate Total
63 Acres
131 Acres 271 Acres
465 Acres
The improvements on Norris Ranch sit at an elevation of about 5,200 feet above sea level. The high point on the Ranch is the peak next to the national forest which sits at about 6,854 feet.
The Ranch enjoys a wonderful four-season climate with the clear low-humidity air which attracts so many to the Intermountain West. Summer days will range from 70 to 85 degrees Fahrenheit and there can be a cold snap each winter for 3 or 4 weeks with night-time temperatures at 25 to 30 degrees below zero. Monthly mean temperatures will range from about 20 degrees in January up to about 70 degrees in July. The average frost-free period usually begins about May 30 and ends about September 10th for an average of about 100 days. Typically, the Mink Creek Valley receives about 18 inches of annual precipitation, with about 8 to 9 inches falling from March through June.
The Ranch includes a small home, classic barn, shop and other outbuildings.
Home
The modest 1945 1,450-square-foot home has three bedrooms, one bathroom, a kitchen, and a family room on the main level, and the basement is unfinished. It is heated with an oil furnace.
Barn
The solid, well-maintained gambrel-style barn is 2,430 square feet.
Shop
The newer metal shop, which is 980 square feet, has a concrete floor and two large roll-up doors.
Fencing
The property is mostly perimeter fenced and cross fenced.
Mink Creek Canal goes through the middle of the Ranch, and the upper and lower Birch Creek Ditches also traverse the Ranch just below the canal and near the house. The Ranch includes water stock in upper Birch Creek Ditch and lower Birch Creek Ditch.The shares in the upper ditch equate to 71 hours 42 minutes every other week beginning at 8:50 a.m. May 3rd and ending at 8:32 a.m. on May 6th and so on, until high water is gone. This is more time than any other shareholder on the ditch. Water usually lasts until about July 1st.The shares in the lower ditch equate to 2 hours every week beginning at 4:00 p.m. May 1st and ending at 6:00 p.m. May 1st and so on.
The property also includes 46 shares of water stock in the Consolidated Irrigation Company which equates to about 23 acre-feet of water. This water is drawn from the Mink Creek Canal via a Berkley Pump powered by a Perkins 4-cylinder diesel engine. It pressurizes a mainline that runs below the canal.
Prior to installing the pump and diesel engine, the Seller was able to run two wheel lines with gravity pressure only.
There is another mainline above the canal intended to irrigate the upper acreage.
At one time, prior to the Seller’s ownership, the land above the canal was irrigated. The Seller irrigated only land below the canal via three-wheel lines and some hand lines during his ownership.
The Irrigation Company orchestrates the leasing of excess water, and the Seller regularly leased additional water.
WATER INFORMATION CONTACTS
Maxine Waddups – Secretary, Consolidated Irrigation Co. 208-251-0186
Bryce Stromberg – Water Master, Consolidated Irrigation Co. 805-588-4292
Phee Crosland – Secretary, Birch Creek Irrigation Co. 208-856-0580
Lynn Jensen – President, Birch Creek Culinary Water 208-852-2354
The Seller will convey with Norris Ranch 100% of whatever mineral, oil, gas, geo-thermal, hydro-carbon and gravel rights which they actually own, subject to reservations by previous owners. They make no representation as to the quantity or quality of any mineral or other subsurface rights appurtenant to the Ranch.
The Ranch is serviced by Rocky Mountain Power. Telephone and internet service are provided by Century Link. The home is served by the Birch Creek Culinary Water System, and has septic sewer system.
Property taxes for 2021 were approximately $1,694.00.
The property is identified by assessor parcel numbers:
RP03966.00
RP03959.02
RP03960.00
The Seller is making known to all Potential Purchasers that there may be variations between the property lines and the location of the existing fence boundary lines on Norris Ranch. The Seller makes no warranties with regard to the location of the fence lines in relationship to the property lines, nor does the Seller make any warranties or representations with regard to specific acreage within the fenced property lines.
The Seller is selling Norris Ranch in an “as is” condition which includes the location of the fences as they now exist. Boundaries shown on any accompanying maps are approximate. The maps are not to scale and are for orientation purposes only. The accuracy of the maps and information portrayed thereon is not guaranteed nor warranted.
Deer and elk use the South Canyon drainage to migrate to and from high ground and the forest. South Canyon drainage flows through the west end of the Ranch. Turkeys and grouse also frequent the area. The Ranch is located in hunting district #77.
In 1873 Mink Creek was established as a Mormon colony about two years after Janus Keller and his three sons built a log cabin on nearby Strawberry Creek, just north of the present village. The four Kellers scythed the lush native meadow hay for their cattle and horses the first summer.
Then Janus left two sons, ages twelve and fourteen, to look after their homestead claim, and returned to the rest of the family and his farm 60 miles south in Utah Territory. The twelve year-old became homesick and walked home; the older brother spent the winter alone, looking after the small place and the livestock. In April of 1874, his mother and the rest of the family arrived and established themselves permanently.
Other Mormon families soon moved to the Valley. Grain fields were harvested with scythes, sheaves were bound by hand, and threshed with flails. Native meadow hay was cut by horse-drawn mowers wherever the land was level enough.
In 1878 the first post office and two schools were opened. At one time Mink Creek’s population reached 500 and then dwindled to about 250 people. School children have been bussed down to Preston since 1965.
OFFERING PRICE and CONDITIONS OF SALE
Norris Ranch, as described herein, has been reduced in price and is now being offered at US $2,200,000.00 Cash. The conditions of sale are as follows:
All offers to purchase or letters of intent must be in writing and accompanied by an earnest money deposit in the amount of $75,000;
Earnest money deposits will be placed in escrow with First American Title Company of Preston, Idaho;
All Prospective Buyers must demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Seller absolute financial capability to purchase the Ranch prior to scheduling an inspection of the property;
The Seller will provide and pay for a standard owner’s title insurance policy issued by First American Title Company of Preston, Idaho. Any endorsements requested by the Buyer or any lender will be at Buyer’s expense. Title to the real property will be conveyed by trustees deed;
Inventory of any personal property will be transferred via a separate Bill of Sale at Closing;
All of the water rights and irrigation company water shares controlled by the Seller will be transferred to the Buyer at Closing, and all of the mineral rights which the Seller actually owns will be conveyed to the Buyer at Closing;
Buyers’ Brokers are welcome and invited to contact Sam Sanders in our Salt Lake City Office for information regarding Cooperation Policies.
This entire Offering is subject to errors, omissions, prior sale, change or withdrawal without notice and approval of purchase by the Seller. Information regarding land classifications, acreages, carrying capacities, crop yields, potential profits, etc., are intended only as general guidelines and have been obtained from sources deemed reliable; however, accuracy is not warranted or guaranteed by the Seller or Swan Land Company. Prospective Buyers should verify all information to their sole and complete satisfaction.
TERMS OF INSPECTION
A 48-hour notice is requested to make proper arrangements for an inspection of Norris Ranch.
Swan Land Company has been authorized by the Seller to act as their Exclusive Real Estate Broker on the sale of Norris Ranch. Since 2002, we have focused on the brokerage of significant ranches, farms and recreational properties throughout the Rocky Mountain West.
This Offering is based on information believed to be correct; however, it is subject to errors, omissions, prior sale and change or withdrawal without notice. Information contained herein has been provided by the Sellers or obtained from other sources deemed reliable. The Agent does not, however, guarantee accuracy and recommends that any Prospective Buyer conduct an independent investigation.
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I was born and raised in rural Utah in the ’60s and ’70s. My early summers were spent working on family ranches in Wyoming, Idaho, Montana, Oregon. I’ve been lucky enough to work in a variety of fields, each of which has contributed to my extensive knowledge of logistics and handling government officials. My first ...
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