Old Winters Ranch

The Winters Ranch has been a working ranch since Theodore “Thee” Winters purchased his base Washoe Valley property in 1857. Eventually Winters, with the proceeds of a gold vein he owned in the Comstock, expanded his Washoe Valley land holdings dubbed “Rancho del Sierra” to 6,000 acres. The land provided one of the earliest sources of lumber for the Comstock Lode in Virginia City. Many believe portions of the historic town of Ophir are located on the property. The site also contains a high potential for prehistoric deposits, based on surveys performed on neighboring lands.
Critical mule deer winter habitat exists on site for the resident deer herd; it has become even more important following recent wildfires in the vicinity. In addition, the Toiyabe Land and Management Resource Plan directs the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest to protect key resource values for the Carson Front Management area--specifically mule deer travel corridors and other wildlife habitat winter range.
Ophir Creek flows from the Sierra at the northern boundary of the property. Scoured by the Slide Mountain/Price Lake landslide event in 1983, the banks and water quality of Ophir Creek benefit from restoration and stabilization activities available in public hands.