Looking for a ranch

On Tuesdays, we set off fairly early because we had already set ourselves the goal of staying on a ranch for at least a week before our trip. In Canada, we desperately searched for a ranch where we could work and live for room and board. But no luck there! Well, in California we thought we would try our luck again. We had done our research on the internet and found a nice ranch based on the description. We entered the address into the GPS, luckily it wasn't too far away. We had about an hour drive ahead of us. We drove further and further inland and also further into nothingness! When we got off the highway, the landscape started to match our expectations. Horses as far as the eye could see. My paradise. There were even road signs with a Western rider indicating that riders pass by here frequently. So, be careful ;-) 

Despite one ranch after another, our destination was still a good distance away. Eventually, we lost reception, yay! Fortunately, we were clever enough to learn about offline maps with Google Maps. We obediently followed the GPS... eventually, the paved road suddenly ended. Oh great! Where does it want to take us *laughs*. We were driving off-road in our mini car, hallelujah. We laughed so much on the last stretch before our 'destination'. Carina skillfully maneuvered through potholes and uneven terrain like an experienced rally driver. Just before the destination....... there was a gate with a thick lock on it. Oh great! What now? They probably have never heard of a doorbell either. We had no choice but to turn around. Our next thought was how can we still contact these people? We tried to find someone who could help us. Luckily, on the way there, we had already met a woman on the street. She was probably in charge of some road work. Of course, the woman wasn't there anymore... instead, there was a man. Great! I explained our situation to him, and he said we should take the other road, where there are some small properties. So, we obediently did that. The end result was that there was no one there and there was nothing resembling a ranch anywhere near! You really can't imagine it, but it really was just hills, bushes, and stones *laughs*. 

I believe I didn't promise you too much! Don't get me wrong, the landscape has its charm. But regarding our original goal, there's not much here. Alright, let's turn back! We went to the ranches we had seen earlier. We drove through the gate at the first stable and immediately realized that it was more of a riding facility than a ranch. There was no house in sight. We went to the next one, where everything was pristine. None of us dared to go in and ask... *scaredy-cats*. In the end, we decided to drive back towards civilization. 

The whole issue with the address still bothered us, so we tried another approach and entered the name of the ranch directly on the Internet. We had taken the address directly from the advertisement. Unfortunately, the Google search also gave us another address. It wasn't far from our current location. We went there... and found the ranch. But both of us had a strange feeling when we saw everything. Three very aggressive dogs, a man who didn't look like he wanted to talk to us... and complete chaos on this piece of land. The ranch topic was definitely off the table. What a shame...! It would have been convenient to visit because it was not far from LA.

Of course, we were mega frustrated... we were really looking forward to such a stay. And also to experience a different way of life. And it was also about money, this trip costs a lot of money. You can hardly imagine it... but it's just not meant to be. Well, we drove back home.