The Lazy Llama Ranch is 22 beautiful acres in Tumalo, Oregon. We're just outside of Bend, located in the high desert in the central part of the state. We moved here in 1992 from Southern California where we had been living since 1968. Prior to that, we're native Canadians from Ottawa, Ontario.

       This page follows the project that was our ranch in the making. We turned dirt fields into livestock pens and hay fields, and we've added photos to illustrate what was going on at the time. Most of these photos were taken during and after construction revealing the final product as it was in March 2004. It's been a lot of hard work, but we're enjoying the results. I'll be happy to answer questions if you're in the process of getting your own farm together and see something you'd like to incorporate into your own place. Enjoy and welcome to our ranch!

       Prior to living here, my son and I lived in our own house, but my llamas lived at my parents' place in the city on a modest 3 acre parcel. In 1999, the city began to encroach upon their space through annexation and we decided a change was in order. And what a change it was, we moved and faced 22 acres of work! Needless to say, my tractor gets plenty of use.

       There are 3 separate dwellings on this property, two of which are joined by a six car garage. One separate dwelling (known as the Western house because of its facade) also had a built in motor home garage, which I use as the critter room complete with a small "vet" space. I have all the llama equipment in there. In addition, we added an RV garage for the 40 foot Beaver Patriot. I will attempt to explain the events of the past year in chronological order as best as I can.

       I moved to this location on August 16th, 2002. I, and a contractor friend named Jeff Johnson, immediately began construction on the new llama pens. That meant digging the posts out (recently installed at my parents house in town) and putting them in here. After nearly five months and lots of hard work, I finally had all my critters in one place.

       Next came the five small shelters, one large shelter, and the barn. I decided to recycle those too. I got quite a few strange looks driving down the road with wall sections in the trailer. We had the barn dismantled and relocated here, then reassembled. Once the shelters and barn were erected, Jeff dug up over 8000 linear feet of trenching for electrical outlets and frost free water taps to each pen.

       The RV garage, which also has two hay storage areas on either side, was started in October of 2002 and completed in December of 2002. The new bean box was built in February of 2004.

       Let me share with you a fact we were not aware of prior to moving in. We live in a wind belt, as in really windy. 74 mph winds in December? No problem. The new RV garage lost shingles from the day it was complete and continued losing them for 4 weeks. The contractor came out and repeatedly replaced them. Then the wind would rip them off again. It was a blessing when the big storms stopped blowing.

       The first item of attention was the grounds. In the fall of 2002, I noticed that the large irrigation pond was leaking. So in March of 2003 we removed approximately 2500 yards of muck and installed a multi layer liner system, comprised of two kinds of plastic topped with small river rock. We bordered the pond (175' long) with river rock and installed a new pathway and beautiful pier to sit on and enjoy the view of the mountains and beautiful sunsets. This project took almost a month, with a crew of four.

       The next item of attention was the surrounding grounds. We started on the bypass next, which allows drivers to arrive, make a loop, and leave without having to back up and turn around. The grounds were mostly dirt, with very little grass. We knew that if we didn't want dirt in the house with every opening of the doors, something would have to be done. After spending almost six weeks repairing the irrigation system, we finally had seedlings sprouting. We ended up sowing approximately 5 acres of grass around the main houses and western house.

       Thus with the help of a small army of workers, the landscaping became a reality. In March, my son and his fiancée decided to get married on the property. They had fallen in love with the gorgeous view and pronounced it "The Place" to exchange their vows. So now there was a timeline involved!

       The next task was the focal point of the front yard, the Rose Garden/Courtyard. Dale Simpkins, our friend and groundskeeper, did a superb job of the pavers and block wall rose planters. It enables us to use the planters as seating space and leave plenty of room for dancing, picnics (using my homemade table) or pit barbeques. As you'll see in the photos from ground breaking to the finished product, complete with koi pond and water fountain, this was an extensive job and Dale completed it only the day before the wedding! Talk about cutting it close!

       During the time that Dale, the crew and I were working to get the grounds in order, we had a painter, named Steve Scholer of Panorama painting, come in and completely repaint the interior and exterior of all buildings on the property. The previous owners liked mud brown - we DID NOT! For the exterior, Mom chose a soft pumpkinish brown with dark forest green trimming. The painting of the interior took place over winter of 2002 and 2003. The exterior was done beginning in the Spring of 2003 and was also finished just prior to the wedding in June. My house interior was finally painted during the 2003 holidays. No decorations this year in my house that year.

       As the months and years rolled by and tasks were completed and fine tuned, we finally began to see the fruition of our dreams become a reality. There remain a few things to do as in tilling the fields and replanting hay. We also would like to put in a formal perennial garden (in progress) in the back yard overlooking the large pond. I also envision a gazebo on the peninsula of the pond. The most recent construction was the addition of a pergola and spa on my back deck.

        As of June 2004, the small hay field has been worked and sown. It is now showing young pasture. The large 10 acre pasture has been worked over extensively, but still not planted. The manicured lawns grow so fast I can barely keep up with the mowing.

Family ~ Llamas, Animals & Services ~ Links ~ Main

Carole Giroux
Email carole@lazyllamaranch.com or lazyllama@bendcable.com
Phone (541) 388-0701 * Cell (541) 410-5944
Bend, Oregon

www.lazyllamaranch.com