Six hundred thousand railroad ties once floated down the Wind River from the Wyoming Tie and Timber Company’s headquarters, located at the present-day Triangle C Ranch near Dubois, on their way to build the Chicago and Northwestern Railroad, which had reached Riverton sometime in 1906.
As the railroad progressed, so, too, did the Wyoming Tie and Timber’s headquarters, which moved to its DuNoir Camp in 1921, leaving behind a set of rustic cabins that proved perfect for an entirely different kind of business — the American dude ranch.
The location, which is entirely within the Shoshone National Forest, has been a dude ranch ever since, beginning with the Rocky Mountain Highway Lodge and continuing on into the present day with the Triangle C Ranch, now 93 years old.
The ranch, which represents not just one but two slices of iconic Wyoming history, has just hit the market, listing for $4.95 million with Live Water Properties. It’s a once-in-a-generation opportunity to own this historic property, located in a stunning setting, according to Live Water Associate Broker Matt MacMillan and Sales Associate Emily Feuz Staal.
“What could be better than a dude ranch that sits right on the banks of the Wind River, an hour and a half from Jackson Hole?” MacMillan said. “You’ve got amazing recreation right out the back door.”
While there’s no deeded land in the offering, the property includes all the buildings and equipment, as well as the Forest Service leases, making it a turnkey dude ranch opportunity for the right buyer.
Since the ranch is surrounded by the Shoshone National Forest, the property feels like it’s an inholding. And being inside the forest gives guests at the dude ranch immediate access to extraordinary horseback riding adventures.
“They take their guests on as beautiful trail rides as you’re going to find anywhere,” MacMillan said. “And they ride out from the ranch. They do not need to trailer. They can saddle up and ride from the ranch.”
The Triangle C Ranch near Dubois has been a working dude ranch for nearly a century. Now the Wyoming property surrounded by the Shoshone National Forest is on the market, listing for $4.95 million. (Courtesy Triangle C Ranch) 
The Triangle C Ranch near Dubois has been a working dude ranch for nearly a century. Now the Wyoming property surrounded by the Shoshone National Forest is on the market, listing for $4.95 million. (Courtesy Triangle C Ranch) 
The Triangle C Ranch near Dubois has been a working dude ranch for nearly a century. Now the Wyoming property surrounded by the Shoshone National Forest is on the market, listing for $4.95 million. (Courtesy Triangle C Ranch) 
The Triangle C Ranch near Dubois has been a working dude ranch for nearly a century. Now the Wyoming property surrounded by the Shoshone National Forest is on the market, listing for $4.95 million. (Courtesy Triangle C Ranch) 
The Triangle C Ranch near Dubois has been a working dude ranch for nearly a century. Now the Wyoming property surrounded by the Shoshone National Forest is on the market, listing for $4.95 million. (Courtesy Triangle C Ranch) 
The Triangle C Ranch near Dubois has been a working dude ranch for nearly a century. Now the Wyoming property surrounded by the Shoshone National Forest is on the market, listing for $4.95 million. (Courtesy Triangle C Ranch)
A Basecamp For Adventures
The dude ranch isn’t just a horseback riding venue, however. It’s a basecamp for almost any kind of outdoor adventure imaginable.
There’s access to the free-flowing Upper Wind River practically right out the back door of the ranch. Anglers will find that stretch of river rich with native cutthroat trout, but there are also rainbows and browns, too.
In addition to guided horseback rides, hiking, mountain biking, rafting, archery, campfires and cowboy poetry are available in the summer, and there’s snowmobiling, snowshoeing and cross-country skiing in winter, all of it taking place in gorgeous scenery.
That means there are no bad cabins to stay in at the ranch.
“It’s a classic western setting,” MacMillan said. “Depending on which cabin you might stay in, you could be looking out over the river, or onto the forest or the high peaks. There are numerous different settings on the ranch relative to the accommodations. But you’re sleeping in a log cabin in the high country of Wyoming, so it’s that cool mountain air and the river out the backdoor.”
Each cabin retains its historic nature, Feuz added.
“Some of the cabins date back to 1917, mid-1920s is when these were built,” she said. “And they’ve been maintained, so you’re staying in a piece of history as well, not just a cabin.”
The cabins, the scenery, all contribute to a sense that guests have escaped the modern world.
“With the fast-paced world that we live in, and everything bright and shiny, it is pretty cool to step back in time and just have the opportunity to stay in a historical cabin,” MacMillan said. “And you’re in the National Forest in Northwest Wyoming, so it’s just pretty cool.”
The Triangle C Ranch near Dubois has been a working dude ranch for nearly a century. Now the Wyoming property surrounded by the Shoshone National Forest is on the market, listing for $4.95 million. (Courtesy Triangle C Ranch) 
The Triangle C Ranch near Dubois has been a working dude ranch for nearly a century. Now the Wyoming property surrounded by the Shoshone National Forest is on the market, listing for $4.95 million. (Courtesy Triangle C Ranch) 
The Triangle C Ranch near Dubois has been a working dude ranch for nearly a century. Now the Wyoming property surrounded by the Shoshone National Forest is on the market, listing for $4.95 million. (Courtesy Triangle C Ranch) 
The Triangle C Ranch near Dubois has been a working dude ranch for nearly a century. Now the Wyoming property surrounded by the Shoshone National Forest is on the market, listing for $4.95 million. (Courtesy Triangle C Ranch) 
The Triangle C Ranch near Dubois has been a working dude ranch for nearly a century. Now the Wyoming property surrounded by the Shoshone National Forest is on the market, listing for $4.95 million. (Courtesy Triangle C Ranch)
Focusing On Texas Business Interests
The ranch’s present owners include famous horse trainer Chris Cox, who is a four-time world champion of Road to the Horse, with back-to-back wins from 2007, 2008, 2011 and 2015.
The ranch was sued in March after an Irish woman said her vacation went wrong in 2024. According to the lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court, a wrangler had accidentally blasted her horse with bear spray, causing it to rear. The horse fell backwards and crushed her foot, breaking her ankle.
Cox could not be reached at the time this article was posted for comment about his time in Wyoming or selling the ranch.
MacMillan said the family feels it is simply time to close this chapter of their lives.
“It’s been less about a business for him — although it’s highly profitable — but it’s been more about a lifestyle for his family,” he said. “He and his wife, their two children, truly wanted to run a dude ranch in the West.”
The family ran the ranch for eight years, spending their summers in Wyoming for 14 weeks in June, July, August and half of September, and then returning to their home in Weatherford, Texas.
Chris offers horsemanship clinics at his Diamond Double C Ranch in Texas, as well as filming some of the episodes for his television show, Chris Cox Horsemanship, which airs three times a week on RFD-TV to more than 40 million households.
“They’ve sort of seen this (chapter) in their lives through with their children and had this experience,” MacMillan said. “And Chris and Barb have business obligations elsewhere that have kind of just, it’s time to turn it over. They’ve really enjoyed it, and they’ve made it super profitable, so now they feel like it’s in a good place to turn it over to a new buyer.”
Renée Jean can be reached at renee@cowboystatedaily.com.
