Eagle and Carrizo Mountain Ranches

This is truly a mountain range very similar to the Davis Mountains and the Chisos Mountains of the Chihuahuan Desert.  Eagle Mountain is the fifth highest range in the state with elevations ranging from the Rio Grande River to 7,484 feet at Eagle Peak.  Most of the ranch consists of high mountains, wooded canyons, grasslands and desert scrub country near the river and lower slopes.  The Eagle Mountain ranch has a network of roads, one of which supports the FAA tower at the summit. This road is paved with guardrails, culverts, and is maintained by the tower lessee.  This road provides easy access to the higher elevations. There is a nice adobe headquarters in the mountains on the paved private road as well as several other improvements scattered around the ranch.

Carrizo Mountain Ranch

This 27,361 deeded acre ranch is a working cattle ranch that includes the entire Carrizo Mountain range within its border.  The ranch is a combination of fee simple land of 27,360 acres. There are two small headquarters in need of repair, one off Hot Wells Road and the other off Scott’s Crossing Road. The ranch is a wide sweeping grassland and scrubland on the south, elevating to a long series of rugged peaks on the north creating the Carrizo Mountains with Hackett Peak at 5,296 feet.  Bass Canyon is also on the ranch which is the location of the Overland Trail between San Antonio and El Paso in the mid 1800’s. This trail was used as a stagecoach mail route in the days of the old west!

A series of water wells provide storage and troughs throughout the ranch. Most of them are shallow windmills or solar wells.  Additionally, there are surface tanks that capture summer rains and provide livestock and wildlife waters for several months.   The ranch is literally surrounded on three sides with public roads granting easy access in, out and around the property.  There are numerous drainage’s and peaks that provide some very interesting dramatic topography while still being accessible.  The views to the south looking at the Eagle Mountains are extraordinary and change with the seasons from green during the summer to white after a winter snow.

Eagle Mountain Ranch

The 49,899 deeded acre Eagle Mountain Ranch is one of the most unique ranches in Texas as it is a landscape unto itself, and although extremely mountainous, also accessible. Driving on the paved road up to the summit creates access rarely shared on a mountain property.   This high elevation property creates its own weather during summer rains giving way to increased grasslands, lush woodlands and a combination of vegetation that is not only unique, but desirable for wildlife.  Mule Deer populations are greater here due to this increased habitat and with oaks, junipers, and giant yuccas at the higher elevations. Steep mountain slopes, rocky outcrops with jagged peaks and wooded canyons all combine to provide an incredible landscape.  At the higher elevations you can see far into Mexico to the south beyond the Chinati and Sierra Viejo mountains near Marfa.  To the north the Guadalupe mountains and to the east the Davis mountains are all visible on a clear day.

The north facing slopes are covered in vegetation and the south slopes are more of an open mountain to flat grass and scrubland.  The land sloping south becomes gentler and spreads out toward and fronts on the Rio Grande.  There are also some GLO state owned leased sections that makes the ranch operation contiguous. Several named features include Cottonwood Canyon, Cypress Springs, Eagle Peak, Carpenter Spring, and Panther Peak, to name a few.

Improvements on this part of the ranch include a very nice 4-bedroom, two bath remodeled adobe home with huge covered porches.  This home is adjacent to the paved mountain road, providing easy access.  Additional improvements on the property include barns and outbuildings. Driving to the summit on Eagle Peak and even to this home during the hotter months, you can feel the temperature drop as you approach the higher cooler elevations. There are a number of water wells, tanks, and springs that provide water all around the ranch. There is three phase electricity all the way to the top of the summit where along the way two submersible wells access this power in the creek bed. Other wells include a solar well on the north side of the mountain as several wells on the south side.

The Eagle Mountain/Carrizo Mountain Ranches are actually two nearby distinct properties that are connected by an improved caliche county road and miles of a paved/concrete private easement road linking the ranches with easy access.  The ranches are divided into the 27,360 deeded acre Carrizo Mountain Ranch that is south of I-10 starting just west of the City of Van Horn and runs for 11.5 miles including and past the Allamore exit into the Mountain Time Zone of the west.    The Carrizo Mountain Ranch has frontage on Scott’s Crossing county road to the east, Union Pacific Railroad to the south and Hot Wells county road through the west.  It includes the entire Carrizo Mountain Range where there is for the first time in 2019 a Desert Big Horn Sheep Permit.  The ranch has two I-10 corners creating a future commercial investment opportunity.

The south portion of the divided ranch is and has been called for decades the Eagle Mountain Ranch comprising of 49,899 deeded acres.  There is a deeded road from the I-10 Allamore exit that goes for 4.5 miles as a county-maintained caliche, well improved road to the railroad crossing, where it becomes a paved and concrete road all the way to the top of Eagle Peak at 7,484 feet. Twelve miles of paved road and an engineering feat rivaling the highway up the Chisos Mountains in Big Bend, it is rumored that this road cost $11M 25 years ago.  The ranch also fronts on the Rio Grande River to the south and county maintained Red Light Draw Road accesses through that portion of the property near Indian Hot Springs.

This mountain range functions as a habitat island, with intermountain ridge lines and valleys serving as corridors for wildlife migration, especially between Texas and Mexico along the Rio Grande.  Numerous bird species that are normally associated with the Rocky Mountains and/or Mexican Highlands are known to occur within this island of montane habitat. The climate and soils support a mix of desert and mountain vegetation from scrublands to grasslands, to juniper and oaks uplands.  Grasses include sideoats, blue, black, hairy, and chino grama as well as cane bluestem, green sprangle-top, tobosa, tangle head, and many others.  Along the canyon floors, and especially on the north facing slopes, there are large giant yuccas, piñon pine, alligator juniper, oaks, cherry, madrone, cottonwoods, and willows.  A variety of flowering plants and cacti provide habitat for migrating and resident birds, bats, and butterflies.

This is truly a sky island habitat with unique plants and animals as higher rainfall in the mountains supports an isolated island of woodland habitat.  Views of area mountains and grasslands of the Trans-Pecos as well as into Mexico are breathtaking.

A mere 1.5 hours from El Paso International Airport and 1 hour from Van Horn Airport, the ranch has large well-established landowner neighbors, all with low fences and excellent game management programs, making the entire 77,260 deeded acre Eagle Mountain/Carrizo Mountain Ranches the perfect ranching, hunting and recreation property.

This is big mule deer country, and the ranch has been carefully managed over the past 10 years to improve the herd and maximize the potential for growing large mature bucks.  Blue quail, Gamble’s quail, and dove populations are tremendous and create great hunting opportunities as do Aoudad and other game species.  There is also a population of elk located in the Eagle Mountains and they are seen regularly on this ranch. Native trees, brush, and grasses, along with a desirable mix of mountain browse provide excellent habitat for these game species and many native birds and other non-game animals.  A huntable natural population of Desert Big Horn Sheep are on the ranch.  This ranch has habitat, slope and the animals. An 8-year-old Ram scoring 178 was taken recently as the first permit was issued in October for the Eagles and another Permit is being secured for the Carrizos.  There were over 80 Sheep observed in the Eagles and in the Carrizos during October securing a solid future for this property as a Big Horn Sheep hunting ranch.

Other wildlife include fox, javelina, coyote, eagles, mountain lion, bobcat, songbirds, hummingbirds, and an amazing diversity of reptiles, invertebrates and mammals, making this a very special place to see and experience the various Chihuahuan Desert wildlife species.

Price and Remarks

The General Land Office leases will be assigned to the purchaser. The exact mineral ownership is not known by the Seller or Brokers, but all minerals owned will convey with the sale.  The Brokers know and have discussed the possibility of adding the ranch property lying between the Eagle Mountain Ranch and the Carrizo Mountain Ranch.  This adjoining property contains approximately 47,000 deeded acres and the owner of this adjoining ranch has indicated willingness to sell this property, given a reasonable amount of time to locate a replacement ranch.

Because of the rugged mountain topography found in many areas of this offering, true ownership boundaries are not always determined by existing boundary fence lines. In the rougher portions of the property, it is common that mountain rimrocks, ridgelines or other dramatic features create the operational boundaries of the ranch. This is common throughout this rugged portion of West Texas.

If you are in the market for a large land holding offering scenery, hunting opportunities, cattle ranching and the potential of long-term appreciation, please give us a call to schedule an inspection. The beauty, contrast, and vastness of the Eagle Mountain Ranch and nearby Carrizo Mountain Ranch make this offering one that should be strongly considered.

Eagle and Carrizo Mountain Ranch 77,260 acres at $737 per ac $56,915,020 

Eagle Mountain Ranch 49,899 acres at $765 per ac or $38,172,735  

Carrizo Mountain Ranch 27,360 acres $685 per ac $18,742,285