The Wildlands Conservancy has agreed to buy one of Northern California’s oldest working livestock operations, protecting 14,177 acres of historic wilderness in Siskiyou County and turning it into a huge public preserve. The $15.5 million purchase of the AP Ranch, detailed in reports by the San Francisco Chronicle and official documents from The Wildlands Conservancy, marks a major change for a landscape that has been privately owned for 170 years. Located in rural western Siskiyou County near Gazelle, the vast property will be combined with the existing 6,094-acre Beaver Valley Headwaters Preserve. Once the deal is complete, the connected public preserve will cover more than 20,000 acres across the Scott River watershed. Founded in 1856 by Alexander Parker soon after the California Gold Rush, the AP Ranch is one of the region’s oldest continuously operating agricultural properties. The Newton family bought the estate in 1961 and later expanded it by purchasing nearby land. They ran the property as a year-round cow-calf operation with capacity for about 500 mother cows. According to listing details from California Outdoor Properties, the ranch has varied terrain centred around the prominent Lover’s Leap peak. Elevations range from about 3,600 feet to 5,400 feet, with the Marble Mountain Wilderness and Klamath National Forest forming the backdrop.
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