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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
World
Dani Anguiano in Rancho Tehama Reserve

‘We’re on our own’: the rural US town where police refuse calls

view of house and trailer on a road in front of trees
People typically come to the Ranch seeking space and quiet. Photograph: Andri Tambunan/The Guardian

In Rancho Tehama Reserve, residents are used to getting by without everything they need. The price, or the perk, of living among the oak trees and rolling hills where cattle graze in this rural northern California community is its isolation.

People typically come to the Ranch, as residents call it, looking for space and quiet – they only got proper cellphone and internet service three years ago. The settlement is at the end of a two-lane road that meanders through the hillsides of California’s Sacramento Valley and offers glimpses of the snow-capped peaks of Mounts Lassen and Shasta. The gas station has snacks, propane and phone chargers, and the hardware store carries alfalfa pellets, kerosene and bolts, but most anything else requires at least a 30-minute drive.

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