The Retreat, Links, and Spa at Silvies Valley Ranch, located between Burns and John Day, paints itself as a luxury resort and golf paradise: breathtaking desert golf, no other humans for miles, and goats as golf caddies. Yes, goats. 

Its status is bolstered by the accolades tacked up in its front office, including top rankings from publications like Golf Digest and Conde Nast Traveler. But this ignores its undeniably delightful rough-and-tumble reality, the kind of place where guests don’t spend much time in their rooms or cabins, despite the king beds draped in Pendleton Woolen Mills spreads, luxurious stone showers, and plush leather couches.

The 140,000-acre ranch—some of which is leased from the Bureau of Land Management—was purchased in 2007 by Scott and Sandy Campbell. It sits on a once-lush swath of land nestled in a valley among the Malheur National Forest that’s survived deforestation and, before that, trapping led by the Hudson’s Bay Company 200 years ago. The Campbells, founders of the Banfield Pet Hospital empire, envisioned a resort that would spur the local economy after the 1980s collapse of the timber industry. Today, the sustainable ranch raises Angus beef and American range goats fed by mountain grass, clover, and wildflowers. Artificial beaver dams slow the creeks and rivers that flow through the ranch, helping with the regrowth of native plants and grasses. 

Aside from sweeping beauty, little of those details are visible to visitors. What makes Silvies special is that it treats guests like people who crave connection and a sense of place, rather than as pawns with bright blinking dollar signs over their heads. Silvies throws strict itineraries out the window, letting you choose your own adventure from a long list of activities led by the ranch’s very own “rangers,” whom you’ll get to know well. They’ll take you out for a tour of the property in the back of a sport ATV. They’ll teach you how to shoot black powder rifles and throw ninja stars. They’ll saddle you a horse for a trail ride where you might meet cowboys driving cattle or herders tending goats. When you’ve grown tired of the rugged outdoors, slip into your bathrobe and hit the Rocking Heart Spa to dip in the hot tub, sit in the sauna, or get a massage before heading to the lodge’s bar to taste rare whiskeys.

Golf is the star of the show, boasting two 18-hole courses in a reversible layout that flips on alternating days. It’s a feat not many courses in the world have mastered. (The Old Course at St. Andrews Links in Scotland is one.) The two courses—Hankins and Craddock, so named for two families of the area—are worth the five-hour drive from Portland. They play fast and firm, with tee shots carrying well beyond your typical yardage. Two shorter courses, McVeigh’s

Gauntlet and the par 3 Chief Egan course, are fun novelties that allow guests to take advantage of the resort’s resident caddy program, which consists of two handsome goats trained to carry your clubs in custom-made slings. There’s even an 18-hole reversible putting green—Claire’s Course—that puts Putt-Putt to shame, if you can stand the mosquitoes.

Dinnertime at Silvies is an experience in itself. Most guests—of which there are no more than 50 when the ranch is booked solid—sit together at a long wooden table under chandeliers made of antlers as soft country and western music plays. No need to dress up beyond a Stetson hat, but you will be expected to engage with your fellow guests in conversations of where you’re from, the day’s activities, and what’s on the docket for tomorrow. Sitting alongside people you’d likely never speak to otherwise can be jarring: we’ve seen it at float-in lodges along the Rogue River, not luxury ranches. But by the end of your stay, you will find yourself eager to chat, to share experiences, and learn from each other.

The food is inspired by the resort’s locale and is heavy on Angus beef and succulent chevon (goat meat) raised a couple of miles away. If your stay lands on a Friday-night barbecue buffet, you’ll be treated to beef brisket, tender steak, and ranch-style takes on classic dishes like spicy baked beans and rotini pasta salad. Other nights might be a mishmash of hit-or-miss dishes.

But somewhere between hole 18, exploring the ranch in an ATV, and the spa, you’ll discover that the resort is worth the visit for the people you’ll meet. That includes the intercontinental team of staff members from around the world who are eager to share their own stories of how they, like you, ended up on a cattle ranch in the middle of nowhere.