Foothill Living: Mariposa County's Bison Creek Ranch reflects owner's pioneer spirit

By Debbie Croft

What happens when a common man with a simple dream buys himself a ranch in the rugged mountains of California? He works hard day after day, living the life he's wanted to live most all his life.

"I went to church camp one summer in the mountains, and that's where I've wanted to live ever since," says Jerry Cox.

"My family was poor," he continues. "I worked in the fields with other farm hands picking vegetables, and bringing home the little bit of money I earned to help out." Making the most of opportunities to work and go to school strengthened his muscles and honed his thinking skills.

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"My father was blind and partially disabled. But I never heard him complain. Imagine how hard it would be to never see the people you love." Cox speaks quietly while looking off to the distance. "It makes me appreciate simple things like a healthy body and a piece of land to call your own. When school kids come here, I tell them about the American Dream, and the opportunities that can be theirs, if they're just willing to work hard."

After spending years in the corporate world of marketing and advertising, Cox finally left the pressures of tight schedules and constant demands. He bought a few hundred acres, got himself some animals, and thus, the Bison Creek Ranch was born -- or rather, hewn, as most of everything not made by nature has been built by Cox's own hands.

"The original owner of this ranch was a friend of John Muir. It's 125 years old, and there's still so much here from years ago: coffee pots, eating utensils and tools from gold miners, an old steam boiler, and Indian artifacts and grinding stones." Like a boy after opening a pile of birthday presents, Cox is more than eager to show his visitors all the things he's discovered since moving here. "Wanna see a gold mine? It was dug by hand. Oh, look! There's a miner's cat just between the trees! It's got a head like a cat, the body of a fox, and rings on its tail like a raccoon."

"The previous owner sold the property because it was too wild. But that's what I like about it," Cox says.

Surrounded by pine trees, natural springs and waterfalls, and an abundance of wildlife, Cox and his half-dozen ranch hands take their work at a leisurely pace. Whether they're cutting fire wood, rebuilding fencing (burned in the Telegraph Fire), or peeling bark from logs, these men combine hard work with their appreciation for the rustic beauty all around them.

Cox's friend, Taz Clark, is one of the ranch hands, and has only worked with him for a few months. "I commute here everyday, but eventually I'd like to be able to live up here and work, too," Clark says. He's still getting used to the callouses.

These men reflect a true pioneer spirit: honest, humble, sturdy. They're strong enough to lift massive logs into place while building a cabin or the entrance gate, yet they gently care for the orphaned baby animals who wandered into the valley recently.

"They probably lost their moms in the fire," Cox says.

What made him decide on the bison? "They're great gardeners!" he says. "Woodland bison eat hay, grass, brush, and poison oak."

Woodland bison roam the west in Canada, the Colorado Rocky Mountains, through the Sierra Nevada and to the Pacific coast. "Three of them came from Catalina Island," he explains. "They're the largest of the bovine; the meat has a good flavor, is low in fat, and steroid-free. It makes good jerky, too."

Early Spaniards on the continent were awestruck by the vast herds of the "crooked-backed oxen." An old bull bison can be 10 feet long, stand 6 feet high at the shoulder, and can weigh more than a ton. They often live to be 60 or 70 years old. Their numbers used to be in the tens of millions when the white man first came to America, but now there are only about 10,000 of the animals left.