Nostalgia, history, and new owners beckon visitors back to Enchanted Springs Ranch for year ‘round fun and—thanks to a partnership with Old West Christmas Light Fest—thousands of holiday lights.
Story by Pamela Price
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A favorite destination for locals and tourists who were drawn to the open spaces, forty Old West-inspired storefronts, and a collection of unusual animals, Enchanted Springs Ranch closed in 2013.
In 2017, Terry and Sylvia Adams decided to bring new life to the 86 acres near Boerne.
“We grew up here, in the area. As a boy I’d come home from school and put on my boots to play, like a cowboy,” said Terry, a local businessman. “[Running the ranch] feels a bit like getting back into that spirit.”
“The ranch first opened in 2005 and used to offer events daily,” said Sylvia, a retired family practitioner. “You can tell just by walking around the property that a lot of thought and effort went into collecting old buildings and finding new ones to create that sense that you’re visiting a real Old West town.”
Under the Adamses, the venue is available once more for private events, ranging from school field trips to corporate events.
“With the school kids, we enjoy teaching them about the Old West and cowboy culture. We let them know that those stereotypes about Western life don’t hold up. For instance, cowboys weren’t all boys,” said Terry. “There were women and black people, Germans, and Indians. They all had to work together to get the job done. Not everyone had a gun in a holster. Community was important to their survival. They had to learn how to collaborate.”
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Lindsey Forsman, the ranch’s marketing director, said that the ranch is also popular with corporate entities and military units hosting foreign visitors.
“We’ve had some people out here while they visit San Antonio for training,” said Terry. “They get out here, look around, and it is clear that they enjoy taking it all in.”
International curiosity about the ranch comes from non-military folks, too.
“We had a van pull up out front and start to unload,” said Lindsey. “They were from Germany and wanted a closer look, because they want to experience what people have come to think of as being ‘Texas.’”
That vision of early Texas life was, of course, nurtured first from the area’s early European immigrants in the 1800s in letters sent home and later, as technology advanced, through movies, television, and commercials. As it happens, Enchanted Springs Ranch has served as a backdrop a few times, including for a certain famous Capital One commercial featuring Charles Barkley, Samuel L. Jackson and Spike Lee. The setting also featured prominently in a 2009 Spurs code of conduct video.
Not ones to let the ranch rest on past laurels, the Adamses are keen on what the future holds for the property. They already host team-building events and corporate and private events in the rustic setting and are busy transforming the property into a full-fledged wedding venue for one special bride.
“Lindsey’s wedding will take place here next spring—to our son, and there is a lot of excitement around that,” said Sylvia.
In the near run there is also a lot of excitement about a very special end-of-year light show, one that will bring hundreds of thousands of lights to the property. The Old West Christmas Light Fest opens at the ranch for the first time on Thanksgiving Day 2018 and will continue through the winter holiday season. There will be drive-thru and walk-around displays, campfires, treats, activities, holiday games, a handmade market, and more. Oh, and Santa will be there, too.
“We’re hoping that people who remember the ranch or who always wanted to come but didn’t make it are drawn to the lights show, especially this year,” said Lindsey. “We’re also hoping it will become a holiday tradition, something that taps into the nostalgia people that feel at the holidays.”
Meeting Old St. Nick under twinkling lights and against an Old West backdrop? It’s hard to imagine a more Hill Country way to celebrate the end of 2018.
Pamela Price is the founder of TheTexasWildflower.com.
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Enchanted Springs Ranch is located between Boerne and Bandera on Highway (Google Map it!). To learn more about their events and activities, visit their website and follow them on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
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