Ranch 4sale

 MIKE BLAKELY'S SEVEN STARS RANCH
FOR SALE IN LLANO COUNTY, TX!

Spread the word to all your friends looking for that special Texas Hill Country getaway, retirement escape, gentleman's ranch, and/or recreational hunting/fishing property.  My Llano County retreat, The Seven Stars Ranch, complete with the "Tin Roof Tavern" celebration barn, is for sale!  This is a special piece of property for many reasons.

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The Seven Stars consists of 93-plus acres of gently rolling land,  well timbered with post oak, blackjack oak, live oak, and a smattering of mature mesquites, all of which provide ample firewood and barbecue embers.  If our horses could talk, they'd tell you it's an excellent equine property.  It's also a phenomenal wildlife habitat, including many game species.  An agricultural tax exemption is in place on this property located between the two villages of Buchanan Dam and Bluffton - only three miles to either village, both of which provide convenience stores, gas pumps, and other amenities.

When Lake Buchanan is full, it's waters pass under a small bridge on Texas Ranch Road 261, and fill up a beautiful cove bordering the north end of the Seven Stars Ranch.  You can get in your bass boat on the ranch and motor out under the bridge onto the gem of the Highland Lakes - Lake Buchanan.  Even when the lake is not full, the front gate of the Seven Stars is only two miles from the nearest public boat ramp.  Lake Buchanan is known for it's great striper fishing, plus angling for bass, catfish, and crappie.

It's incredibly rare to find a sizable parcel, on the lake, without typical lakefront prices or high taxes.  The property taxes remain low, thanks to the ag exemption, which is currently satisfied with mouflon sheep and llamas.  I am in the process of converting the ag exemption to a Texas Wildlife Management Exemption for 2011, which would make livestock on the ranch optional.

Annie and I currently live in the one-bedroom, one-bath cabin on the ranch.  It's a solid, 760-square-foot structure on a concrete slab, with tile floors.  The attached screened-in porch includes washer and dryer hookups.  The concrete porch and patio provide a shady, relaxing setting with a great view of the ranch and the lake.  It's perfect for a chiminea in cool weather.  A nice little fenced-in garden area with rich soil provides abundant vegetables for the table.

This cabin could be remodeled a number of ways, or could easily be added onto.  It could be a guest house, office, mother-in-law quarters, foreman's house, rental property, B&B, hunting cabin, or a wonderful small home for the right person or couple.  There is, of course, plenty of space on the ranch to build a dream home.

Everything functions well in the cabin.  A propane tank provides fuel for the oven/stove, and wintertime heaters. Ducting is place for central heat and air.  There is a good well on the ranch that even during the severe dry spell of 2009, provided plenty of pure water.  There are also small stock tanks on the ranch which never go completely dry, even after months of drought, providing invaluable water for livestock and wildlife.

Speaking of wildlife, the ranch holds an amazing variety of species for wildlife viewing and hunting.  The lake and other water features attract migrating waterfowl and shore birds.  Song birds and raptors are commonly spotted.  Predators I have sighted on the ranch include coyotes, foxes, bobcats, and even a solitary mountain lion sighting.

As for hunting on the Seven Stars, the ranch provides excellent wing shooting for doves and ducks, plus sport hunting for varmints and predators, a few hogs, and wild turkeys.  But the most remarkable hunting opportunity on the ranch involves the most popular big game animal of North America - the whitetail deer.

Llano County, Texas, claims the most densely-populated whitetail deer habitat in the world.  So, there are plenty of deer!  In Llano County, Texas, hunters can harvest five deer a year, including up to two bucks.  Annie and I used enough of our deer tags last year to fill our freezer and feast on delicious venison for the entire year.

And, because the Seven Stars is surrounded on three sides by parcels of equal or much larger size, all of which practice responsible hunting programs, the buck-to-doe ratio is quite good, and there are numerous mature bucks to be found on the ranch every season, especially during the rut.  Much of this happy situation has to do with a very large ranch that borders the south side of the Seven Stars.  All of the surrounding ranches are low-fenced, allowing free movement of wildlife.

Perimeter fencing around the Seven Stars is in great shape, as is the cross-fencing that creates three separate pastures, allowing for rotation grazing.  A two-acre, high-fenced trap adjacent to the barn would make an excellent orchard or vineyard.  The 50-X-50-foot pole barn includes four horse stalls, plus plenty of storage for hay and ranch equipment.  Also, half of the structure can be used as a party barn for family reunions, barbecue cook-offs, and other fun gatherings.  I call it the Tin Roof Tavern, and I have been hosting monthly musical concerts there.  It even has a stage and a spotlight!