Carbon Canyon Businesses: Cowbiz

As profiled in this blog last year, Camp Kinder Ring, established and run by the Workmen's Circle, a Jewish organization, was located in Carbon Canyon on Carbon Canyon Road at Canyon Hills Drive from 1928 to 1958, before water access issues led to the camp's closure. Later, in 1966, Ski Villa, the first and only artificial ski slope of its kind opened on the property, with a ski shop and accomodations offered in some of the old camp buildings, while the slope was built on the hillsides across from the old camp. After a year, however, the project was abandoned. In the hippie years of the late 60s and early 70s, the place was known as "Purple Haze" and was, evidently, a magnet for all kinds of counter-culture types

Since 1973, though, the 23-acre parcel has been home to Cowbiz, a boarding and training facility for horses run by Kelly Baker. The facility also sells horses that are ranch-owned and on consignment, saddles and tack, and keeps some cattle to boot. As expressed on the website:

Our horses range from foals to broke/finished trail, ranch and show horses - we have them all. There are cattle on the premises so you can see how our working horses perform on the real thing.

We have extensive experience in Cutting, Reining, Cowhorse, Roping, Ranch Versatility and Extreme Cowboy Trail Challenges.

We offer boarding on our 23 acre facility.We have box stalls, mare motels & covered pipe pens.We have a large pleasure / reining arena, a cutting pen, & roping arena. There is a large open round pen, enclosed bull pen, 4 & 6-horse hot walkers, turn outs, & wash racks. Direct access to trails in the beautiful surrounding hills or there are 2 separate entrances into Chino Hills state park that are within just minutes with your trailer.

In addition to the owners, there are ranch workers and four trainers, all of whom live on site. Given that horse boarding and training facilities are disappearing faster all the time in our increasingly urbanized area, one can only hope that Cowbiz stays put and doesn't fall prey to what must be very enticing and frequent offers from developers who are hungrily eyeing this property. Cowbiz is at 16500 Carbon Canyon Rd. in Chino Hills and the e-mail is kbcowhorse@aol.com.

Let's see if this longstanding part of the history and rural character of Carbon Canyon and Chino Hills can continue to play its role!

The photo above was taken last October and shows some of the buildings on the ranch that were built by the Workmen's Circle for Camp Kinder Ring back in the late 1940s.